Elizabeth II and her Land Rovers conquer New York

In 2021, just a few months before her death, the Queen Elizabeth II was seen alone at the wheel of her Jaguar estate in Sandringham. An image that gave confidence to the British at the time, while the 95-year-old landowner rested with her doctors. Because throughout her life, Elizabeth II always drove her own cars – at least in private – with expectations for models from the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) group that decided to pay tribute to her.

From October 17 to 20, 2024, ten models of Land Rover, Defender and Range Rover were presented for the first time at a historic exhibition on the legendary square of Rockefeller Center in New York. All vehicles closely associated with the royal family, whether for official purposes or in the private sphere. For three days, enthusiasts were able to find out more about the history, features and maintenance of each of the vehicles, built during the reign of Elizabeth II, from the 1950s to the 2000s.

From October 17 to 20, an exhibition highlighted ten Land Rover, Defender and Range Rover vehicles owned by Elizabeth II. Charles Guerin/ABACAPRESS.COMPrince Philip and Elizabeth II on board their Range Rover for the 50th anniversary of the D-Day landings, at Omaha Beach in Normandy. Arnold Slater/Mirrorpix/Getty Images

For more than 70 years, Elizabeth II’s “fleet” took her around the world. Among these beautiful mechanics is a Land Rover Series I State Review dating back to 1954, a model that accompanied the Queen and Prince Philip on their first six-month tour of the Commonwealth in 1954, including Australia and New Zealand.

Elizabeth II and Prince Philip welcome the crowd aboard their Land Rover in Australia in 1954, the highlight of their Commonwealth tour. © Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Elizabeth II and the car: A long love story

From her childhood, Elizabeth II developed a passion for the world of cars. As a child, she received a children’s cart, a replica of the Citroen C4 equipped with an electric motor. A toy to be given to his son later, now King Charles III. For her 18th birthday, the young woman received a Daimler DB18 from her father, King George VI. A brand that she loves a lot, but loses its beauty a few years later, after a dark relationship of tax fraud.

Elizabeth II at the wheel of her Land Rover Defender in 2000, while traveling to the Sandringham Estate stables. © Nick Ansell/PA Wire

At the end of the Second World War, when she was in her early twenties, the future queen volunteered as an ambulance driver in theAuxiliary Territorial Servicea mission that allows him to train in mechanics. She then learned how to repair an engine and change a wheel.

Then, as Queen Elizabeth II grew older, she finally set her sights on off-road cars. Hence his interest in Jaguar Land Rover. His favorite car? Range Rover dating back to 2009, in which the owner has been photographed several times, easily recognizable by his labrador mascot adorning the hood. But this was not the Lord’s only personal vehicle: she also had a dark green escort, a color she personally chose, used on the Sandringham and Balmoral estates. An ideal vehicle for royal functions, including attending horse races or going hunting and fishing.

Elizabeth II and Prince Philip attend a horse race in Gloucestershire in 1968, on top of their Land Rover. Wire PA/ABACAPRESS.COMOne of ten Land Rover models belonging to Elizabeth II on display at the Rockefeller Center in New York. Charles Guerin/ABACAPRESS.COM

Elizabeth II, “natural leader”

The show also made it possible to find out unknown news about the landlord. According to JLR historian and public relations expert Michael Bishop, Queen Elizabeth II was a “natural driver”. “She asked us to make a set of bars to keep her corgis in the back of the family’s 1966 Land Rover Series IIA station wagon and we created a custom wooden set,” he says in the family column. Town and Country. This original function was then offered to other models of the brand.

Queen Elizabeth II gets on board her Range Rover in 2017, one of her favorite vehicles that features the mascot labrador on the hood. © DAVID HARTLEY/REX/Shutterstock