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Margaret, the Queen’s younger sister, was nine years old when World War 2 broke out in 1939 and 14 when it finally drew to a close. She spent some of her most formative years in Windsor Castle while Britain was at war. This meant she — along with the rest of the Royal Family — were often in the flight path of bombers heading to London during the Blitz.

Her parents refused to move the children away from the conflict zone, to show solidarity with the rest of the public.

As the UK celebrated the 75th anniversary of VE Day earlier this month, a throwback interview resurfaced.

Dating from 1995, the BBC interviewed Margaret about her vivid memories from the war.

She explained: “One grew up pretty quickly.

“A lot of people got killed.

“As I say, everything was so fraught, loud, and black and gloomy.

“That’s why the VE Day was such a wonderful sun burst of glory.”

BBC interview Richard Astbury asked: “Do you think the youth today can comprehend what their forefathers went through?”

The royal replied: “No, I don’t think one ever can.

“I remember being told about the First World War when I was quite a small girl.

“It meant nothing to one at all.”

Margaret also revealed how she and her sister — the current Queen — appeared on Buckingham Palace’s balcony seven times during the VE Day celebrations, along with their parents and the wartime Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill.

They were cheered repeatedly by the huge crowds gathered below, and she explained that it was impossible to chat to one another due to the deafening bellows from the public.

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However, she and Elizabeth were keen to join the jostling crowds.

They asked their father King George VI if they could discreetly join in with the celebrations.

Although he was concerned for their safety, he later recorded in his diary that he felt sorry for his two young daughters, as “they have never had any fun yet”.

Once he had agreed, Elizabeth donned her Auxiliary Transport Services uniform and blended into the masses while Margaret, who had been too young to take on a job during the war, wore her regular clothes.

With a handful of royal protection officers, they joined in with the festivities and tried their best not to be recognised.

Earlier this month, The Independent noted: “The princesses made the most of their freedom, doing the hokey cokey, the ‘Lambeth Walk’ and the conga with members of the public.”

One of the Queen’s ladies-in-waiting, Jean Woodroffe, told BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme back in 2006: “What was amusing is that we went into the Ritz hotel through one door and out of the other day, the other end, doing the conga.

“The extraordinary thing was that nobody seemed to take much notice.

“Then we stood outside Buckingham Palace with the crowd and we all shouted, ‘We want the King’ with everybody else until the King and Queen came out onto the balcony.”

This year, despite the nation being in lockdown due to the pandemic, the monarch gave a public address to commemorate the 75th anniversary of VE Day.

She said: “We are still a nation those brave soldiers, sailors and airmen would recognise and admire.”

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