Royal corgis

The royal corgis are the Pembroke Welsh Corgi dogs formerly owned by Queen Elizabeth II and her parents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. Fond of corgis since she was a small child, Elizabeth II owned more than 30 corgis from her accession in 1952 until her death in 2022. She owned at least one corgi throughout the years 1933 to 2018.

The royal corgis were globally publicised (such as in the cover photo and feature article of Vanity Fair's Summer 2016 edition). Leaving a lasting legacy after death, they have been depicted and immortalised in various artwork, such as statues, professional photographs, and paintings. For instance, the crown coin commemorating the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II depicts the Queen with a corgi.

History

The Queen was very fond of corgis since she was a small child, having fallen in love with the corgis owned by the children of the Marquess of Bath. King George VI brought home Dookie in 1933. A photograph from George VI's photo album shows a ten-year-old Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II) with Dookie at Balmoral. Elizabeth and her sister Princess Margaret would feed Dookie by hand from a dish held by a footman. The other early favourite corgi during the same time was Jane.

Elizabeth II's mother, at that time Queen Elizabeth, introduced a disciplined regimen for the dogs; each was to have its own wicker basket, raised above the floor to avoid draughts. Meals were served for each dog in its own dish, the diet approved by veterinary experts with no tidbits from the royal table. A proprietary brand of meat dog biscuits was served in the morning, while the late afternoon meal consisted of dog meal with gravy. Extra biscuits were handed out for celebrations and rewards.