Queen Consort Camilla will officially be named Queen Camilla at King Charles III’s coronation on Saturday (6 May).
The invitations for the King’s forthcoming coronation revealed Camilla Parker-Bowles’ new title. She was referred to as Queen Consort following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September last year.
The decision is unprecedented since the late Queen Elizabeth II said in February last year that it was her “sincere wish that, when that time comes, Camilla will be known as Queen Consort”. Buckingham Palace confirmed last month that Camilla will be known as Queen after the coronation.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, a senior royal aide confirmed that royal will henceforth be called Queen Camilla once the King is crowned on 6 May. “It made sense to refer to her Majesty as The Queen Consort in the early months of His Majesty’s reign, to distinguish from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II,” they told the outlet on 4 April.
“Queen Camilla is the appropriate title to set against King Charles on the invitation. The Coronation is an appropriate time to start using ‘Queen Camilla’ in an official capacity. All former Queen consorts have been known as Queen plus their first name.”
The royal website will also be updated post-coronation to reflect Camilla’s change in title, with Queen Consort being replaced with Queen Camilla, the Palace said.
What is the difference between Queen Consort and Queen?
The reigning monarch’s wife is traditionally known as the Queen Consort, while the Queen (technically the “Queen Regnant”) refers to a woman who has ascended the throne through the pre-established familial line of succession and has sovereign power. Because Queen Elizabeth II ascended when her father, King George VI died in 1952, she is a Queen, whereas Camilla is a Queen by marriage, making her consort.
However, it is thought that the royal family only called her Queen Consort initially to distinguish her from Queen Elizabeth II immediately after her death. Royal experts have suggested that it was always planned for Camilla to eventually drop the “consort” part of her title.
Will Queen Consort Camilla become Queen?
Yes. After the coronation, she will be known as Queen Camilla. She will not become the monarch because the throne can only be inherited, but will take the Queen title since she is Charles’s wife.
What was Camilla called previously?
Camilla Parker-Bowles, who is Charles’s second wife, was made the Duchess of Cornwall when the pair married in 2005. Upon marrying King Charles in 2005, who was Prince of Wales at the time, Camilla decided not to use the Princess of Wales title, which had been used by his ex-wife Princess Diana.
In an unprecedented move, she became the Queen Consort following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September last year, after her husband inherited the throne.
The title was originally known as the “Princess Consort” but Queen Elizabeth II announced that it was her “sincere wish” that the Duchess of Cornwall will be known as Queen Consort when Charles becomes King.
From Saturday (6 May), however, Camilla will be known as Queen Camilla, not Queen Consort.
What title does the wife or husband of the King or Queen usually take?
Traditionally, the wife of a reigning king is given the title of the Queen Consort. She is crowned and anointed at the coronation ceremony.
While the monarch plays a constitutional role in approving bills before they become law, the wife of the King does not hold a formal position in the structure of the government. She also does not see official state papers or hold official audiences.
The most recent consort to a reigning monarch was Prince Philip, who held the position for 60 years from Queen Elizabeth’s accession to the throne in 1952 until his death in 2021.
Unlike a Queen consort, the husband of a reigning Queen is not crowned at the coronation ceremony.
However, the Duke of Edinburgh was the first consort to take part in the “act of homage” to the Queen after the Archbishops and Bishops during the ceremony. The Queen also granted him “place, pre-eminence and precedence” next to herself shortly after her accession to the throne.
