(1º§) Ann Fortune FitzRoy, the Duchess of Grafton, passed away aged 101. Her death is another blow for the Queen and comes less than a year since Her Majesty's husband Prince Philip, who she called her "strength and guide" died aged 99 in April and her grandson Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left for the US. Fortune served the Royal Household for the monarch's entire 69-year reign and made her Majesty the godmother to her second daughter, Lady Virginia FitzRoy, in 1954.
(2º§) The Duchess was appointed the Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order in 1980 - an award made personally by the Queen for services to the sovereign. Few people have had such long-standing and close relations with the Queen. She was one of only...