Queen 'felt more maternal' with Princess Eugenie, Princess Beatrice

Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie were said to have been “doted by their grandparents” during their childhood.

Having lived near the Queen, the Yorks would often make a short trip from Windsor castle to visit the monarch which over the years has led to a close relationship between the two families.

Speaking on Beatrice and Eugenie: Pampered Princesses? royal author Tom Quinn said: “The Queen adored Beatrice and Eugenie.

“She saw in them something of her own relationship as a child with Margaret.”

Furthermore royal author Angela Levin said the Queen “felt more maternal towards Beatrice and Eugenie and could see that they’d had a very hard time.”

In addition, body language expert Judi James spoke about the similarities of the York Princesses to Elizabeth and Margaret.

Judi said: “Having always been so close to her own sister and her mother it is unsurprising that the Queen has very strong bonds of empathy and understanding with her granddaughters Beatrice and Eugenie.

“Like the young Elizabeth and Margaret, Fergie’s girls have always been brought up to form a very close team of two, with each appearing to offer the other support and friendship throughout their lives.

“Both sets of sisters were the children of second sons, although in Elizabeth and Margaret’s case their father leap-frogged to the role of King when his older brother abdicated.

“This hierarchical change did produce some differences in the sister’s body language signals, many of which were taught rather than spontaneous.

“Elizabeth’s power and poise signals were always expected to be superior as she was inducted into the future role she was expected to inherit.

“She even sits at a higher level than her mother in a formal group photo, placing one arm on her mother’s shoulder to hint at a more protective role.

“Her pose with Margaret in the royal office shows Elizabeth inspecting a script or document with a businesslike frown that is well beyond her actual age while Margaret has a more playful and childlike facial expression.

“Elizabeth was brought up taking a slightly maternal role with her younger sister and this even led to friction when she had to set rules and regulations for Margaret according to royal protocol.

“The Queen mother’s role seemed to be to instill a sense of duty and regal responsibility in her girls, but in particular in her elder daughter.

“It was clear from their body language though that Elizabeth and Margaret’s relationship was mutually protective with both enjoying the sense of security that comes from a close sister who has your back when the chips are down,” the expert noted.