Queen Elizabeth had ‘no regrets’, was at peace in the days before she died

Queen Elizabeth II attends an audience with the president of Switzerland Ignazio Cassis (not pictured) at Windsor Castle on April 28, 2022 in Windsor, England. Photo / Getty Images

Despite the family dramas that plagued the final years of her life, the late Queen Elizabeth II is said to have been at peace in her final days and met her maker with no regrets, says the churchman who was by her side at Balmoral just a few days before she died.

Dr Iain Greenshields, the Right Reverend and then-moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, spent some time during last summer at Balmoral Castle at the invitation of the Queen, as a form of tradition.

The late Queen was frail, according to the Right Reverend, however, in a string of heart-to-heart chats, he found her mentally sharp and pensive, focused particularly on her faith and that of her father, George VI, reports Daily Mail.

“It would be normal for a moderator to talk about matters of faith but I was very interested in how much she wanted to talk about her own,” he recalled of his time spent with the Queen.

“It was her Platinum Jubilee year and so she was looking back. She had remarkable recall. She had no regrets and was very much at peace.

“She also mentioned her father - George VI - and the great influence his faith had on her.”

Tourists take pictures on April 24, 2023, at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, the royal residence where Queen Elizabeth died last year. Photo / Mary Turner, The New York Times

Greenshields revealed that he was taken aback when his visit wasn’t cancelled on account of the Queen’s ill health.

Her Majesty, however, had wanted him to be there to give the sermon he was set to do at Crathie Church - in the same way as the Queen had been intent on seeing Liz Truss and Boris Johnson for the prime ministerial handover.

Greenshields added there were very few visitors, him being one of them, at the time of her frailty. The number of guests had been reduced so as not to tire the royal.

During his visit to Balmoral, there were only six people at dinner during the three nights he spent at the castle, those present being Sophie Wessex (now the Duchess of Edinburgh), the Princess Royal and her husband, Commander Sir Timothy Laurence, John Warren, the Queen’s horse trainer and manager, and the Queen herself.

In those last meal times, Her Majesty contemplated her faith with her family as she did in her private conversations with the Right Reverend. What’s more, her love of Scotland, particularly Balmoral, were highlighted to a great degree.

Camilla, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince George of Cambridge, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, Prince Louis of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, stand on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during the Platinum Jubilee Pageant. Photo / Getty Images

“At one point in our conversations she went to the window and said “who would not want to be here”. She was in a very peaceful, private place. She was at peace.”

Greenshields resigned from his role as moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in May.

On September 11, 2022, the churchman delivered the homily at the Service of Thanksgiving for the life of Elizabeth II at St Giles’ Cathedral, Edinburgh and was at her Westminster Abbey funeral as well.

“When she died,” Greenshields added, “I thought of my mother and how she, too, had spoken about her faith just before she died and that normally she would never do so.

“So, I do wonder if people, even subconsciously, are getting ready for the end. It’s also very common when people are dying to reflect on their parents, as the Queen did.

“She also mentioned an American religious leader who had a big impact on her and although she didn’t mention his name - and I didn’t interrupt to ask - I did wonder if it was Billy Graham, whom she met.”