In the wake of the death of Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah Friday, discussions and stories about the Saudi leader’s life and policies have dominated the news media. One such story is a humorous anecdote about the king’s apparently harrowing encounter with Queen Elizabeth II in 1998.
How harrowing? The queen is rumored to have “terrorized” then-Crown Prince Abdullah with her driving skills, learned during World War II when she was but a princess and trained as a mechanic and military truck driver for the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service of the British Army.
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The British royal family said Friday that Prince Charles, “representing Her Majesty The Queen,” will be traveling to Saudi Arabia to “pay his condolences” following the death of King Abdullah, per The Independent.
With his death, Elizabeth, 88, has become the oldest monarch in the world. Abdullah is believed to have been about 90 at the time of his passing.
