Queen Elizabeth II's childhood friend Lady Pamela Hicks dies age 97

Lady Pamela Hicks, one of the late Queen Elizabeth II's childhood friends, has died aged 97.

Lady Pamela was the late Queen's lady-in-waiting and was the cousin of Prince Philip, the late Duke of Edinburgh.

She was the youngest of the King's great-uncle Earl Mountbatten of Burma.

Her daughter, India Hicks, took to social media to confirm the news: "My mother died peacefully today.

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"Whilst there is no tragedy in the death of a 97-year-old who has lived a full life I know grief will be unavoidable, lurking around waiting for me, but today I am simply grateful that she was my mother. And through the prism of a crowded and remarkable past, she made incomparable company, carrying her memories lightly, and always with humour.

"My mother maintained right up to the end, the impeccable style, sharp mind, and effortless charm that made her not only a cherished institution, but truly the last of her kind."

Fans flooded the comments section sending the family love.

"India, what a beautiful tribute to an extraordinary woman. Sending you so much love and strength. May her elegance, humour and spirit live on through all the lives she touched," one wrote.

Another said: "So sorry for your loss India. We are so grateful that we were able to finally meet her just last month. May she journey in everlasting peace throughout the heavens and higher realms."

A third added: "India, I'm so sad to hear this and sending my love and condolences. We all loved Lady Pamela."

"Oh my dearest India…. Your mother’s light will always be with you.. a beautiful lifetime of memories to keep close always, sending you and your family my love and warmth," a fourth commented.

Born into the intricate tapestry of European royalty, Lady Pamela traced her lineage directly to Queen Victoria, her great-great-grandmother.

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Her grandmother, Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine, was the eldest granddaughter of the Queen Empress.

Pamela Carmen Louise Mountbatten was born in 1929 at the Ritz Hotel in Barcelona, where her mother Edwina happened to be travelling.

The King of Spain, Alfonso XIII, became her godfather, alongside the Duke of Kent.

A childhood friend of then-Princess Elizabeth, Lady Pamela stood beside the future monarch as a bridesmaid at her wedding to Prince Philip in November 1947.

She later recalled how the princess remained "wonderfully calm" despite her tiara breaking, her pearls going missing, and her bouquet being misplaced in a cupboard "to remain cool".

On August 27, 1979, an IRA bomb destroyed her father's fishing boat, Shadow V, off the coast of County Sligo in Ireland.

The blast killed Lord Mountbatten, her 14-year-old nephew Nicholas Knatchbull, and 15-year-old boat boy Paul Maxwell.

Her sister Patricia and brother-in-law Lord Brabourne suffered serious injuries, as did Lord Brabourne's 83-year-old mother, who later died as a result of her injuries in hospital.

Lady Pamela had remained at the family's holiday residence, Classiebawn Castle, that morning rather than joining the lobster-potting expedition. She heard the explosion from the shore.

In 1960, Lady Pamela married the celebrated interior designer David Hicks at Romsey Abbey, with 1,300 guests in attendance and Prince Philip proposing the toast.

The couple settled at Britwell Salome House in Oxfordshire, raising three children: Edwina, who married actor Jeremy Brudenell; India, a former model and businesswoman; and Ashley, an interior designer.

David Hicks died of lung cancer in 1998.

Lady Pamela is survived by her three children and eight grandchildren.

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