'Queen Camilla' not likely
2006-04-09 12:15
London - The second wife of Britain's Prince Charles has managed to establish herself as the spouse of the heir to the throne, but a year after their marriage she has a more difficult job persuading the public.
The last survey on the matter showed that most Britons do not want her to become "Queen Camilla" when Charles succeeds his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
An April 5 poll by The Times newspaper suggested that 56% of people would prefer that the Duchess of Cornwall, as she is known, takes the title "Princess Consort" instead on her husband's accession.
Since her marriage to Charles on April 9, 2005, officials at the couple's official London residence, Clarence House, have been attempting to prepare the ground for her future role with a succession of public appearances.
On the couple's recent trip to India, for example, Camilla wore the same Durbar headdress as that worn by Queen Mary to mark the start of the reign of her husband George V as King and Emperor of India.
She has made two overseas trips with Charles and attended dozens of official royal engagements, even if she often took a backseat.
Most royal watchers and commentators believe that, despite what they said a year ago, Camilla could well grow into the role of queen - but royal officials needed to manage the situation correctly.
"It's got to be very slowly, very easy and relaxed. There's still a lot of people that are taking time to adjust," said public relations specialist Max Clifford.
With Charles and Camilla not known for being at ease with the media, the overall positive publicity meant it had been a "very good year" for the couple, he added.
Clifford's view was shared by historian Robert Lacey, a specialist in the British monarchy.
"Camilla has turned out to be a pretty good duchess," he told AFP.
Journalist Damian Whitworth, who covered Charles and Camilla's trip to Egypt, Saudi Arabia and India for The Times, wrote recently that she was "warm, witty and fun".
All three agreed that Charles is now more popular and relaxed, crediting the transformation to the woman who was his long-term mistress throughout his first marriage to Princess Diana, who died in a car crash in August 1997.
"She is the greatest asset the Prince of Wales has as he waits to inherit the throne," noted Whitworth.
Yet Camilla has not always enjoyed unqualified success, particularly on the couple's first official overseas engagement together in the United States last November.
The welcome for Camilla was sometimes frosty in the country that was charmed by Diana - with particular attention being paid to her contrast with Charles' style-conscious, late ex-wife.
The tabloid New York Post declared "Queen Camilla Is New York's Frump Tower", while the highbrow New York Times sniffed that a middle-aged woman wearing heels was "a sign that she was trying".
Camilla still has to shake off the legacy of Diana, according to Clifford.
The Princess of Wales - a title normally accorded to the heir to the throne's wife but denied to Camilla for fear of offending sensibilities - wowed the US public in 1985 by dancing with John Travolta at the White House.
"She was following the most difficult act in the world," said Clifford.
"Princess Diana was the most famous woman on the planet - young, popular.
"Camilla's probably done better than most people thought," he added.
Lacey, however, noted that it was "totally irrelevant" what people think now about Camilla.
"What matters will be the moment when the queen dies, how people feel at that moment," he explained.
As for whether Camilla will be queen, Clifford is clear.
"Five years ago I would have said no. I would say it's about 50-50 at the moment but I think in the next five years, gently, gently, and they could probably turn it around," he added.
- SAPA