It’s only been a couple of months since the start of the year, yet there are plenty of signs that it would be a tumultuous one for the royal family when it comes to working data. According to statistics, the 11 working royals have carried out around 32 percent fewer royal engagements in January and February of this year compared to the same period the previous year.
The reason for this can be partly attributed to the temporary decrease in the number of senior working royals, including Catherine, Princess of Wales, and King Charles, who are both receiving treatments after being diagnosed with cancer.
During this challenging period, Queen Camilla has taken on significant responsibilities, including those typically fulfilled by her husband.
Over the years, Queen Camilla has become a beloved member of the family. Of course, this wasn’t always the case. In fact, when the public learned of her affair with then-prince Charles, she was hated by many and she was called names. It was said that she was afraid to get out of the house because she was scared for her safety.
Fast forward to this day, Camilla is someone who’s holding the family together, and her role within the Firm is very much appreciated.
Camilla is someone who has experienced the rage of the public and has gone through scrutiny, and being the person she is, she didn’t want Kate to go through anything similar when she was to marry Prince William.
Namely, Camilla was said to have been very welcoming towards Kate from the moment the two met.
When Kate Middleton joined the royal family, Camilla made efforts to foster a relationship with her. Similar efforts were made with Prince William and Harry, although things didn’t turn out for the best with the Duke. Harry’s rift with the royals has left him with few allies within the family.
Prior to the 2011 wedding of the now Prince and Princess of Wales, the Daily Mail reported that Camilla extended an invitation to Kate, her sister Pippa, and her daughter, Laura Lopes, for lunch.
“They were all getting on very well and they clearly hadn’t asked for an out-of-the-way table and nor did they attempt to lower their voices,” a person who overheard their conversation told the Daily Mail. “There was one moment which was clearly meant to be amusing when Kate said, ‘What happens if William doesn’t turn up?’”
Camilla reportedly presented Kate Middleton with a deeply personal gift for her wedding: a bracelet featuring engraved letters “Cs” on either side of the charm. It’s widely speculated that these letters represent “Catherine” and “Camilla.”
According to Yahoo, Kate has been seen wearing this bracelet during numerous occasions, particularly during appearances at the Wimbledon tennis tournament.
Before her marriage to Prince William, Kate Middleton and Queen Camilla developed a close friendship. As a commoner marrying into the royal family and eventually becoming the consort of a future king, Kate, who knew that her marriage would bring significant changes to her life, had much to learn about royal life.
In his royal biography, Battle of Brothers, author Robert Lacey stated that Kate struggled to take advice from her stepmother-in-law. “Camilla had confided to Kate the secret of hanging on to a busy prince: fit your timetable – well, basically your whole life – around his,” Lacey wrote in Battle of Brothers.
However, no matter how close they were and still are, royal experts claimed that tensions between Kate and Camilla built up during the coronation last year.
At first glance, the coronation of King Charles and Queen Camilla seemed a picture perfect one, but after experts analyzed the footage of the historical day, one thing caught their attention and it involves Camilla and Kate Middleton.
For the Britons, it’s all about tradition, and Camilla’s grandchildren being given such significant roles, that of Pages of Honor, just like Prince George, wasn’t received nicely by part of the fans and it seems that Kate Middleton was one of them.
Namely, a number of people from Camilla’s family were in attendance, and that included her former husband, Andrew Parker Bowles, as well as her son, Tom Parker Bowles and her daughter Laura Lopes, along with several of her grandchildren. Camilla’s sister, Annabel Elliot, was there with a friend, the Marchioness of Lansdowne. Overall, there were twenty people from Camilla’s side of the family at the Westminster Abby, which according to ABC royal reporter Victoria Murphy marked a new step for them.
“Camilla’s family are very much front and centre at this event, and that is interesting as this is a state occasion, and they are usually totally private,” she said. “Camilla’s family being so involved and visible does send, I think, a message about just how important she is to Charles’ reign and very much reminds us that this is their Coronation, not just his.”
On the other hand, Kate had four family members supporting her in Westminster Abbey; sister Pippa Middleton, brother James Middleton, and parents Carole and Michael Middleton.
This allegedly angered the Princess of Wales and she wasn’t afraid to show her dissatisfaction by ‘not moving a limb’ when Camilla left the Abbey and the rest of the guests took a bow.
“Camilla bought twenty Parker Bowles’ to the coronation, and there were four Middleton’s,” royal expert Tom Bower TV told host Dan Wooton.
“And what was even more noticeable was at the Windsor concert the following day, William makes no reference to Queen Camilla. So there is a tension there.”
The biographer then claimed the tension was a “dangerous position for Charles to be in,” especially after an “exhausted” Queen Camilla “disappeared” from the public eye as Kate was “behaving like the Queen.”
“If you look at the Coronation footage, as the King and Queen leave the thrones and head for the exit of Westminster Abbey, you’ll see that everyone bows and curtsies to the King and no one moves a limb, a muscle when Camilla passes,” the royal expert said.
“And that’s because they were angry with her. No-one moves. Kate and William were angry too. That anger went right through that small part of the congregation by the throne at the centre of Westminster Abbey. And in that moment it was absolutely noticeable to those people who had been excluded that nobody – let alone Kate – curtsied to Queen Camilla.”
Everyone who has seen the coronation has to agree that Camilla’s grandchildren did greatly as Pages of Honor, but many are convinced that the Queen’s daughter’s twin sons being given that significant roles broke the tradition British people swear by.
Kinsey Schofield, another royal expert, is among those who believe that the Queen took a step too far away from royal tradition.
Despite this, the relationship between Kate and Camilla has only grown stronger over the years.
BBC’s former royal correspondent Jennie Bond believes that this relationship would have been even more well built had Camilla been Charles’ first wife.
“The two women looked at ease with one another; united in the solemnity of it all,” Bond said about Camilla and Kate’s appearance next to each other for the National Service of Remembrance, held at the Cenotaph. “Camilla is the only mother-in-law Kate will ever have, but it can never be quite the same when it’s a second marriage.
“I think Camilla will always feel one step removed from being a real mother-in-law to Kate – but they do appear to have a strong relationship, and, quite frankly, what’s not to like about one another?” the royal expert told OK! Magazine.
“I’m sure Kate must have been watching Camilla’s metamorphosis from commoner to queen with particular interest and I think it must be reassuring for them both. What a unique relationship it must be there is literally no-one else for Catherine to turn to who has direct experience of the role that will one day be hers.”
We are glad the Kate and Camilla are getting along so well.
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