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Queen Elizabeth II's love of Pembroke Welsh corgis is well known — and she's had corgis in her life since she was seven years old.
That's more than 80 years of being surrounded by the dogs, which have become almost as synonymous with the British Royal Family as the crown jewels.
Unconfirmed reports are now saying the Queen's "last" corgi, Willow, has died aged 14.
Buckingham Palace, however, has declined to comment, saying it is a private matter.
As news of Willow's reported passing spreads around the world, we look back on the British monarch's special connection to this particular breed of canine — and why a new cross-breed, the "dorgi", is top dog at the palace.
Dookie: The original royal corgi
The Queen's father, King George VI, acquired the Royal Family's first corgi, Dookie, as a puppy in 1933.
Dookie got a friend soon after called Jane, who had two puppies in 1938 called Crackers and Carol.
Crackers, a favourite pet of the Queen Mother's, lived to be almost 14.
Crackers' mother, Jane, also lived quite a long life and was a loyal royal pet until 1944 when she was hit by a car and killed.
Elizabeth was given her very own corgi, named Susan, as an 18th birthday present in 1944.
Since then, all corgis bred by the monarch have descended from Susan, whose pedigree name was Hickathrift Pippa.
The Queen is thought to have owned more than 30 corgis, and she is known to be one of the longest-established breeders of Pembroke corgis in the world.
It was reported in 2015 that she had stopped breeding corgis, saying she didn't want any more puppies as she didn't want to leave any of the dogs behind when she herself passed away.
Dog dynasty descended from Susan
Susan, the original royal corgi, had two puppies in 1949, Sugar and Honey.
The Queen kept Sugar herself, and gave Honey to the Queen Mother. Sugar lived until 1965 and was buried with her mother Susan at Sandringham, the Queen's private residence.
Honey, who died in 1956, was buried at Balmoral Castle in Scotland.
Sugar had two puppies, which were called Whisky and Sherry and were gifted to Prince Charles and Princess Anne one Christmas.
While Princess Elizabeth remained true to her love of the corgi, other members of the royal family were not averse to spending time with other types of canine.
Princess Margaret reportedly once owned a rare Welsh Sealyham terrier called Johnny.
But she gave it to the Queen Mother to look after soon after she got it, after becoming sick. After Princess Margaret got better, the Queen Mother decided to adopt him herself.
Princess Margaret then acquired another Sealyham terrier by the name of Pippin.
She also owned a cavalier King Charles Spaniel called Rowley and a dachshund called Pipkin.
Pipkin mated with one of the Queen's corgis. The descendants of this union have been named "dorgis".
The Queen still owns two dorgi dogs, Vulcan and Candy.
Willow: The last royal corgi?
The last of Queen Elizabeth's corgi dogs, Willow, appeared with the British monarch for a film segment during the 2012 London Olympic Games opening ceremony.
Willow is one of the 14th generation of dogs descended from the first corgi, Susan.
The monarch's corgis earned a reputation for snapping at the heels of royal retainers as they carried out duties at her palaces.
In 1999, the queen demoted one of her footmen after he got her pets drunk on whisky and gin by slipping spirits into their food and water.
However, the queen's grandson Prince Harry said his fiancee, US actress Meghan Markle whom he marries next month, had charmed the dogs.
"The corgis took to you [Markle] straight away. I've spent the last 33 years being barked at. This one walks in — absolutely nothing," Harry said in a TV interview when the couple announced their engagement last November.
She replied: "Just laying on my feet during tea, it was very sweet."
ABC/AP
Topics: human-interest, royal-and-imperial-matters, united-kingdom
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