Two Royal Siblings Fought "Like Cats and Dogs" as Children and Were "Hugely Competitive," Says Royal Biographer

"For all their squabbles they got along reasonably well."

Zara Tindall, Princess Anne, Queen Camilla, Princess Kate, King Charles, Queen Elizabeth on the balcony at Buckingham Palace in 2016
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Growing up as a member of the Royal Family must be an unusual experience. While much royal drama plays out in the public eye, royal experts often take fans behind-the-scenes of life in the palace. And according to one royal biographer, two royal siblings were known to argue often when they were younger.

In the book, My Mother and I, royal expert Ingrid Seward discussed King Charles and Princess Anne's unexpected experience growing up as siblings in Buckingham Palace.

"Princess Anne was technically a spare until the birth of [ex-]Prince Andrew, in February 1960, but while she was second in line for almost nine and a half years, she made sure she was first in everything else," Seward explained.

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Unsurprisingly, Anne became "hugely competitive with Charles when they were young." According to Seward, The King "never stood a chance against his willful sister, even though she was two years younger."

King Charles and Princess Anne were once very competitive

Anne became "hugely competitive with Charles when they were young."

(Image credit: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)

Unfortunately for Charles, Princess Anne was quite the competitor.

"Everything he had, she wanted, and according to Anne they fought 'like cats and dogs,'" Seward shared.

The royal biographer continued, "When she was really worked up, she would throw things at Charles and lie on the floor kicking with sheer temper until she got what her heart desired."

Despite the competition between them, "Charles was surprisingly gentle with his boisterous sister, and for all their squabbles they got along reasonably well," Seward explained.

King Charles and Princess Anne were once very competitive

The King "never stood a chance against his willful sister, even though she was two years younger."

(Image credit: Hannah McKay - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

The royal biographer continued, "But if Anne was more than her brother's equal in the battlefield of the nursery, it was Charles who commanded the greatest attention. He was born to be King and that fact was subtly drummed into him and his sister from earliest memory."

Luckily, Charles and Anne appear to have left their competitive nature in the past since then.

Amy Mackelden
Weekend Editor

Amy Mackelden is the weekend editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.