Although King Charles and Queen Camilla’s love story has endured more scandals than it has, they have still managed to remain a enduring couple 20 years after their wedding.
They say that good things come to those who wait, and that certainly seems to have been the case for King Charles and Queen Camilla, who celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary on 9 April. For a couple that many believed would never be able to marry, let alone mark such a significant milestone, it is little short of an astonishing achievement.
According to royal historian Hugo Vickers, “people like me would have told you there was no way Charles could marry Camilla, that it was absolutely impossible and wasn’t going to happen.” However, it did occur and it succeeded.
In fact, few love stories have endured quite like that of our King and Queen – and few have been beset by so many obstacles. There was an “immediate attraction” when Prince Charles and Camilla Rosemary Shand first crossed paths at a polo match in Windsor Great Park in 1970.
Hugo claims that “from the moment he met her, he seemed struck by her.” They obviously clicked, and it’s obvious that something about her immediately appealed to him.
Despite such early promise, Charles’s burgeoning naval career cut short any prospect of long-term romance and Camilla soon fell into the arms of dashing British Army officer, Andrew Parker Bowles. The couple married in 1973 and had two children, Tom and Laura, while Charles went on to marry Lady Diana Spencer in 1981. But Camilla was never far from his thoughts and, five years later, he and Mrs Parker Bowles reportedly rekindled their affair.
Aware of her husband’s adultery, an increasingly unhappy Princess Diana ignited a royal scandal when she exposed his and Camilla’s clandestine relationship in Andrew Morton’s 1992 book, Diana: Her True Story . This lead to their separation and eventual divorce four years later. But for Charles, now 76, and Camilla, 77, worse was to come.
In 1995, Diana’s explosive BBC Panorama interview – in which she memorably revealed “there were three of us in this marriage” – sent their reputations into freefall. Camilla, still smarting from the public humiliation of the “Camillagate” tapes scandal in 1993, became one of the most vilified figures in Britain.
Two years later, when Diana was killed in a Paris car crash, it seemed there would be no way back for her, with even the late Queen Elizabeth said to have branded her “that wicked woman”. But Camilla wasn’t one to be cowed and with grit, patience and a surprising amount of good humour – she managed to turn things around.
According to royal author Katie Nicholl, Camilla Parker Bowles was “quite extraordinary from the beginning.” Being the most vengeful woman in Britain, the public hatred she faced, the intense media scrutiny, and being her, it’s obvious, it wasn’t easy. She continued to live her life, raised her family, and survived. That, in my opinion, gives you an idea of this woman’s strength.
In 1998, a nervous Camilla met Princes William and Harry for the first time, but the Queen was yet to be convinced by her and Charles’s relationship and didn’t attend her son’s 50th birthday celebrations, knowing Camilla would be there.
It was another two years before Camilla was formally introduced to her future mother-in-law, at a birthday luncheon for King Constantine of Greece at Highgrove. Slowly but surely, the Queen’s attitude was thawing and, by the time Charles and Camilla announced their engagement in 2005, the couple finally had her blessing.
Although she didn’t attend the civil ceremony at Windsor Guildhall, the monarch was present at the service of prayer at St George’s Chapel and later gave a warm-hearted and, according to Katie, “unusually sentimental speech” in which she declared she was “very proud” of her son and his new bride.
Camilla had finally gained acceptance, but despite her famously British ‘stiff upper lip’, she has admitted she found the earlier backlash “deeply unpleasant”. It was only the unwavering support of her loved ones – especially King Charles – that helped her weather the storm.
Katie describes it as “incredibly challenging” for her. However, she was surrounded by close family and friends who came to her rescue and provided support during difficult times. Without them, she probably wouldn’t have survived, in my opinion. She has always had a strong love for Charles, which, in my opinion, helped her through. When you have a deep love for someone, it acts as a great support and bolsters your resolve.
In 2015, Charles himself poured praise on the way Camilla dealt with what he described as a “real, real challenge”, telling CNN, “She’s been brilliant in the way she’s tackled these things.” Hugo sees their forthcoming anniversary, which comes just over 12 months after the couple were rocked by King Charles’s cancer diagnosis, as clear evidence that they have “proved the cynics wrong”. He says, “They’re very, very devoted to each other and there’s no question that Charles is a much happier, more relaxed man than he used to be.”
His improved state of mind is undoubtedly related to his mother’s historic gesture, which she made to announce her desire for Camilla to be referred to as the Queen Consort upon Charles’s accession, on the eve of her Platinum Jubilee in 2022. In doing so, she not only showed the world Camilla had her full acceptance, but she also expressed deep gratitude for the couple’s long-lasting union.
Katie says the late Queen played a significant part in Camilla’s remarkable recovery. “Consort” has obviously been eliminated since the Coronation, but of course that word has. She is a member of Charles’s family, and that is always what she wants. There is no denying that our King and his “darling wife,” as he frequently refers to her, are still in love.
According to Katie, “I believe that their is the story of love that lasts forever.” It began as a polo dalliance. The flame of romance lit there, and it never really died. It has overcome a lot of obstacles, faced many challenges, and has since grown stronger and more vibrant.
This journey from scandal to stability is all the more remarkable given that their relationship was once condemned not only by the most senior members of the royal family, but by millions around the world.
You just see two people who are completely in partnership with one another when you look at them as a couple, Katie says. What was initially perceived as an adulterous affair that threatened to break the monarchy has evolved into one of the greatest royal love stories, ironically because they work together because they are a pair.
Source: Mirror
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