Camilla Shand was born in 1947 into an affluent family – her father was a Major in the army.
London:
After years of being portrayed as Britain’s most hated woman, Camilla, the second wife of King Charles, was crowned queen on Saturday, marking a remarkable shift in public acceptance few might have thought.
When Charles’ first wife, the popular, glamorous Princess Diana, died in a car accident in Paris in 1997, Camilla bore the brunt of the media’s hostility. Some declare that the couple may never marry.
But they married eight years later, and have since been recognised, though still reluctantly by some, as a prominent member of the royal family, on whom the new king greatly depends, and the country’s queen. as Camilla.
“She’s his kind of life partner,” said Robert Hardiman, longtime royal correspondent and author of ‘Queen of Our Times,’ pointing out that she was married to Charles for longer than Diana.
“They’re a team. And you have to be a team.”
Born Camilla Shand in 1947 into an affluent family – her father was an army major and wine merchant who married an aristocrat – she moved in social circles which brought her into contact with Charles, whom she met in the early 1970s. I met on a windswept polo field.
The pair dated for a while and Charles considered marriage, but felt himself too young to take such a big step.
As she devoted herself to her naval career, Camilla married Brigadier Andrew Parker Bowles, a cavalry officer. The couple had two children, Tom and Laura. They got divorced in 1995.
Charles himself married 20-year-old Diana in 1981 in a wedding that enthralled not only Britain but the world. After William and Harry had two children, the relationship turned sour and they divorced in 1996 after rekindling their romance with her former lover.
The depth of that relationship was exposed to a shocked public in 1993, when a transcript of a secretly recorded private conversation with extremely intimate details was published in the newspapers.
Camilla told Charles in a publicized 1993 secretly recorded telephone conversation, “I would endure anything for you. This is love. This is the power of love.”
In a TV interview the following year, Charles admitted that he had resumed their relationship, but said it was only after the breakup of their marriage.
“There were three of us in this marriage – so it was a bit crowded,” Diana, who dubbed Camilla “the Rottweiler”, famously remarked in her own TV interview in 1995.
While Diana brought glamor to the packed House of Windsor with her dazzling gown, many Britons did not understand why Charles would prefer country-loving Camilla, usually pictured wearing a scarf and green waterproof riding coat it was done.
Prince Philip, Charles’ father and husband of the late Queen Elizabeth, said in a letter to Diana, “I can’t imagine anyone in their right mind would leave you for Camilla.”
focus of criticism
Amid a wave of public mourning and anger following Diana’s death, Camilla faced severe criticism. But in the following years, royal aides, who were tasked with rebuilding the tarnished reputation of the entire royal family, also gradually began to integrate Camilla into a more public role.
From being able to appear in public together to the wedding and acceptance last year from Queen Elizabeth to Camilla taking the title of Queen Consort, their success has been palpable.
Public relations experts say that this was the result of very hard and careful work, although colleagues said that this was mainly due to Camilla’s own personality and great sense of humor.
Fiona Shelburne said, “She’s resilient, she was brought up with this extraordinary sense of duty where you got on with it, don’t whine, put on your best face and keep going, and it’s stood her in very good stead.” ” The Marchioness of Lansdowne, a close confidante of Camilla, who is now 75, told the Sunday Times last month.
However, his rehabilitation has come at a cost. In his memoir, Prince Harry, Charles’ younger son, accused his stepmother of leaking stories about him to enhance his reputation, and that he and his brother had been told by their father not to marry.
Polls also show that he has not won widespread public affection either. A YouGov poll this week found that 48% had a positive opinion of her, with 39% having a negative opinion, making her the least popular of the royals.
Other polls have also indicated only a minority view that she should be Queen Camilla.
Royal writer Tina Brown told Reuters, “I think Diana … will be thunderous on coronation day, that’s for sure.” “I mean the idea of her deadliest rival, Camilla, placing a crown on her head, I think she would be completely heartbroken.”
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