Much English breakfast tea has been spilled about Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle, but
what about Kate's relationship with the Duchess of Cornwall? Here's what you need to know
about the relationship between the Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Charles' wife, Camilla Parker Bowles.
Kate Middleton met Prince William in 2001 when they were both students at the University
of St. Andrews in Scotland. They started off as friends, and by 2004, they were officially dating.
A couple of years after that, Kate was attending high-profile events as William's
girlfriend, including the wedding of Camilla Parker Bowles' daughter, Laura, in 2006.
Camilla might not have been quite as smitten as William, however. In the book "Game of
Crowns," author Christopher Andersen alleged that Camilla referred to Kate as, quote, "pretty
but dim" and deemed her too low in status to become a royal. Kate's parents, Michael
and Carole Middleton, were considered commoners as they weren't members of the aristocracy.
Camilla, on the other hand, was a member of the aristocracy even before she married Prince Charles.
But there may have been more at play than just snobbery. According to Andersen,
Camilla was jealous of Kate's public popularity, as he wrote,
"Young, gracious, smart, and stunning, the White Queen, known familiarly as just plain
Kate, captured the world's imagination even before she could officially lay claim to her
royal lover's heart."
As things between Kate Middleton and Prince William grew more serious, it seems Camilla
brushed aside any hard feelings that may have existed. She apparently even went so far as
to give the future Duchess of Cambridge advice on how to hold onto her man amid all the pressures
of royal duty. After all, before her current relationship with Prince Charles, Camilla
had originally dated the prince decades before, only to see it end when Charles was sent overseas
to serve in the Royal Navy.
After William and Kate graduated from college, the prince was expected to assume more official
royal duties. At the same time, he was training to be a helicopter pilot in the Royal Air Force.
Robert Lacey wrote in his book "Battle of Brothers: William, Harry and the Inside
Story of a Family in Tumult,"
"After St Andrews University, William's timetable was proving rather un-fit-roundable [...] marriage
had not been included in that schedule."
Camilla urged Kate to be patient and told the future duchess, per Lacey,
"Fit your timetable — well, basically your whole life — around his."
Prince William eventually proposed in 2010.
Kate Middleton's 2011 royal wedding to Prince William at Westminster Abbey was always going
to be a massive event. While such a ceremony requires a team of planners, Camilla Parker
Bowles had some important tips to share. While her marriage to Prince Charles was grand,
her 1973 wedding to Andrew Parker Bowles had been declared, according to the Express,
"The society wedding of the year."
In the weeks before Kate's wedding, the two women were seen enjoying a long lunch at the
Berkeley Hotel in London. Joined by Kate's sister, Pippa, and Camilla's daughter, Laura,
the ladies reportedly chatted about everything from meal options to music choices. As another
restaurant-goer told the Daily Mail,
"I did hear talk of trumpets and someone said 'we can't have trumpets, the ceiling is too
high.' [...] I heard chipolatas, sausages on sticks and mini pizzas, but I don't know
whether it was ironic or not."
Each June, Kate Middleton and Camilla Parker Bowles share a carriage ride to Trooping the
Colour, a spectacular celebration that has been held for more than 260 years to mark
the reigning sovereign's birthday. Crowds line the London streets to watch the procession,
which features 1,400 soldiers, 200 horses, and 400 musicians. It begins at Buckingham
Palace and ends at the Horse Guards Parade. Senior members of the royal family travel
the route either on horseback or in a horse-drawn carriage. Eventually everyone returns to Buckingham
Palace and gathers on a balcony for the big finale, watching the Royal Air Force fly-past.
Protocol dictates that Kate and Camilla arrive in the same carriage, while their husbands
ride separately on horses in honor of their ceremonial roles as Colonels of the Household
Division for different army regiments. Prince William is Colonel of the Irish Guards and
Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, is Colonel of the Welsh Guards.
Kate Middleton is usually the picture of poise, but even the best of us slip up every now and again.
She has been called out at least twice for perceived slights against Camilla
Parker Bowles, whether they were intentional or not.
The first time was in 2018, when Camilla was on the receiving end of Kate's famous expressive
eyes during the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at St. George's Chapel. The
two women were seated beside each other, and at one point, Kate appeared to shoot some
side-eye in Camilla's direction.
A year later, Kate and Camilla attended the Order of the Garter along with other royals.
At one point, Kate was having a lively conversation with Queen Letizia [leh-TEETZ-ee-uh] of Spain,
while Camilla stood nearby with her back turned to them. Then, when Camilla turned around
and tried to join in the conversation, she was left hanging for a few moments as the
two younger royals appeared to ignore her.
Because the divorced Camilla Parker Bowles is the second wife of Prince Charles, it was
decided upon their marriage that her title would become Her Royal Highness The Princess
Consort when her husband takes the throne, which would mean that Kate Middleton would
officially be the next queen of England. Or at least that's what everyone thought until
a note about Camilla's future title disappeared from Prince Charles' website, as The Telegraph
reported. The official explanation for the information being removed online explained,
"Frequently Asked Questions are updated regularly. This is one question that Clarence House has
not been asked by the public for some time, which is why it no longer features."
But Sally Bedell Smith, author of "Prince Charles: The Passions and Paradoxes of an
Improbable Life," alleged that Prince Charles dislikes the "made-up" title and will make
Camilla queen consort, the traditional term for the wife of a reigning king. As for who
will officially become the next queen of England though, only time will tell.
"This really isn't something we're going to be able to change quickly, or overnight."
No matter what may be going on in private, Kate Middleton and Camilla Parker Bowles have
displayed a fondness for their relationship in public. When Camilla's brother died unexpectedly
in 2014, Kate and William were touring New Zealand and Australia. But despite a hectic
schedule, the couple made sure to express their condolences, issuing a statement that read,
"The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were saddened to learn this morning of the tragic death
of Mark Shand. Their thoughts are with the Duchess of Cornwall and her family at this time."
And while the royals are famously tight-lipped about each other, Camilla did share a rave
review of Kate prior to her marrying Prince William. CBS reported that Camilla said during
an event at the Covent Garden Academy of Flowers,
"Kate's a lovely girl. We're very lucky."
It's no secret the British press can be vicious toward the royal family. Prince Harry even
cited it as a reason he left England and moved to California with Meghan Markle.
During her long courtship with Prince William, Kate Middleton was dubbed "Waity Katy," in
reference to how she continued to put up with the prince's reluctance to get engaged.
"I really valued that time, for me as well, although I didn't think it at the time."
She was routinely photographed by intrusive paparazzi and scorned for her middle-class
upbringing, with that criticism extending to her family. Even after her marriage, it
didn't stop, with topless photos of Kate on a yacht being published by a French tabloid,
and an article in Tatler criticized her weight and reported that Kate felt "trapped," amid other claims.
Still, Camilla Parker Bowles arguably had it worse. Her affair with Prince Charles means
she has long been criticized by the British public and press.
When you attend hundreds of public events a year, something is bound to go wrong. Fortunately,
both Kate Middleton and Camilla Parker Bowles are able to laugh at life's mishaps. One such
moment occurred at Trooping the Colour in 2019, when Prince Louis, Kate's youngest son
who was just over a year old at the time, got a little too excited waving his arms about
and nearly knocked Camilla's hat off. But there was no need to panic, as both mom and
grandma found it funny. At a previous fly-past in 2018, this time to mark the 100th anniversary
of the Royal Air Force, Prince Charles had a wardrobe malfunction involving his jacket.
Charles, Kate, and William had a good laugh about it as Camilla managed to sort the issue.
Both women are known to be quite funny in private, as well, and at least one royal observer
said the ability to see the lighter side of life helped strengthen their relationship
with each other. Penny Junor, an expert on the royal family, told Maclean's,
"They are two very normal people. Camilla is so easy to get on with, so un-stuck-up.
And Kate is young and friendly."
Both Kate Middleton and Camilla Parker Bowles have been caught up in Meghan Markle and Prince
Harry's criticisms of the royal family. In the couple's explosive Oprah Winfrey interview,
Meghan said it was Kate who made her cry during a pre-wedding argument about flower girl dresses,
as opposed to the other way around as it was reported in the press. And while Vanity Fair
reported that Camilla tried to advise Meghan on how to deal with the pressures of royal
life, a source told the Daily Mail that Megan blames both her and Kate for leaking negative stories to the press.
"There is an active role that the Firm is playing in perpetuating falsehoods about us."
In practical terms, the departure of Harry and Meghan meant the remaining royals had
to pick up more duties. Prince Charles, Prince William, Kate, and Camilla made a rare joint
appearance at a medical rehabilitation center in England in 2020. The outing led some in
the media to dub the group the "new fab four," a riff on the nickname that was previously
used to describe Harry, Meghan, Kate, and William.
Camilla Parker Bowles and Kate Middleton enjoy making desserts and are unapologetic about
having a sweet tooth. On the TV special "A Berry Royal Christmas," Kate told host Mary
Berry that she always makes her children's birthday cakes, and explained,
"I love making the cake. It's become a bit of a tradition that I stay up 'til midnight
with ridiculous amounts of cake mix and icing."
And Camilla has serious skills of her own. While serving at the Royal Voluntary Service
Lunch Club, she decorated trifles with whipped topping and raspberries. She also shared a
favorite chocolate biscuit cake recipe for people to try during lockdown.
Of course, getting to enjoy dessert without having to make it is even more fun, and Kate
and Camilla couldn't stop themselves from sampling an array of sweets during a visit
to the decadent Fortnum & Mason store with Queen Elizabeth.
Public service is an important part of royal life. Both Kate Middleton and Camilla Parker
Bowles support several charities, using their fame to raise attention for worthy causes.
Camilla is the patron or president of more than 90 charities, many of which focus on
assisting the elderly, abused women, and the arts. Kate has far less, with 21 patronages,
but that's understandable given that she is also raising three young kids.
And it was children that brought Kate and Camilla together when they participated in
a Zoom call in support of Children's Hospice Week in 2020. Both royals talked about how
heartening they found the work done at children's hospices, which provide support for families
facing a terminal illness. Camilla said of one of her early visits,
"When I arrived I was totally amazed by what I found, the feeling of warmth and laughter
and happiness."
Kate followed up by saying,
"It's a credit to the staff [...] It's really inspiring."
Kate and Camilla also displayed their close relationship by working side by side, along
with the queen, at a party promoting the Big Lunch program and its involvement with the
queen's Platinum Jubilee. The festivities included a large cake, so we're betting Kate
and Camilla enjoyed a slice or two together.
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