has revealed his “delight” that the Queen warned Scotland to “think very carefully” ahead of the 2014 independence referendum .
The Monarch’s intervention ahead of the historic poll was viewed as a major boost for Better Together at a time when its campaign was floundering desperately.
She hinted at her concerns with four days to go after attending church with Prince Philip at Crathie Kirk, near Balmoral Castle, when a well-wisher joked about her silence.
The Queen replied: “Well, I hope people will think very carefully about the future.”
The former PM has now told how, on his annual visit to the Queen in Scotland two weeks before the vote, he found the royals “completely charming” but clearly concerned.
In his memoir For The Record, which is being serialised in The Sunday Times, he reveals: “As Prince Philip showed me the barbecue
he had designed to roast grouse and sausages up at the hillside bothy, the referendum was clearly on everyone’s mind.
“They gingerly asked questions but knew they shouldn’t express too strong an opinion.”
Cameron goes on to describe his horror at arriving to breakfast the next morning to read the headline “Yes vote leads in Scots poll”.
He writes: “The Queen wasn’t there – she usually had breakfast alone.
“Instead, I was surrounded by ladies-in-waiting, equerries and the moderator of the Church of Scotland.
“I tried to reassure them about ‘rogue polls’ but I was struggling to convince myself, let alone them.
“One week later, however, the Queen spoke to some of those gathered outside Crathie Kirk and said she hoped Scots would ‘think very carefully’ about the vote. I was delighted.”
At the time, a number of MPs had spoken out to urge the Queen to defend the 307-year-old Union but her aides had stressed she had to remain above politics. Her eventual remarks were widely interpreted by No campaigners as helpful to their cause.
Ahead of the publication of For The Record, Cameron has accused Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove of behaving “appallingly” during the EU referendum campaign.
The Old Etonian has said the result in 2016 vote left him “hugely depressed” and admits that he knows “some people will never forgive me”.
In his book, Cameron also tells of how he and his wife Sam first heard his daughter Nancy say the “F-word” during the doomed 2016 EU referendum campaign that led to his resignation as PM.
He wrote: “Nancy had been taking my ‘Conservative in’ campaign badges and giving them to her friends.”
Cameron has been criticised by many former colleagues for holding a Brexit referendum in the first place.
But last night he received support from former MP Lord Heseltine, who has said it is “complete rubbish” to say he created the Brexit mess.
