The love story of King Charles and Queen Camilla
My favourite royal couple is King Charles and Queen Camilla. I am aware of their long term relationship and how controversial it is along with their marriage but i want to go through their relationship since 1970 to now because it is a true love story tinged with tragedy and sadness. I also want to express that there is two sides to the story based on research in the news, TV programs and books.
It all started in 1970 when they first met at a polo match they instantly became close and he did want to marry her but was sent away to the navy and she went ahead and married Andrew Parker Bowles. Lord Mountbatten who is Charles's great uncle and mentor broke the news to Charles who was devestated. He was encouraged to settle down with a young woman who people will love as a princess and a queen.
I want to point out here that Charles's family didn't want him to marry Camilla and that was mainly down to her having partners before meeting Charles. The Queen Mother however did encourage the marriage between Camilla and Andrew so he could move on and find someone else.
When Lord Mountbatten died when he was killed by a bomb on his boat in Northen Ireland his life changed dramatically he was heartbroken when he died. At the time of the death of Mountbatten he was dating Lady Sarah Spencer he bumped into her younger sister called Lady Diana Spencer and once he moved away from Sarah he started dating Diana. They got married in late July 1981 and the marriage didn't exactly go to plan, Charles and Diana had two sons one called Prince William and Prince harry after the birth of Harry things went down hill fast.
Diana started seeing her bodyguard with Barry Mannakee after Charles found out about the affair and that started the long term affair with Camilla. Diana was with about 10 men which 4 were married while Charles only went with Camilla. In 1992 it was announced that Charles and Diana separated as a couple but shared custody with the children. During that time both Charles and Camilla were the most hated celebrity/royals in the UK, Camilla who lived near Wiltshire at the time couldn't even get out of the house without the press photographing her. Once she went to her local Sainsbury's people who saw her they chucked bread rolls at her because of the hatred between her Charles and Diana.
In August 1997 things took a devastating turn in the royal family's lives. Dianna devestatingly died in a car crash in Paris after being chased by journalists Charles was the one who had to tell the news to his sons and according to sources he shouted 'There're all going to blame me aren't they.' It was clear that he was devastated and shocked, he persuaded the Queen that he was going to go and bring her body back to the UK.
On the 6th September was the funeral it was shocking to see how many people were on the streets of London, Prince Charles and his sons walked behind the coffin his sons were not forced at all to walk behind the coffin their grandfather Prince Philip said if I walk will you walk.
3 years later after Dianna's death when the public eased with her death and who to blame. The first public appearance of Charles and Camilla as a couple were at The Ritz hotel which showed that he was not backing down on her even after Diana's death. He wanted to be happy and after a few meetings Harry and William warmed to Camilla because she makes their father happy they were happy because he's happy. That same year the Queen met Camilla for the first time, The Queen did not like Camilla at the beginning as she was heard calling her a wicked woman. The meeting did go well though as she met with her many times before the wedding.
In March 2002 on Good Friday the Queen Mother died peacefully in her sleep at the glorious age of 101 at the royal lodge in Windsor with the Queen and Princess Margret's children at her bedside. Prince Charles and his sons were in Sweden enjoying a skiing holiday when the news broke to them. The Queen phoned Charles to break the news and as he was very close to his grandmother he was absolutely heartbroken after learning her death and after the queen phoned he was straight on the phone with Camilla.
Camilla was invited to the funeral as a friend of the Queen Mother but that was encouraged by Charles but I think the Queen knew that it would be a great comfort for him as he was on the verge of breaking down with him holding onto his sword really tightly. After the funeral he, his sons and Camilla went to the Castle Of Mey where the Queen Mother lived in Scotland which he found comfort in with the right people around him.
February 2005 the press were informed of a royal engagement of Charles and Camilla. Jorunalists asked if he got down on one knee Camilla simply replied 'Of course, What else'.While the Prince was 'very happy' about marrying again. Princes Harry and William released a joint statement saying 'We are both very happy for our father and Camilla and we wish them the best luck in the future'. The Queen also released a statement saying that she and The Duke Of Edinburgh were 'very happy' with the statement.
The wedding was due to take place on the 8th April but was posponed by 1 day as Charles was attending the funeral of Pope John Paul ii. They wed in civil wedding service on the 9th April in Windsor guildhall with the whitnesses of Charles's sons and Camilla's children and other family members. The Queen and The Duke Of Edinbrugh did not go because The Queen didn't think it was right as head of the church of England to attend.
After the civil wedding service there was a service of blessing in St George's Chapel in the Windsor castle grounds where the The Queen and Prince Philip did attend along with various dignitaries all over the world including politicians. Camilla's ex husband and his second wife were also invited as they are close friends after all of the drama in the 90s following their divorce for the sake of their children. Upon marrying Charles, Camilla was to be known as The Duchess Of Cornwall as her husband is the Duke Of Cornwall but she does have two more important titles one that she uses Duchess Of Rothesay in Scotland. The title she legally has but does not use is the Princess Of Wales and she does not use the title as it was closely associated with the late Diana.
Her duty as wife of the Prince Of Wales is to support him through everything including his charities and patronages as well having her own charities. Camilla focuses on Domestic Violence against women, Animals including the Battersea dogs and cats home and literacy and reading. She goes on royal tours around the world with Charles including Egypt, Rwanda, Ireland and Canada to name a few.
In April 2021 on their 17th wedding anniversary was tinged with heartbreak and sadness as Charles's father Prince Philip died peacefully in his sleep at Windsor Castle at the age of 99. Now the Queen will need more support than ever and Charles and Camilla gave her that support. Camilla was also there for Charles like a wife should to help him get through a death of a parent. At the funeral her support to him was very clear for all to see, during the procession Charles was showing evident emotion with a heartbreaking picture of tears running down his face.
Camilla supported him with a subtle gesture in the church. She used the same comforting hand pat she used when their relationship first went public, She was also seen shuffling closer to him when he came to his seat. At the end of the service it was Charles's decision to walk from the chapel to the castle, Camilla was seen placing her hand on his back as he put away his handkerchief she also held his order of service and mask while she linked arms with him. This shows the support they have for each other even after 17 since their marriage.
In February 2022 The Queen celebrated her 70th year since she ascended the throne she wrote in her speech on the occasion she announced that when Charles becomes king that her wish was to make Camilla Queen Consort. This statement literally is a royal seal of approval from the Queen about Camilla, when they married in 2005 it was known that she'd be Princess Consort but that changed when the Queen made the statement. Clarance House their official residence released a statement in response to The Queens statement they said that they were 'deeply conscious' by the honor. Camilla later revealed that she is 'touched and honoured' by the honour.
On the 8th September 2022 Queen Elizabeth II passed away peacefully at balmoral in Scotland surrounded by her family. Charles has become King Charles III and alongside him was Queen Consort Camilla. They used the title for Camilla because they didn’t want people to get confused with the late queen.
Their support for each other over that period shone through. They both were dignified and tried to keep their emotions in check, In the Kings first speech on the 9th September he paid tribute to camilla by saying “I count on the loving help of my darling wife Camilla” he stated that she “will bring the demands of her new role, The steadfast devotion and duty” that he’s relied so much on.
In the book New King New Court by Robert Hardman he mentions that when Charles and Camilla were greeted with people outside Buckingham palace a person said to Camilla “Look after him will you” to which Camilla replied “I will, I promise” in another book called My Mother and I by Ingrid Seward the book states that Camilla was in the same room as her husband as he made the speech. Once the speech was finished a camera man caught a beautiful and tender moment between the couple. She walked up beside him and gave him a hug and told him how wonderful he’d been.
During the funeral there were several times in the service where we seen Camilla support her husband. At the state funeral at Westminster Abbey she was seen giving him comforting and supportive looks during the service. To me most notably was when it was the committal service during the national anthem, Charles was understandably in tears but if you notice that Camilla moved closer to him as a sign of support and comfort to him during that moment.
We fast forward to May 6th 2023 where we all saw history in the making. King Charles III and Queen Camilla’s coronation. It’s the moment he’s been waiting for his whole life and after years of bad publicity he can finally be crowned next to the woman he has loved for decades by his side.
The coronation was a magical event where we saw The King and Queen crowned. The support that they gave each other all these years continued into this special day. When Queen Camilla was crowned and curtsied to her King and the love of her life he gave such a beautiful smile to indicate how proud he was of her.
Not even a year since the coronation we had news on the king. On the 18th January 2024 it was announced that the king will undergo surgery for an enlarged prostate, On the 26th January 2024 he was admitted to hospital for the procedure. It went well and we saw Camilla visit her husband twice a day everyday whilst he was in hospital, it was said that she just wanted to keep him company. They both left the private hospital on the 29th January 2024.
While Charles was recovering from his surgery Camilla went back to work. She went to a cancer support centre and Bath for a service in the abbey. All seemed as well as it should be. Camilla was asked by various people how The King was doing after surgery and all she said that he was fine.
On February 5th 2024 we had the devastating news that King Charles III was diagnosed with a form of cancer. They didn’t specify which cancer he has but they ruled out prostate cancer. He’s receiving treatment and is stepping away from public events. Camilla being the Kings rock decided to continue working as she didn’t want to let him down.
The first engagement for Camilla was In Wiltshire at a concert, Her helicopter got cancelled due to bad weather but she was determined to go to this event so she drove from Sandringham to Wiltshire. When she got there she was absolutely stunning in a white dress talking to the people involved in the concert. She also gave an update on her husband too saying that he was doing “Extremely Well under the circumstances”
She will be the one who will be representing The King at various events that he can’t go to. They haven’t announced when he’s back doing public engagements yet but we hope that it’ll be soon. He just needs to rest and get better and let Camilla do the work because she’ll want to help him and get him through this.
In May 2024 it was announced that His Majesty King Charles III would be returning to public facing engagements. The announcement came with a photo that was taken on the 10th April in the garden of Buckingham Palace the photo was taken a day after their 19th wedding anniversary. Accompanying the announcement Buckingham Palace also confirmed that there would be an overseas visit in the autumn to Australia and Samoa.
The King's first public engagement was to a cancer treatment centre in London to support people who are suffering with cancer and their relatives. He went to the centre with Camilla and they both sat down with the patients held their hands and spoke to them.
In October 2024 The King and Queen visited Australia and Samoa. There were a few beautiful moments between them. They went to the parliament in Australia and listened to speeches from the prime minister and the leader of the opposition Peter Dutton who commented on the support that Camilla gives her husband. When it was being mentioned The King's reaction was touching and emotional.
In 2025 both Charles and Camilla will be celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary by taking a royal tour to Italy which is extremely romantic for a big wedding anniversary. Their wedding anniversary will be on the 9th April 2025 as they married in 2005. Fans are expecting a very romantic and unseen photo of the royal couple.
