The things we do for love: we all make sacrifices for love, but, The Daily Mail reports, Queen Camilla has especially sacrificed for her marriage to King Charles. She has “no time to cook for friends and family. Every waking moment on a spreadsheet. And definitely no jeans!”—and that’s just the first half of the headline of the outlet’s article on the subject matter. “Fun-loving Camilla could be putting her feet up by now,” the second half reads, “But the Queen has accepted her new role for love.”
It’s true—by falling in love with the heir to the throne 50 years ago, ultimately carrying on an extramarital affair with him and eventually marrying him, Camilla certainly has sacrificed a quiet life for the one she loves. Camilla’s integration into the Firm has been steady over time, and, as royal expert and Camilla biographer Angela Levin writes for the outlet, as Camilla approaches her first year on the throne as Queen (and Charles, of course, approaches his one-year anniversary as well), “the changes thrust upon his wife Camilla are just as great, if not greater.”
Camilla can find bits of privacy by escaping to her private home, Ray Mill, in Wiltshire from time to time, Levin writes. “After particularly hectic engagements or foreign trips, she can decompress for a day or two, or perhaps a weekend,” she continues. “But everything else is very different. Once known for her spontaneity, her love of riding, good company, and her family, Camilla’s life now runs on rails.”
As Queen, every moment of Camilla’s life is now carefully scheduled—even time set aside for her children and grandchildren. “It’s no longer a matter of popping ‘round or picking up the phone,” Levin writes. “It’s life according to a spreadsheet. There’s little time to cook—and far more time spent with the hairdresser. Her friends understand the constraints but admit it’s hard to see her.”
Camilla, Levin continues, has kept involved with charities that matter most to her, like those relating to domestic violence and children’s literacy, but she has less time to devote to them than she would have liked. Speeches make her nervous, and she hasn’t given an interview since the Coronation three months ago. The breadth of her role has steadily increased over the last five years or so, as Her late Majesty’s health declined, and more sharply over the past two years. “She has undoubtedly learned a discipline and got much more organized,” one of Camilla’s friends tells Levin. “It’s quite something as she is not a naturally organized person. She had to do so because there is so much going on that there wouldn’t have been time for her to see her children or grandchildren, which are so important to her.”
As her first year as Queen comes to a close, “I think the main change is one of confidence, which comes from a real embrace of the duty and responsibility of the role,” another friend tells Levin.
And as for why Camilla is doing this in the first place—love—she and Charles seem more connected than ever, with Levin noting that Charles now puts his arm around her in public, “which I don’t recall seeing when his mother was alive,” she writes. “And this perhaps gets to the heart of the question: why? Why would a fun-loving, free-spirited, irreverent—somewhat lazy—woman sign up for a life of unbelievably hard work and duty at a time she might have hoped to spend life doing exactly as she pleased? The answer, I believe, is love. As it happens, I think she is enjoying her new role, but Camilla is doing this for Charles.”
Stay In The Know
Marie Claire email subscribers get intel on fashion and beauty trends, hot-off-the-press celebrity news, and more. Sign up here.
Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.
-
Prince Harry and King Charles' Relationship Is "Terminally Damaged" After King Declines to See His Son During U.K. Visit: Expert
It's admittedly not looking good.
By Iris Goldsztajn Published
-
Lily Allen Resented Elton John for Years, But There Are No Hard Feelings Now
This is too funny.
By Iris Goldsztajn Published
-
Hilary Duff Welcomes 3rd Child With Husband Matthew Koma
Townes is her fourth child overall.
By Iris Goldsztajn Published
-
Prince Harry Reportedly Sees Prince William’s Newfound Closeness with Queen Camilla “As A Betrayal”
“For Harry, Camilla was the wicked stepmother back then, and she still is.”
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
There’s Likely a Poignant Reason the Women of the Royal Family Color Coordinated in Green at Yesterday’s Easter Service
And it has to do with Princess Kate.
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Turns Out Queen Camilla Is Exactly What the Royal Family Needs Right Now
As Camilla makes history this week, her stepson Prince William is said to have a renewed appreciation for what she brings to the royal family.
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
As Royal Family Drama Reaches Its Apex, Queen Camilla Is Filming a Documentary
Admittedly a most unexpected move from Her Majesty.
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Queen Camilla Is Out of Office This Week, Aiming to “Recharge Her Batteries” After a Tough Start to 2024
An “exhausted” Camilla is apparently “jetting off on a private flight tomorrow for a sunshine break overseas.”
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
It Was Queen Camilla Who Kept King Charles’ Visit with Prince Harry So Short, Royal Expert Says
Despite flying approximately 11,000 miles roundtrip, Harry got about 30 minutes with his father, who is battling cancer.
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
This Royal Family Member Urged King Charles to Break Royal Protocol and Come Forward with His Cancer Diagnosis
It’s in stark contrast to Charles' grandfather King George VI, who died 72 years ago today from cancer—of which the public was totally unaware.
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Queen Camilla Faces an Uphill Battle Getting King Charles to Indulge in Some R&R Following Procedure and Is Being “Very Strict” with Him
In addition to his wife, the King’s staff is reportedly worried about how much he works.
By Rachel Burchfield Published