The Queen seemed frail but in “really good spirits” when he met her at the weekend, the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland has said.
The Rt Rev Dr Iain Greenshields spent the weekend at Balmoral and had dinner with the Queen on Saturday and lunch with her on Sunday.
He described the monarch as “fabulous” and “very engaging” company, and said their conversation ranged over a wide array of topics.
And he said he was surprised by the sudden decline in her health and death on Thursday.
Recalling his time with the Queen at the weekend, Dr Greenshields told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme: “She was in great form, really good spirits – obviously frail, you can see that, but absolutely on the ball.
“She was talking about her past, her love for Balmoral, her father, her mother, Prince Philip, horses, very much very engaged with what was happening in the church and what was happening in the nation too.
“This frail lady came in but there was still that sense of who she was and that real sense of making you feel immediately at ease, engaging with you immediately in conversation, a nice bright smile, everything you would expect of your monarch.”
He added: “Her health was frail, we knew that, but when I left her on Sunday she was very positive and I just find it very hard to believe that in those few days things have changed so much.”
Balmoral was one of the Queen’s favourite places and she was said to never be happier than when staying there.
She very much saw herself as the Queen who was there for all people— Rt Rev Dr Iain Greenshields
Dr Greenshields said he thinks she would have been happy to be there for her final days.
He said: “In conversation with her she took me over to the window and she was looking over her gardens with great pride and affection and I think that that’s where she would have wanted to spend her last days and I would think the family are comforted by that.”
The Moderator also said that the Queen took a very strong interest in everything that the Church of Scotland did and that her faith was very obvious.
He said: “She knew and understood exactly what the challenges were that faced the Church, she talked about that very clearly when she was speaking with me over the weekend.
“It was obvious that she knew what she was talking about.”
He added: “She had an incredible respect for people of all faiths, and none of course as well, because she very much saw herself as the Queen who was there for all people.”
