The Crown is finally returning to our screens for season five - but before the series has even aired the show’s writers have already been criticised for editing one of the Queen’s most famous speeches: Annus Horribilus.
'Netflix can argue about what may or may not have happened behind closed doors to justify some of their storylines, but they've essentially rewritten historyby changing the speech,’ a source told The Sun. 'This will only add to the sense that The Crown is taking huge liberties with the truth and unfairly causing untold damage to the reputation of the monarchy.’
But what even was the Annus Horribilus speech? Well, Annus Horribilis essentially means ‘horrible year’ and is a riff on ‘annus mirabilis’, meaning wonderful year. Basically, the Queen gave her Annus Horribilus speech after she had possibly the worst 12 months ever. Here’s what happened…
What year was the Queen’s Annus Horribilus speech?
The Queen gave her Annus Horribilus speech in 1992. It was a year of royal disasters begun by Prince Andrew telling his mother that his marriage to Duchess Sarah Ferguson was effectively over, before the Daily Mail published photos of Fergie coupled up with the millionaire Steve Wyatt before their split was publicly announced.
In February, murmurings continued about the state of Prince Charles and Diana’s marriage thanks to photographs of the princess standing alone in front of the Taj Mahal. Then in March, Prince Andrew officially announced his divorce, before Princess Anne left Mark Phillips in April, meaning three four of four of the Queen’s children were now catastrophically separated.
By June, another PR nightmare had struck the royals when the biographer Andrew Morton published Diana: Her True Story – a deeply critical portrayal of Prince Charles and the royal’s treatment of the princess.
In August, Fergie hit the headlines again when the Daily Mirror published photos of her getting her toes suck by her financial advisor John Bryan. And, just a few days later, conversations between Diana and her pal James Gilbey where she complained heavily about the royal family were leaked by the tabloids.
Away from her family drama, the Queen also suffered on the world’s stage in 1992 and when she made a state visit to Germany that October, she was pelted with eggs in Dresden as the area had been brutally bombed by the British. She was also booed by 5,000 people when she entered a church.
And as the year entered its penultimate month, the drama wasn’t over for the royals yet. On the Queen’s 45th wedding anniversary, a fire broke out at Windsor Castle thanks to a workman’s light and the historic (and uninsured) home was badly damaged. To top it off, the fire added to the Royals' flailing image as the Conservative party announced the public would foot the bill for the millions of pounds worth of repairs.
What did the Queen say in her Annus Horribilus speech?
Just four days after the fire at Windsor Castle, the Queen delivered her Annus Horribulus speech at a Guildhall lunch organised to celebrate her 40th year on the throne. ‘It is not a year on which I shall look back on with undiluted pleasure. In the words of one of my more sympathetic correspondents [private secretary Sir Edward Ford],’ she said. ‘It has turned out to be an Annus Horribilis.’
In full, she said: 'My Lord Mayor, Could I say, first, how delighted I am that the Lady Mayoress is here today. This great hall has provided me with some of the most memorable events of my life. The hospitality of the City of London is famous around the world, but nowhere is it more appreciated than among the members of my family. I am deeply grateful that you, my Lord Mayor, and the Corporation, have seen fit to mark the fortieth anniversary of my Accession with this splendid lunch, and by giving me a picture which I will greatly cherish.
'Thank you also for inviting representatives of so many organisations with which I and my family have special connections, in some cases stretching back over several generations. To use an expression more common north of the Border, this is a real 'gathering of the clans'.
‘1992 is not a year on which I shall look back with undiluted pleasure. In the words of one of my more sympathetic correspondents, it has turned out to be an 'Annus Horribilis'. I suspect that I am not alone in thinking it so. Indeed, I suspect that there are very few people or institutions unaffected by these last months of worldwide turmoil and uncertainty. This generosity and whole-hearted kindness of the Corporation of the City to Prince Philip and me would be welcome at any time, but at this particular moment, in the aftermath of Friday's tragic fire at Windsor, it is especially so.
‘And, after this last weekend, we appreciate all the more what has been set before us today. Years of experience, however, have made us a bit more canny than the lady, less well versed than us in the splendours of City hospitality, who, when she was offered a balloon glass for her brandy, asked for “only half a glass, please”.
‘It is possible to have too much of a good thing. A well-meaning Bishop was obviously doing his best when he told Queen Victoria, "Ma'am, we cannot pray too often, nor too fervently, for the Royal Family". The Queen's reply was: "Too fervently, no; too often, yes". I, like Queen Victoria, have always been a believer in that old maxim "moderation in all things".
‘I sometimes wonder how future generations will judge the events of this tumultuous year. I dare say that history will take a slightly more moderate view than that of some contemporary commentators. Distance is well-known to lend enchantment, even to the less attractive views. After all, it has the inestimable advantage of hindsight.
‘But it can also lend an extra dimension to judgement, giving it a leavening of moderation and compassion - even of wisdom - that is sometimes lacking in the reactions of those whose task it is in life to offer instant opinions on all things great and small.
‘No section of the community has all the virtues, neither does any have all the vices. I am quite sure that most people try to do their jobs as best they can, even if the result is not always entirely successful. He who has never failed to reach perfection has a right to be the harshest critic.
‘There can be no doubt, of course, that criticism is good for people and institutions that are part of public life. No institution - City, Monarchy, whatever - should expect to be free from the scrutiny of those who give it their loyalty and support, not to mention those who don't.
‘But we are all part of the same fabric of our national society and that scrutiny, by one part of another, can be just as effective if it is made with a touch of gentleness, good humour and understanding.
‘This sort of questioning can also act, and it should do so, as an effective engine for change. The City is a good example of the way the process of change can be incorporated into the stability and continuity of a great institution. I particularly admire, my Lord Mayor, the way in which the City has adapted so nimbly to what the Prayer Book calls "The changes and chances of this mortal life".
‘You have set an example of how it is possible to remain effective and dynamic without losing those indefinable qualities, style and character. We only have to look around this great hall to see the truth of that.
‘40 years is quite a long time. I am glad to have had the chance to witness, and to take part in, many dramatic changes in life in this country. But I am glad to say that the magnificent standard of hospitality given on so many occasions to the Sovereign by the Lord Mayor of London has not changed at all. It is an outward symbol of one other unchanging factor which I value above all - the loyalty given to me and to my family by so many people in this country, and the Commonwealth, throughout my reign.
‘You, my Lord Mayor, and all those whose prayers - fervent, I hope, but not too frequent - have sustained me through all these years, are friends indeed. Prince Philip and I give you all, wherever you may be, our most humble thanks. And now I ask you to rise and drink the health of the Lord Mayor and Corporation of London.’