“Queen Camilla” was not a title the one-time Camilla Parker Bowles ever imagined holding. But on May 6, atage 75, Camilla will officially be crowned Queen alongside her husband,King Charles, at hishistoric coronation.
“Considering that for most of her life she’d never contemplated the idea of becoming Queen, she’s doing incredibly well,” Christopher Wilson, royal biographer and author ofA Greater Love, tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue. “It’s a hell of a challenge being permanently in the spotlight at this age, but she’s tough and can take it.”
Camilla and Charles met in 1970 through mutual friend Lucia Santa Cruz and discovered an undeniable connection. The then-Prince of Wales was encouraged to find a virginal bride, so Camilla went on to marry army officerAndrew Parker Bowles, and Charles wedPrincess Diana— although their romance continued.
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After Princess Diana famously said “there were three of us in the marriage,” the press branded Camilla Parker Bowles “the most hated woman in Britain.” In the aftermath ofPrince Charlesand Diana’s divorce in 1996 and Diana’s tragic death in 1997, Charles' staff worked to remedy Camilla’s image as the “other woman.”
By 2005, public opinion had changed enough that the couple felt confident to marry, and they recently celebrated their18th wedding anniversary.
“She never lost her common touch,” Edwards tells PEOPLE. “She makes him laugh. When something triggers them, you see them just laughing together. They do things with such enthusiasm.”
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Camilla’s devotion to Charles and enthusiasm for duty inspiredQueen Elizabeth’s lastAccession Daymessage, where she shared it was her “sincere wish” that Camilla be known as Queen Consort when Charles became King. But their bond wasn’t always so strong; the Queen, a deeply religious woman and head of the Church of England, previously struggled with Camilla’s status as a divorced woman and the nature of her relationship with her eldest son.
Once the marriage was sanctioned, Camilla was accepted at royal events. Through the years, she and the Queen shared a mutual love of country life, and the sovereign respected her dedication to her royal responsibilities.
King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort.Chris Jackson/Getty Images
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Camilla supported her husband through the death of his mother in September 2022 and is now poised to take her place beside him andbe crowned as Queenon May 6.
“They work well as a team. It’s impressive,” Wilson tells PEOPLE of Charles and Camilla. “Her presence reassures him. Despite all the trappings of majesty, it’s cold and lonely at the top, and it’s easy to see the comfort she provides him.”
source: people.com
