Camilla should be Queen: Monarch uses her Jubilee message to shape the royals’ future

The Queen today urges the nation to accept the Duchess of Cornwall as Queen Camilla as she celebrates her Platinum Jubilee.

In an attempt to shape the future of the monarchy on her historic milestone, the Queen expressed her “sincere wish” that Camilla would be known as Queen Consort when the Prince of Wales becomes king.

As she reaches her 70th year on the throne, the monarch, in the twilight years of her reign, set out her hopes for her daughter-in-law, once a royal mistress and now certain to be called Queen and crowned at Charles’s side.

The Queen, using the rarest of jubilees to put her affairs in order on a public platform, also shared her succession support for her eldest son as monarch.

The Queen, 95, said in the written message: “I would like to express my thanks to you all for your support. I remain eternally grateful for, and humbled by, the loyalty and affection that you continue to give me.

“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.”

© PA

The Queen who acceded to the throne on February 6, 1952, on the death of her father, George VI, also renewed her lifelong pledge of duty, despite approaching her 96th birthday this year.

“As we mark this ­anniversary, it gives me pleasure to renew to you the pledge I gave in 1947 that my life will always be devoted to your service,” she said.

She also paid tribute to the late Duke of Edinburgh for the sacrifices he made as consort, thanked her family for their support, and made reference to the Queen Mother’s role as a Queen Consort.

The Queen wrote: “I am fortunate to have had the steadfast and loving support of my family. I was blessed that in Prince Philip I had a partner willing to carry out the role of consort and unselfishly make the sacrifices that go with it.

“It is a role I saw my own mother perform during my father’s reign.”

Camilla would technically have been Queen when Charles acceded to the throne, and only legislation would have prevented it.

Camilla was blamed for the breakdown of the prince’s marriage to Diana, Princess of Wales. And, when news of their affair first came to light, she faced vitriolic criticism.

Yet now, with the Queen setting out her wishes and calling for people to support Charles and Camilla, the duchess will undoubtedly be crowned alongside the prince at his coronation when the time comes.

Former BBC royal ­correspondent Peter Hunt said: “This is the most extraordinary message. The Queen is ensuring the transition, when it comes, to her son as king is as seamless and trouble free as possible.

“She’s future-proofing an institution she’s served for 70 years.”

© PA

There was fierce debate and controversy in the run-up to Charles and Camilla’s wedding 17 years ago over whether Camilla would one day be queen.

The wife of a king ­automatically becomes a queen consort and only a change in legislation will prevent her from doing so.

Royal aides insisted, when she married Charles, that Camilla did not want to be queen and said originally that she “intended” to be known instead as Princess Consort – the first in British history – when Charles acceded to the throne.

But the careful use of the verb “to intend” left this open to change in the future.

Any mention of “Princess Consort” was removed from Charles’s website during a revamp in 2018.

At the time of the couple’s royal wedding, the prince’s advisers argued that Camilla would simply choose not to call herself queen and be known as Princess Consort.

But the government and other experts said that unless there was a change in the law, Camilla would still legally become queen when Charles became king, no matter what she chose to call herself.

Last month a YouGov survey showed the Duchess of Cornwall was enjoying her most positive public opinion in a decade, boosting hopes she will one day be accepted as Queen.