The late Queen Elizabeth II once carried out a selfless act as she shook hands with the IRA chief rumoured to be responsible for Lord Mountbatten’s assassination. On this day in 1979 (August 27), a bomb, which was planted in the boat, was detonated by IRA paramilitaries and killed not just the Earl, but his 14-year-old grandson Nicholas Knatchbull.
Also murdered was a 15-year-old schoolboy who was helping out as a boatboy, and the 83-year-old Dowager Lady Brabourne. During a visit to Northern Ireland in 2012, the late Queen shook hands with Martin McGuinness – who acknowledged that he was a former IRA member and later went on to be Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland.
In a 2019 BBC documentary, former IRA intelligence director Kieran Conway said that McGuinness, who was then the Provisional IRA’s chief of staff, commissioned the assassination of Lord Mountbatten.
Lord Mountbatten was not only the late Queen’s third cousin, Prince Philip’s uncle and important mentor to the then-Prince Charles, he was also a World War Two hero and the last Viceroy of India.
During the late Queen’s visit to Northern Ireland, it is understood that Mr McGuinness welcomed both the late Her Majesty and the Irish president in Irish.
As the late Queen shook hands with Mr McGuinness for a second time, he then wished her well in Irish – which translates into, “Goodbye and God bless.”
When he was asked how it was to meet the late Queen, Mr McGuinness said that the meeting was “very nice.”
The fourth season of The Crown, which was released in 2020, depicted the devastating attack by the IRA.
The Netflix drama showed how his death affected the Royal Family, especially Charles – who is said to have been particularly close to Lord Mountbatten.
Although heavily dramatised, the series suggested that Mountbatten’s influence was key in pushing the then-Prince of Wales to settle down and find a suitable wife with no past.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.express.co.uk ’
