So far official. As invitations to May’s coronation start to appear on the doormats in the next few days, the last pretense will be gone.
Ms. Parker Bowles is no longer just a queen, she will live up to Queen Camilla’s style. And with the stroke of a calligrapher’s pen, the last vestiges of the absolute second-hand stature will be nothing more than a footnote in royal history.
The lavishly decorated coronation invitations revealed yesterday, hand-painted in watercolor and gouache, mark the first time she’s been officially published as Queen without the “consort” qualification.
For some, this will be seen as a natural and right progression for a woman whose devotion and loyalty to her husband since their wedding at Windsor Castle in 2005 has been unkind. Still, others may marvel at the extraordinary upward trajectory of the woman whom the late Princess Diana denounced as the third person in her marriage.
That is why, on the important day next month, when all eyes will be drawn to the sacred rituals and processions with the coronation of King Charles III, many will feel equally the presence of the blonde figure at his side.
Ms. Parker Bowles is no longer just a queen, she will live up to Queen Camilla’s style
Pictured: Prince Charles chatting with Camilla Parker Bowles at a polo match, circa 1972
Of course, it was a painful and turbulent journey for the ex-army officer’s wife: from the mistress of the heir to the throne to his indispensable wife and now to his queen.
Just over a year ago, the one stumbling block that might have prevented such a moment vanished when the late Queen Elizabeth gave her consent by expressing her ‘sincere desire’ that her daughter-in-law be fully recognized as queen when Charles acceded to the throne.
At the time it was a game changer. Years of unease — even worry — about how Queen Camilla might destabilize the monarchy were promptly put aside. If the late queen — who Camilla once remarked looked “fairly used” — could not only accept but embrace her as a future, that’s how the argument goes, so should everyone else.
In the seven months since Charles succeeded his mother, Camilla has been an ever-present, reassuring companion without fault. In today’s royal family, which is mired in controversy on many fronts, this in itself is a significant achievement.
However, there was still concern among courtiers about how to properly accommodate women who some fans of the monarchy would never forgive for usurping Diana’s place in the royal marriage.
But overcoming this last hurdle before the coronation shows Buckingham Palace at its best. As one old palace hand told me: ‘It was about catching Nettles and settling this argument about her situation once and for all.
“There is a nationwide admiration for it, even an affection, which may not be universal but has a durability and a solidity about it.”
It was a smart strategy to let Camilla sit among the other positive news about Prince George’s turn, along with Camilla’s grandchildren Joss, Louis and Freddie making their Pages of Honor to the King and Queen at the May 6 ceremony.
For some, this will be seen as a natural and right progression for a woman whose devotion and loyalty to her husband since their wedding at Windsor Castle in 2005 has been unkind.
Sunday marks the 18th wedding anniversary of the King and Queen Consort, a milestone they may once have celebrated with fervor. But they will focus on the upcoming historic occasion.
The King and Queen’s official coronation photo, which was also released yesterday, shows a couple very comfortable not only with each other, but also with their status.
The smiles on their lips, their relaxed, semi-formal demeanor – Charles in the exemplary pose with one hand in a suit pocket – show us the royal couple in utmost aplomb despite the grandeur of the blue drawing room backdrop at Buckingham Palace.
Here at last they are equal, something that seemed so unreal and remote a possibility not so many years ago. As a man and wife have been and will be partners approaching the next crossroads in their lives as crowned King and Queen.
It’s been a quiet progression so far. It should have been. There was a long period of mourning for the late Queen Elizabeth and uncertainty about the new world that Charles and Camilla occupied.
Meanwhile, continuing to refer to her as the Queen’s Queen seemed so logical when memories of Charles’ mother, who had always only been the Queen, were so strong.
But, with a clear path now ahead of them, observers will look in this picture for clues not only about their own state of mind but also about the monarchy’s longtime security as an institution.
Perhaps its most telling detail is the most obvious: As they prepare for the coronation, Charles and Camilla are not only blissfully happy, but brimming with confidence.
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