Royal life
Royal biographer Ingrid Seward gives a first-hand account of Camilla’s bumpy journey to the throne
Today she is Queen, but Camilla Parker Bowles’ path to the throne has been far from straightforward. Originally cast as the villain in the then Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales’ love story, she was once labelled ‘Britain’s most hated woman’.
However, despite the odds, Camilla, 76, has remained steadfastly by Charles’ side and, according to Ingrid Seward, is now ‘the strength behind the crown’, particularly following His Majesty’s cancer diagnosis, and The Princess of Wales’ recent operation. Here, Ingrid looks at her transformation.
Early days
Their love story began in 1971, when Prince Charles was invited to a party in Belgravia. A 24-year-old Camilla Shand, who was in an on-off relationship with Andrew Parker Bowles, was invited by neighbour Lucía Santa Cruz to meet the heir to the throne. ‘There was an instant warmth between the two,’ recalls Ingrid. Romance soon blossomed and Charles’ uncle, Lord Mountbatten, ‘told the Prince he could use his family home, Broadlands in Hampshire, whenever he wanted, so he could be alone with Camilla without anyone knowing.’
The relationship came to its ‘inevitable end’ in 1973, when the Prince’s naval career demanded that he sail to the Caribbean, separating the couple for a year. Now, Ingrid reveals that during their last weekend at Broadlands, the ‘idea of proposing to Camilla occurred’ to Charles but he was ‘fearful of being rejected’.
Camilla reunited with and married Andrew Parker Bowles, leaving Charles ‘heartbroken’. But later, on 29 July 1981, it appeared he had finally moved on as he exchanged vows with 19-year-old Lady Diana Spencer, with Camilla attending.
The reunion
Time passed and, both unhappy in their respective marriages, Charles and Camilla found their way back to one another, becoming firm friends. ‘Camilla appeared like a rock of sanity amid the storm of hysteria in which Charles found himself,’ says Ingrid. She explains, ‘Camilla was his only hope for a bit of “quality life”. She gave him support and encouragement. She would tell him, “I am so proud of you.” It was a flattery and affection of a kind he had craved all his life.’
The pair soon resumed their romantic relationship, but it was not without consequences.
‘The Queen and Prince Philip disliked any whiff of scandal that might damage the monarchy, and the “War of the Waleses” – as Diana and Charles’s tempestuous marriage was named – was made even worse by the ever-present shadow of Camilla,’ writes Ingrid.
Painted a villain, Camilla became the scapegoat for the breakdown of the Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage. Camilla later admitted, ‘I couldn’t real
