King Charles’ Sons Had Reportedly Refused To Call Camilla ‘Queen’ As That Title Belonged Only To Diana

Nov 24, 2021

King Charles III and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall's relationship has definitely raised eyebrows over the years. The couple had an affair while Charles was still married to Princess Diana, and during the last few years of her life, it was reported that the alleged affair tormented the late princess. There was even an interview from 1995 where she references the affair to a young Prince William.

Then tragedy struck when Princess Diana passed away due to a car accident in 1996. Following this, Charles and Camilla began officially seeing each other two years after Princess Diana's death. Because of Diana's untimely passing, Charles did not want to overwhelm his family with the sudden inclusion of a new spouse. Harry and William were still minors when their mother passed and Charles decided that it would be best to wait until they were adults to get married to Camilla.

But one major difference between Charles' second wife is that Camilla never went by the title of princess, despite Diana, his first wife, doing so. In fact, the reason why has something to do with Diana — Camilla paid her respect to Diana by opting to take on a different title. 

With Queen Elizabeth's death on Sept. 8, 2022, Charles ascended the throne to become King Charles III. Following this, titles throughout the royal family will change as everyone moves in the ranks. However, previously it was unclear what Camilla's title would be, with varying reports of "Princess Consort" instead of "Queen Consort" which is "the customary title for the wife of a reigning king." After Charles expressed a desire to change this, the queen supported this decision, which she addressed in a speech in Feb. 2022.

Upon Charles and Camilla's engagement in February 2005, a statement from the palace was released in which questions about Camilla's status and title as queen were addressed. 

The statement, released on Feb. 10, 2005, announced their marriage and immediately mentioned that Camilla would be using the title "HRH The Duchess of Cornwall." 

It clarified that since Charles, at the time, was next in line after Queen Elizabeth II, "It is intended that Mrs. Parker Bowles should use the title HRH The Princess Consort when The Prince of Wales accedes to The Throne." Harpers Bazaar noted that Camilla actually had the opportunity to pick up the title "Princess of Wales," but since the beloved, late Diana was bestowed that title, Camilla avoided it.

However, now that the time for Charles to take the throne has arrived, people have been wondering if Camilla will be given the title "Queen Consort" instead, especially since she has become more accepted and beloved by the public. Daily Mail reported in June 2021 that Charles had wanted to convince his sons to let Camilla have the title, but both Harry and William were vehemently against it. 

Royal author Robert Lacey wrote, "The main thing Charles wants is for the pair of them to smile on Camilla becoming his full Queen Consort (instead of Princess Consort, as officially pre-ordained at present)." This news came from a friend of the princes according to Lacey. 

He continued: "He's fixated about it — something he never stops trying to negotiate with both of them. But they will never say 'Yes' to Camilla taking the place that should have been filled by their mother."  

In the same article, Lacey also wrote that both William and Harry were quarreling even during Philip's funeral. There had been a semblance of peace between the brothers at one point when they were spotted having a conversation after the funeral service, but Lacey reported that this was quickly replaced with anger once the cameras were no longer on them. 

One friend told Lacey: "There they were, at each other's throats as fiercely as ever. The rage and anger between those two has grown so incredibly deep. Too many harsh and wounding things have been said."

The feud between William and Harry has made the front page many times, and this rift is the subject of a multi-part BBC documentary, “The Princes and the Press,” which premiered on Nov. 22, 2021, in the UK.

In a rare collective statement from Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace and Clarence House, the royal family denounced the documentary, describing it as a film based on "overblown and unfounded claims." According to Newsweek, the series featured interviews with journalists about supposed “leaks from within Kensington Palace” on controversial topics such as “whether Meghan Markle was difficult to work for." The two brothers’ supposedly stormy relationship was also a subject of the documentary. 

The BBC released its own statement in a piece published on Nov. 23, 2021. The news organization contended that the documentary was "about how royal journalism is done and features a range of journalists from broadcast and the newspaper industry.”

Amol Rajan, the BBC journalist at the center of “The Princess and the Press,” wrote in his own piece that the documentary was the product of over "80 hours of interviews" conducted over one year.  

Because Prince Harry and Prince William both have incredible involvement and attachment to their mother's legacy, it's understandable that the matter of witnessing their father remarry was a delicate one. The princes were 15 and 12 years old respectively when their mother died. This is part of the reason why Charles and Camilla waited to finally marry.

According to Express, royal biographer Penny Junor wrote in her 2005 book “The Firm:”

"A not insignificant part of the reason why they had waited until 2005 to announce their engagement was a sensitivity towards the boys. They didn’t want to foist a stepmother on William and Harry before they had fully grown up.”

However, in February 2022, the Royal Family's Twitter account tweeted an important message from Queen Elizabeth. The message mostly spoke about her gratitude for being the reigning monarch for 70 years and her gratitude for her family. In the message, the queen also wrote:

“And when, in the fullness of time, my son Charles becomes King, I know you will give him and his wife Camilla the same support that you have given me; and it is my sincere wish that, when that time comes, Camilla will be known as Queen Consort as she continues her own loyal service.”

Since then, the title was still the topic of debate as there hasn’t been one traditional way that the royals have lived in the past. According to the Washington Post, when King William III reigned from 1689 to 1694, his wife Queen Mary II went by “queen” rather than “queen consort.” With King Charles III's ascension to the throne upon his mother Queen Elizabeth II's death, it has been reported that Camilla will officially take on the title of "Queen Consort," just as Charles and Elizabeth wanted. 

What are your thoughts on Camilla being named "Queen Consort" now that King Charles III has ascended the throne? Tell us your thoughts, and be sure to pass this on to others as well.