A quiet association. King Charles III and the late Queen Elizabeth II had an “unstated” deal about naming Camilla as Queen Consort — and it concerned Prince Andrew.
“It’s possible you’ll recall that Prince Andrew was enmeshed within the Jeffrey Epstein [case],” royal knowledgeable Christopher Andersen solely advised Us Weekly in an interview on Tuesday, November 1, whereas speaking about his new guide, The King: The Lifetime of King Charles III. “Charles was instrumental in ensuring that, with [Prince] William’s backing, that Andrew was kind of drummed out of the household.”
The 62-year-old Duke of York, whose affiliation with the late, disgraced financier made headlines within the fall of 2019, took a step again from his royal duties later that yr after being accused of sexual assault. He was stripped of his royal patronages and navy titles in January, months after his accuser filed a lawsuit towards him for alleged sexual assault and emotional misery. One month later, Andrew settled the lawsuit — allegedly with monetary assist from his mom.
Elizabeth, who died in September at age 96, “was going to dip into her private pocket” to assist pay the settlement charge, Andersen tells Us, explaining that Andrew was Her Majesty’s “favourite.”
“Now, that meant, actually — as a result of Charles simply was going to be the inheritor — that this was additionally cash that may’ve come to him ultimately,” the royal knowledgeable defined.
The writer famous that whereas “Charles may have objected,” the timing was off: the settlement coincided with the start of the queen’s Platinum Jubilee. Due to this fact, the royal knowledgeable defined, Charles, 73, thought that the occasion could be the “good time” to “endorse Camilla as a Queen Consort.”
“And so in a sort of an unstated implicit deal, this was the tradeoff,” the royal writer advised Us. “And that announcement was made … it was very abrupt, you might recall, it was one thing [that took] all people without warning, … she was so towards Camilla ever turning into queen for many years and many years, that it, it was an entire about-face, [and] that I feel [it] shocked lots of people.”
Elizabeth introduced her daughter-in-law’s title in an announcement on February 6.
“When, within the fullness of time, my son Charles turns into King, I do know you’ll give him and his spouse Camilla the identical assist that you’ve got given me,” the sovereign, 95, wrote in an announcement, launched on Saturday, February 5. “And it’s my honest want that, when that point comes, Camilla shall be generally known as Queen Consort as she continues her personal loyal service.”
Camilla instantly obtained the title after the queen’s dying at age 96 on September 8. When Buckingham Palace introduced the late monarch’s passing, Camilla was known as the “Queen Consort” within the official assertion, whereas her husband was dubbed king.
