Queen Elizabeth II's Letters Stir Concern Among Historians

Queen Elizabeth II’s personal letters and diaries should be preserved in full in the National Archives, a leading academic has said.

Paul Whybrew, a retired footman and one of the late queen’s closest aides, has been entrusted with sorting through her private papers before they are transferred to the royal archive in Windsor, according to reports.

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The decision to assign Whybrew with this task has sparked criticism from academics and campaigners.

Preserve Everything

Scot Peterson, a researcher and specialist in constitutional matters at the University of Oxford, echoed the concern that an untrained individual might discard important documents.
“I think it’s important to just preserve everything," Peterson said. "Once 100 years have passed, there isn’t very much reason to withhold things that were even scandalous at the time."

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Access and Approval

Peterson pointed out that most papers are usually deposited in the royal archives at Windsor, with the royal family retaining control over access and publication.

“They have a right of approval, or they can refuse to approve publication of things that come from those records," Peterson stated. "All documents should be preserved as the royal family is a public institution in the UK."

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Battle for Historical Royal Documents

The battle over when to release historical royal documents to the public is not new. Peterson referred to the papers relating to the abdication of King Edward VIII, which were only released in 2003 after significant efforts.

“It took a number of very strenuous efforts to get that stuff out into the public so that people can understand what happened in the 1930s," Peterson explained.

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