There’s something amusing about the timing of this Town & Country piece about Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall. We’ve spent months hearing about the “feud” between Meghan and Kate and how Kate is doing everything perfectly because she’s “the future queen.” I’ve repeatedly asked “where is Camilla in this narrative?” Clearly, royal commentators believe that Queen Elizabeth isn’t going to be around in, say, five years. But that means that Charles and Camilla become king and queen before William and Kate. I mean, duh. But the way people go on and on about Will and Kate, you would think they’re the Prince and Princess of Wales. And if Charles lives to be as old as his mother, then he’ll be king for a good two or three decades.

Anyway, every so often – like, every six months? – some royal-friendly outlet publishes a very pro-Camilla article. This is a very conscious choice by Clarence House, and it’s part of two-decade-long campaign to make the British public accepting of Camilla in general, and Clarence House eventually hopes that people will accept her as Queen Consort. To be fair though, it does seem like people genuinely like Camilla. Which is the point of this Town & Country piece – that Camilla’s really likeable, that she works hard, that she’s very friendly and she cares. Oh, and she has loads of “secret visits” too, just like Kate and Meghan. Some highlights:

Camilla’s secret visits: The Duchess has also earned praise for being as effective outside the spotlight as she is when everyone is paying attention. “She does secret visits. She does things that get no publicity,” says Faulds Wood. Claire Severgnini, chief executive of the ROS, has had the same experience. Camilla goes “to meet the health professionals and the scientists and the academics behind the scenes” and “briefs herself,” she says.

The late-in-life change in Camilla: Camilla was 57 at the time of her marriage to the Prince of Wales, and had never really worked outside the home. Now 71, the Duchess is patron or president of more than 90 charities and carried out 219 engagements in 2018, including 70 during overseas tours. She and Charles have just returned from a 13-day tour taking in 50 engagements across 10 islands, including an historic visit to Cuba.

Let Camilla Be Camilla: “When she joined the royal family it was a very different situation to the one we see now,” says Rebecca English, the Daily Mail’s royal correspondent of 15 years. Pointing out that their team had to decide how to approach Camilla’s public image in her new role, English says, “They decided the way to do it wasn’t to ‘sell her’. They concluded that the best way to move things forward was to just let her be herself and let people see for themselves what she is actually really like. In just going out there and being herself she has turned her public image around from being one of the least popular royals to one of the most accepted.”

Rebecca English notes that Camilla likes journalists: “She actually likes journalists; she likes the company of journalists; she likes the gossip and the fun and the sense of humor,” English says. “She respects that you have a job to do and that sometimes you might write things that aren’t entirely comfortable for her or the family. But she doesn’t let that affect her day to day working relationship with you, which is professional and refreshing.”

Whether Camilla will be called Queen: In 2016, the Queen made Camilla a member of her most senior advisory body, the Privy Council. This move not only demonstrates the regard in which she holds her daughter in law but also, as Jobson points out, means that “she will be in the room” when he is proclaimed king. What her title will become in that moment has been the topic of much discussion. Clarence House announced when they married that the intention was for her to be called Princess Consort. Experts have since pointed out that she will legally become Queen Consort however she is styled. The general consensus is that she’s not hung up on these things but many believe that it matters to Charles. “When the time comes, I believe Prince Charles will want Queen Camilla by his side,” says Joe Little, managing editor of Majesty Magazine. Jobson agrees. “She will most definitely be Queen Consort, there’s absolutely no question about that,” he says.

[From Town & Country]

I’m sure there are many people out there who will never accept Queen Camilla, and it won’t make a bit of difference if she’s called Princess Consort or whatever. But I think in many ways the Clarence House long-view will be rewarded – they let people get to know Camilla, they let her actions and words speak for themselves, and clearly, Charles adores her. I think the majority of people will either be for a “Queen Camilla” or they won’t care one way or the other.

Photos courtesy of WENN.