Publications
Partners
- Queen Elizabeth announced that when Charles becomes king it's her "sincere wish" Camilla Parker Bowles becomes "Queen Consort".
- The statement has been met with mixed responses, after years of scrutiny for Camilla, vilified for the role she played in Charles' split from Princess Diana.
- Here we look at what Diana said all those years ago about potentially becoming queen before her untimely death.
The queen released a statement over the weekend as she began her Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
Marking 70 years on the throne, Her Majesty set in motion her plans for the monarchy, declaring: "It is my sincere wish that, when that time comes, Camilla will be known as Queen Consort as she continues her own loyal service."
For years, Camilla, who married Charles in 2005 following a long love affair while he was married to Princess Diana, has been seen as somewhat of a villain; she's been scrutinised for years for the role she played in the demise of Charles and Diana's marriage.
The UK press reported Sunday, though, the queen "anoints Queen Camilla", in a move that's ended "years of controversy and confusion".
After her death on 31 August 1997, we first heard Diana's new, unofficial title, however – "the People's Princess" – when then Prime Minister, Tony Blair gave a public speech to a nation in mourning.
"She touched the lives of so many others in Britain and throughout the world with joy and with comfort. How many times shall we remember her in how many different ways – with the sick, the dying, with children, with the needy... People everywhere, not just here in Britain, kept faith with Princess Diana. They liked her, they loved her, they regarded her as one of the people.
"She was the People's Princess and that is how she will stay, how she will remain in our hearts and our memories forever."
Princess Diana's death and the subsequent speech came just one year after her infamous tell-all Panorama interview with Martin Bashir in which she may have connoted to the title herself.
When asked about marrying into the royal family, and the significance of what it all meant, Diana told the BBC journalist that although it was challenging, she wasn’t "daunted by the responsibilities" of her role as Princess of Wales.
"As for becoming queen, it's, it was never at the forefront of my mind," she said.
When asked specifically if she ever thought she'd become queen, Diana said no, followed by an honest, quite heartwarming: "I don't see myself being queen of this country. I'd like to be a queen of people's hearts, in people's hearts."
The public often praised Princess Diana for her charity work and level of compassion for all those around her. Even though she was officially stripped of her HRH title after her separation from Prince Charles, she continued to be a light in most people's lives giving true meaning to her unofficial title.
Princess Diana may not have been queen, but she will always be the chosen princess – the People's Princess.
