Queen Charlotte’s Chair

Queen Charlotte's final days

Queen Charlotte died in her bedroom in Kew Palace on 17 November 1818. She was 74 years old. 

The queen had been suffering from a condition called dropsy, which causes swelling and pain. While recovering at Kew she caught pneumonia and died.

Her coffin was set out in the middle of the Dining Room downstairs, and the room was draped in black silk and lit by six large candlesticks sent from the Tower of London.

Visitors were admitted by ticket to see the queen, and on 02 December 1818 her body was moved to Windsor for burial.

Even though the weather was wet and dark, a huge crowd of people gathered on Kew Green to witness the Queen's final journey.

The room preserved by Queen Victoria

Queen Charlotte's granddaughter, Queen Victoria, said she wished the room to be kept as it had been during her grandmother's lifetime. You can see these words on a plaque on the side of the fireplace in the Queen's Bedroom.