The monarch 'wanted to spend her final days at Aberdeenshire estate'
The Queen knew she wasn't going to come back from Balmoral and wanted to pass away at the Scottish residence, a royal expert has claimed.
The royal correspondent believes the Queen knew she wanted to pass away there and had never had any intention of returning to London or Windsor. Katie the BBC: "The Queen knew she wasn't going to come back [to Windsor Castle or Buckingham Palace ], I think she wanted to be in Balmoral and she wanted to pass there."
"That decision speaks volumes really about the fact that she was A) very comfortable to be in Balmoral, somewhere where she was happy to be with lots of good memories. But knowing too, with health issues and the challenges there, it might be a difficult stay and yet she insisted on making the journey."
She also believed Her Majesty would have "left her crown at the gates" to stay at Balmoral - just to be a "mother, grandmother and great-grandmother". Katie added: "I think Balmoral was the one place where she could actually leave her crown at the gates and be a different role, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother.