Queen Camilla’s road to the throne with King Charles: Their love story

King Charles and Queen Camilla may have tied the knot in 2005, but their storied love affair goes way back to the 1970s, even before Charles ever met Diana.

The couple famously courted each other for years before marrying others, but as all true love stories go, we guess, they eventually found their way back to each other, and have been going strong since.

Read on for the full scoop on how they met, what separated them, how they found their way back, and how they’ve stuck beside each other for four decades now.

Charles and Camilla’s first meeting

Charles and Camilla first met sometime in the 1970s; while some say they first crossed paths at a polo match at the Windsor Great Park in 1970, others claim that they actually met for the first time at a party in 1972.

Whatever the truth may be, according to People magazine, 25-year-old Camilla, surprisingly forward for her time, told Charles at a party, “My great-grandmother was the mistress of your great-great-grandfather. I feel we have something in common.”

By 1971, Charles had joined the Royal Navy, and was at sea frequently. Whatever sparks may have flown between the two between 1970 and 1972, thus fizzled out when Charles went off for duty.

Camilla marries another man, Charles meets Diana

By 1973, Camilla had married Andrew Parker-Bowles, whom she’d known since 1965 and courted on and off. In fact, royal historian Penny Junor has claimed that the couple initially only broke up because Andrew had an affair with Charles’ sister, Princess Anne, driving Camilla into Charles’ arms.

Perhaps, if Andrew had not courted Anne, the Charles and Camilla saga may have never started.

Alas, after years of pining after Camilla, a married woman with two children, Charles started looking for a bride of his own at his mother's insistence.

Did you know that Charles and Diana’s meeting was an accident too? The eligible prince had actually been dating her sister, Lady Sarah Spencer (now McCorquodale), when Diana was just 16.

Talking about their first meeting, Diana shared in their engagement interview, “It was 1977, and Charles came to stay. He was a friend of my sister Sarah’s. We sort of met in a plowed field.”

In another famous interview that highlighted the early cracks in their relationship, Charles and Diana were asked if they were "in love," to which Charles replied, “Whatever love means.”

By February of 1981, they were engaged and married on July 29.

Charles continued his close friendship with Camilla despite his engagement to Diana, with his young bride-to-be even finding out and growing ever more anxious as the wedding approached.

Later, Diana revealed to Andrew Morton that she had "looked for Camilla in the congregation" as she walked down the aisle at her wedding to Charles, and that she found an engraved necklace meant for Camilla in their wedding gifts. In fact, Diana was apparently told by Charles early on that “a certain amount of time would always be put aside for Camilla.”

Charles and Camilla’s rekindling

By 1984, Diana and Charles had two children, Prince William and Prince Harry, and it is said that by 1986, Prince Charles had fully restarted a physical affair with Camilla, who was also still married to Andrew with two children, after years of on-again, off-again situationship.

In Diana’s own famous words, “There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded.”

From here on out, Charles and Diana's marriage was headed for splitsville, with Diana also seeing other men eventually.

In 1989, Diana supposedly even confronted Camilla about the affair, telling Morton in an audiotape that she told Camilla, “’I know what’s going on between you and Charles and I just want you to know that. She said to me: ‘You’ve got everything you ever wanted. You’ve got all the men in the world fall in love with you and you’ve got two beautiful children, what more do you want?’ So I said, ‘I want my husband.’”

Camilla and Charles’ affair is revealed

In 1993, the royal family and the world at large was rocked when shocking recordings of phone calls between Charles and Camilla were leaked, exposing their physical affair.

Transcripts of the intimate phone calls from 1989 were published across the UK, and the ensuing scandal ultimately became the catalyst for Charles and Diana’s separation, and Camilla and Andrew’s divorce.

Just a year later in 1994, Prince Charles admitted to his friendship with Camilla in a TV documentary, saying, “She has been a friend for a very long time—and will continue to be a friend for a very long time.”

When asked if he had been "honourable and faithful" to Diana, he claimed, “Yes, yes...until it became irretrievably broken down, us both having tried.”

By 1995, Camilla and Andrew divorced and by 1996, Charles and Diana’s divorce was also finalised.

Camilla is officially introduced to Charles’ family

In August 1997, Princess Diana tragically passed away in a car crash in Paris with her lover Dodi Al-Fayed. She was just 36, leaving behind two young heartbroken children in William and Harry.

Now, Charles decided was the right time to start slowly incorporating Camilla into his family. In 1998, The Guardian confirmed that Camilla had met Prince William and would meet Harry soon.

The same year, Charles invited Camilla to his grand 50th birthday party, which the Queen refused to attend as she and husband Prince Philip "disapproved of their son’s adulterous relationship with Camilla," as per LA Times.

By 1999, Charles and Camilla finally went public with their romance, formally attending events together, and by 2000, Charles had secured the Queen’s approval, who finally agreed to meet Camilla at the King of Greece’s 60th birthday party.

Camilla moves in with Charles at Clarence House

By 2003, Camilla was fully integrating herself into royal life, and even moved in with Prince Charles at his official residence, Clarence House. After about two years of living together, the couple finally got the seal of approval from the Queen, and Charles announced their engagement in 2005.

Charles and Camilla’s happily ever after

Prince Charles’ long and tumultuous love story with Camilla finally found closure when the couple tied the knot on April 9, 2005, in a civil ceremony at the Windsor Guildhall.

Charles and Camilla have now been married for 20 years, with Charles finally becoming the monarch in 2023. They are now King Charles and Camilla, Queen Consort.

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