PORTRAIT - Who is Camilla, the long-unloved new queen consort of the British?

Ophelie Artaud 6:20 a.m., September 19, 2022

She is the new queen consort of the United Kingdom.

Camilla Shand (better known by the surname of her first husband Parker-Bowles), the wife of King Charles III took many years to obtain the approval of the British.

Still hated by some, she was long one of the most hated women in the country, due to her affair with young Charles, then Prince of Wales and married to Lady Diana.

Many have also held her responsible for the death of the princess in August 1997.

A first meeting with Charles in 1970

But before Charles, Camilla had a first life.

Born on July 17, 1947, she had a first marriage with Andrew Parker-Bowles, with whom she had two children: Thomas and Laura.

Sometimes described as a "tomboy" during his childhood because of his taste for sport, it was this same passion that allowed him to meet a certain Charles from England, during a polo match in 1971. The young prince immediately falls under her spell.

A reciprocal love at first sight which leads to a first connection quickly interrupted by the departure of Charles in the Royal Navy.

Anyway, their marriage seemed impossible because Camilla is not from an aristocratic family.

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Britons divided

Upon her return, Camilla was engaged to Andrew Parker-Bowles, whom she married in 1973. A few years later, in 1981, Charles in turn married Diana Spencer, without however forgetting Camilla.

Quickly, they begin a new secret relationship, at the expense of Diana, who quickly understands her husband's infidelity.

In 1992, the princely couple separated and in 1995, during a television interview for the BBC, Lady Diana publicly revealed her husband's adultery with Camilla throughout their marriage.

"There were three of us in this marriage," she says, shattering the idealized image of their couple.

In 1995, Camilla and Andrew Parker-Bowles divorced, as did Charles and Diana the following year.

Quickly, Charles and Camilla were no longer in hiding, but on August 31, 1997, Lady Diana died tragically in a road accident in Paris.

From then on, Camilla's popularity rating in British opinion plummeted.

It will take many years to rehabilitate her image with the British people, even if one element will help her a lot: the support of Elizabeth II, who ends up accepting her love with Charles.

Invested in humanitarian causes

In 2005, Camilla and Charles married and she obtained the title of "Duchess of Cornwall", because that of Princess of Wales remains deeply linked to Diana.

A civil marriage that Elizabeth II tolerates, but which she refuses to attend.

Over the years, the Duchess managed to win the esteem of part of public opinion.

She is also involved in various causes, in particular with the Emmaüs UK association, of which she is royal godmother, in helping victims of sexual violence or in favor of animal welfare.

Last February, on the occasion of the anniversary of her 70-year reign, Elizabeth II announced her desire to see Camilla designated queen consort upon her son's accession to the throne.

When the queen died on September 8, Camilla, now 75, took on this title.

She also made a point of paying tribute to her late mother-in-law, considering that "it must have been so difficult for her to be a lonely woman. There were no women Prime Ministers or Presidents. She was the only one, so I think she carved out her own role."

Camilla also recalls the Queen's "wonderful blue eyes" "which, when she smiled, lit up her whole face".

Over the years, the new queen consort has thus managed to win a place in the hearts of Elizabeth II and the British, while remaining the "darling wife" of Charles, as the new king declared during his first speech as sovereign. 

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