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From the outside, Queen Elizabeth II looks like she is all business and doesn’t have time to really be the traditional doting grandma that bakes cookies and knits sweaters. And while she may not be sitting around with her knitting needles, she has proven time and time again that she loves every single one of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, as much as any other grandmother.

Recently, Queen Elizabeth II let the world know just how much her great-grandchildren mean to her. And after all of the unpleasant things that the royal family has had to endure in 2019, it was the birth of Baby Archie that helped to bring joy to an otherwise difficult year.

The royal family had a very controversial year in 2019

Queen Elizabeth II arrives for the state banquet in her honour at Schloss Bellevue palace.
Queen Elizabeth II | Sean Gallup/Getty Images

The 2019 calendar year was riddled with controversy for the royal family.

First, in January, Prince Philip was involved in a car accident that had injured two other motorists. The Duke of Edinburgh was driving his Land Rover when it crashed into another car that had two women and a baby in it.

The two women had minor injuries (one woman had broken her wrist) the baby in the other car that was uninjured. Because of the accident, Prince Phillip lost his license and was also criticized for not reaching out to the occupants in the other car sooner. 

Another controversial moment for the royal family this year was when Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry decided to sue the Daily Mail On Sunday. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex claimed that the UK-based tabloid had published lies about Markle and had unlawfully published a private letter that she had written to her estranged father.

What made this move so controversial was the fact that at the time, there was a rumor of an ongoing feud between Prince Harry and Prince William. And it was suspected that Prince Harry did not consult with the royal family before filing the lawsuit.

While those two controversial moments were enough to insight a media frenzy, they were nothing compared to the controversial moment that would soon plague the royal family. After convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein was arrested, once again, one of his alleged  former “sex slaves” had come forward and said that she was forced to have sex with Queen Elizabeth II’s son, Prince Andrew, when she was just a teenager.

Prince Andrew adamantly denied having any relationship with the young woman despite the fact that she has a picture of the two of them together. During a disastrous interview, Prince Andrew continued to come up with various excuses as to why the story had to be false.

However, many fans thought that there were several holes in his story and that his interview only made him look guilty. Shortly after his interview, Prince Andrew announced that he would be stepping down from his royal duties.

Baby Archie helped to brighten up a dark year for the queen

Every year, the queen gives a Christmas Day Speech that is broadcasted all around the U.K. This year, the queen found it impossible not to address the elephant in the room and talk about the controversial year that royal family has had to face. She referred to the many controversies as “bumps in the road” but she insisted that the road got smoother once Archie was born.

“Prince Philip and I have been delighted to welcome our eighth great-grandchild into our family. Of course, at the heart of the Christmas story lies the birth of a child,” the queen had said. “Seemingly small and insignificant steps overlooked by many in Bethlehem.”

The queen went on to say that Jesus has illustrated how “small steps, taken in faith and in hope, can overcome long-held differences and deep-seated divisions to bring harmony and understanding. The path, of course, is not always smooth, and may at times this year felt quite bumpy, but small steps can make a world of difference.”

What does the future have in store for the royal family?

Last year was definitely a trying time for the royal family. And now that Meghan and Prince Harry have announced that they will be stepping back as senior royal members, and will be living in North America part-time, things could be getting worse for the family before they get better. However, the queen obviously loves all of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. So, as long as she still has her family, life for the queen will be pretty good.