How Does Princess Anne Really Feel About Camilla As Queen Consort?
The tragic death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8 precipitated an outpouring of grief and mourning not only from her subjects in the United Kingdom, but from citizens around the world. Indeed, her funeral ended up becoming one of the most-viewed broadcasts in the country's history, drawing in around 28 million viewers.
Of course, the death of Elizabeth II also means a major shakeup for the monarchy, which had remained consistently under her leadership for 70 years. Her eldest son, for a long time the longest-serving heir apparent in British history, finally ascended to the throne as King Charles III at the age of 73, while his wife, Camilla, became queen consort. However, some Britons are not too happy about this arrangement, as the memory of Charles' first wife and the mother of his two children, Princess Diana, as well as her tragic death in August 1997, still weigh heavy on many citizen's minds.
Naturally, many royal observers will remember the love triangle between Charles, his then-wife Diana, and Camilla during his first marriage throughout the '80s and early '90s, which involved numerous affairs and finally culminated in their messy separation and eventual divorce in 1996 (followed by his marriage to Camilla in 2005). What might come as a surprise to many, however, is that one of the many detractors against Camilla has been none other than Charles' only sister, Princess Anne. In fact, many might be shocked to hear how she really feels about Camilla's new title of queen consort.
Princess Anne once said that Camilla will never be a true queen
Between her marriage to Charles — then the Prince of Wales — in 2005, and the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Camilla was known as the Duchess of Cornwall, despite the fact that, legally, she was really the Princess of Wales. However, Camilla chose not to assume the title out of respect to the late Princess Diana, who continued to be a hugely important figure in the royal family, even after her death. For a long time, it was also understood that Camilla would be known as princess consort upon her husband's ascendance to the throne. However, in early 2022, Queen Elizabeth announced that Camilla should instead be known as queen consort upon her death. And apparently, Princess Anne, the queen's only daughter and Charles' only sister, was not so happy about the change.
In her new book about Camilla, "Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall: A Royal Survivor," royal biographer Angela Levin suggests that the two ladies initially did not get along, largely because Camila felt uneasy about Anne's "frosty demeanour," which she felt was "difficult and somewhat unnerving to cope with" at first
In addition, the biography says that Anne "kept away" from Camilla "as much as possible" for years before she and Charles ascended to the throne. Perhaps most controversially of all, the book revealed that Anne once said of her sister-in-law, "Camilla will never be a true queen." However, the two ladies' relationship luckily has apparently warmed up over time.
Queen Camilla and Princess Anne's relationship dates back to Camilla's first husband
Many royal observers will recall that before she married King Charles III, then the Prince of Wales, Camilla Shand was married to British Army officer Andrew Parker Bowles, from 1973 to 1995, with whom she had two children. However, Andrew did not exist in a vacuum. In fact, Camilla, Andrew, Charles, and Charles' sister Princess Anne were all in the same social circle, and it was actually Andrew and Anne who dated at first, according to Elle. The relationship lasted several years, but eventually fizzled out, in part because Andrew was Catholic and hence was essentially prohibited from marrying a royal.
In her biography of Camilla, Angela Levin mentions that the relationship between Camilla and Anne went on to become "particularly awkward" in part because of their shared history with Parker Bowles. And, although Anne and Camilla did not have the best relationship for a while, Anne and Andrew remained close throughout all the turmoil, with Anne even naming him godfather of her second child. Indeed, the two are still close to this day.
While their history with Parker Bowles might have led to some hostility and awkwardness at first, time has proven to be the best healer and we may just see Camilla and Anne become closer as time goes on. As Levin put it, "Anne has seen for herself how hard Camilla has worked for the monarchy and her sense of duty. Gradually, she became more amenable".