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King Charles foraged in woods for mushrooms while queen’s life ‘ebbed away,’ book says

  • In a new book, royal biographer Robert Jobson wrote that on September 7, 2022 Charles knew that the ‘defining moment of his life’ was ‘fast approaching’
  • One of Charles’ personal protection officers approached him in the woods to tell him that his mother’s health had dramatically worsened, Jobson wrote

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Britain’s King Charles leaves St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle after an Easter service on Sunday. Photo: AFP
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King Charles went to the woods to forage for mushrooms as the life of his mother, Queen Elizabeth, “ebbed away” in September 2022, royal biographer Robert Jobson wrote in a new book.
In an excerpt, published Saturday in the UK’s Daily Mail newspaper, Jobson wrote that Prince Charles – who is now the king – had been notified that the queen’s health had “suddenly deteriorated” on September 7, 2022.

So on September 8, Charles flew by helicopter to Balmoral Castle to be at his mother’s bedside along with Princess Anne. At first, according to the expert, there “seemed no immediate reason for alarm.”

02:10

World leaders descend on London ahead of Queen Elizabeth’s funeral

World leaders descend on London ahead of Queen Elizabeth’s funeral

“Understandably lost in thought, the Prince knew that the defining moment of his life, at the advanced age of 73, was fast approaching: the death of his mother and his accession as King,” Jobson writes.

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Charles returned to Birkhall, Scotland after spending a few hours with the queen to walk around in the surrounding woods with a wooden cane and a basket, according to the excerpt.

“As the queen’s life ebbed away, her heir was foraging for mushrooms,” Jobson wrote in the excerpt. “More importantly, he was drawing solace and strength from the trees, the smell of the earth and the murmur of the River Muick.”

One of Charles’ personal protection officers approached him in the woods to tell him that his mother’s health had dramatically worsened, Jobson wrote. He returned to his mother’s bedside at Balmoral and was there at 3:31pm on September 8 when she died, according to the excerpt.
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