12. The Prince’s love of speed made him an early adopter of the automobile, even if he never went above 20mph
Towards the very end of the 19th century, the Prince’s friend, John Scott-Montagu, Second Baron of Beaulieu, took him for a ride in his car. Edward was immediately hooked. Despite the fact these early automobiles could barely go faster than a horse and carriage, the Prince of Wales soon earned a reputation for being a speed freak. He loved driving around the private roads of his Sandringham estate and converted the old stables into garages to hold his growing collection of automobiles (he loved red cars the most and, thanks to the Prince, these became highly fashionable among the ‘smart set’).
