Thank you for the waterwings, Mr. President

The Royal Family of the Netherlands barely escaped the Nazis as German armies swept through their homeland in May 1940. Princess Juliana and her family came to North America, splitting their time between Canada and the United States. Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt became close friends with Juliana, and FDR especially adored her daughters Trixie and Irene.

In the summer of 1942, Princess Juliana leased a small estate in Lee, Massachusetts where she and her young children lived for several months. The estate was close enough for the Roosevelts to drive there from Hyde Park for lunch or tea. The Royals also regularly visited Hyde Park. Seeing that the young princesses were having trouble with their swimming, FDR gave Trixie and Irene each a set of waterwings to help them float.

In this letter, Trixie and Irene thank the President for his gift and express their affection for FDR’s dog, Fala. The photo is of a Picnic for Princess Juliana at the Roosevelt’s retreat in Hyde Park, NY.

Trixie is now Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, having succeeded her mother Queen Juliana to the throne in 1980.

-more Roosevelt History from the FDR Library

FDR Library photo ID NPx 73-113:31

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