How many Corgis did the Queen have and what were their names?
16 September 2022, 18:01
Queen Elizabeth II was gifted a Corgi called Susan on her 18th birthday, which sparked a love affair that lasted a lifetime.
Queen Elizabeth II was famous for her love of Corgis.
Wherever the monarch went, you could expect to see at least one of her cherished pets trotting around her heels.
So much so, the friendly little dog breed became synonymous with Her Majesty, featuring in family portraits, on royal tours and living a life of luxury at Buckingham Palace.
But how many Corgis did the Queen own during her 70-year reign? And what were her pampered pooches called?
How many Corgis did the Queen have?
The Queen's love affair with Pembroke Welsh Corgis began in childhood, according to royal experts.
In 1933, her parents – the Duke and Duchess of York – bought a chestnut-coloured pup called Dookie and asked Elizabeth, who was 7-years-old at the time, to take charge of the family pet.
Aged 18, the monarch was gifted a Corgi of her very own and this proud pooch, named Susan, sparked a love affair with the breed that lasted a lifetime.
In fact the Queen was so devoted to her dogs she supposedly owned more than 30 Corgis and Dorgis (a Dachshund and Corgi mix) during her record-breaking 70 years on the throne.
According to Reader's Digest, the Queen preferred Corgis over other popular breeds due to their "energy and untamed spirit".
At one stage in the 1980s the monarch had 13 dogs at the same time, which were supposedly nicknamed 'the moving carpet' by the Princess of Wales.
All Elizabeth II's dogs during her reign were thought to be from Susan's bloodline and spanned more than a dozen generations.
Many of these Corgis, starting with her beloved first pet, were buried at Sandringham in a very special cemetery.
What were the Queen's Corgis called?
Royal sources claim that although the Queen didn't always train her pets (that was reportedly done by the gamekeepers at Windsor Castle) or prepare their food, she liked to take them on long walks and feed them delicacies such as rabbit, chicken and rice.
She also liked to name every single one – we're guessing with a twinkle in her eye.
Because despite the Queen's status, it turns out royal pets don't necessarily need royal names.
After Susan, came Sugar and Honey, then Sherry, Whiskey and Bee.
Elizabeth II's brood grew with Heather, Buzz, Foxy, Tiny, Mask, Cindy, Rufus and Brush, along with Dorgis Pickles and Tinker.
Followed by Windsor Loyal Subject, Jolly, Georgie, Sweep, Socks, Blackie, Shadow, Chipper, Smoky and Piper.
Then Fable, Myth, Spark, Kelpie, Dash, Ranger, Diamond, Apollo and Harris.
Next were Fay, Mint, Pheonix, Pundit, Rush, Dime, Dawn, Dipper and Disco.
Flora, Windsor, Quiz, Minnie, Emma, Dagger, (another) Dipper, Jay, Linnet, Martin, Plover and Wren made up the next generation.
Which was succeeded by Bramble, Cedar, Jasmine, Larch, Laurel, Rose, Holly, and finally Willow, who was the Queen's last Corgi descended from Susan.
Candy, Muick, Sandy and Lissy were the last dogs to enter the royal household before the Queen's death.
what's your favorite royal corgi name mine is PLOVER pic.twitter.com/XiuIcluc9h
— Rebecca Alter (@ralter) September 8, 2022
What happened to the Queen's Corgis after she died?
At the time of Elizabeth II's death she left behind four dogs – Muick and Sandy, who were Pembroke Welsh Corgis, a Dorgi called Candy and Lissy the Cocker Spaniel.
According to The Independent, the monarch supposedly decided to stop breeding Corgis in 2015 as she "didn’t want to leave any young dog behind".
However she was gifted Muick, named after a spot in Balmoral, when her late husband Prince Philip was hospitalised in 2021.
Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie then gifted Sandy to their grandmother to mark her 95th birthday last year.
Read more:
- Prince Philip's coffin has been held in vault for months waiting for the Queen
- The state funeral of HM Queen Elizabeth II: How to listen
- Little girl asks Queen to ‘look out for great granny’ in tear-jerking tribute letter
