Princess Anne said she had no recollection of the accident that led to her hospitalization last summer.
“I know where I thought I was going and that was to go to the chickens, no, nothing to do with horses,” Anne told the Press Association during a trip to South Africa in an interview published on Friday, January 24.
The Princess Royal, 74, spent five nights at the Southmead Hospital in Bristol, England, after sustaining “minor injuries and concussion following an incident” at her Gatcombe Park estate, Buckingham Palace said in a statement on June 24, 2024.
At the time, Anne’s medical team said her injuries could have been caused by the impact of a horse’s legs or head. But according to the royal, she can’t remember being with her horses prior to her hospitalization.
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Princess Anne was born to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in 1950, and she’s kept royal watchers enamored for more than 70 years. Anne married British army Captain Mark Phillips in 1973. The following year, the newlyweds had a fright when an attempt was made to kidnap the princess. Anne has been known for […]
“[It had been] my regular visit,” she continued. “I don’t have any idea what I was doing in the field, because I never normally went that way.”
“It just reminds you, shows you — you never quite know, something [happens] and you might not recover,” she added.
Anne said the accident and subsequent hospitalization reminded her to “take each day as it comes.”
At the time, the palace said Anne’s hospitalization was a “precautionary measure for observation” and added that she was “expected to make a full and swift recovery.”
The accident came during a difficult year for the royal family, as Anne’s brother, King Charles III, and Princess Kate Middleton were dealing with respective cancer diagnoses.
Middleton announced in January that she is in remission, while Charles is expected to resume a full schedule of engagements this year.
Anne has been consistently named the “hardest working royal” by the British press for several years. In 2024, she completed 217 engagements— the most of any royal — Daily Mail reported. Charles came in second place with 186 engagements, per the outlet.
When asked about the possibility of retirement, Anne told the Press Association that “it isn’t really an option.”
“I don’t think there’s a retirement programme on this particular life,” she said. “It really isn’t written in, no. It isn’t really an option, no, I don’t think so.”
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