Why Queen Elizabeth Didn't Attend Charles and Camilla's Wedding 21 Years Ago

Laura Rizzo ChaganiThu, April 9, 2026 at 3:50 AM UTC

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King Charles and Queen Camilla wed on April 9, 2005, but their official union didn’t come without some tension.

Learn about their marriage after years of scrutiny, both from the public and the British royal family.

When Did King Charles and Queen Camilla Get Married?

Charles and Camilla wed on April 9, 2005, during a civil ceremony at the Windsor Guildhall, followed by a blessing at St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle, per Town and Country. The wedding was originally planned for April 8 but was postponed for 24 hours to allow Charles to attend the funeral of Pope John Paul II.

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When Did King Charles and Queen Camilla Start Dating?

The pair first met at a polo match in 1970 and were romantically involved for a year before Charles left for the Royal Navy in 1972. In 1973, Camilla married her first husband, Andrew Parker-Bowles, but remained friends with Charles. The current monarch is a godfather to Andrew and Camilla’s son, Tom. (The exes also share a daughter named Laura.) Charles married Princess Diana in July 1981, and Camilla was in attendance.

In 1986, Charles and Camilla began having an affair, according to the British royal’s authorized biography. Charles and Diana announced their separation in 1992, with their divorce finalized in 1996. As for Camilla and Andrew, they announced their divorce in 1995.

Prince Charles waves with the Duchess of Cornwall, formerly Camilla Parker Bowles as they St George's Chapel in Windsor, England, following the church blessing of their civil wedding ceremony, 09 April 2005. (Photo credit should read ALASTAIR GRANT/AFP via Getty Images)ALASTAIR GRANT/AFP via Getty Images (ALASTAIR GRANT/AFP via Getty Images)

Charles and Camilla continued their relationship and married nearly 35 years after they first met.

Why Didn’t Queen Elizabeth Attend Charles and Camilla’s Wedding?

The town hall where Charles and Camilla got married is near Windsor Castle, but Charles’ parents, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, did not attend the civil ceremony.

During her 70-year reign, Elizabeth served as head of the Church of England and decided it was not appropriate to be at a wedding of two people who were divorced. Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh did attend the subsequent blessing of Charles and Camilla at St. George's Chapel.

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Camilla took the title Duchess of Cornwall upon her marriage to the then-Prince of Wales, instead of Princess of Wales, out of respect to Diana, who died in August 1997 after a high-speed car crash.

Did Prince William and Prince Harry Attend Charles and Camilla’s Wedding?

Charles’ sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, were among the 28 guests at the civil ceremony, and they attended the blessing at St. George’s Chapel.

WINDSOR, ENGLAND - APRIL 9: (EMBARGOED TILL 0001 BST MONDAY 11 APRIL 2005) TRH Prince Charles and The Duchess Of Cornwall, Camilla Parker Bowles pose with their children (L-R) Prince Harry, Prince William, Laura and Tom Parker Bowles, in the white drawing room for the Official Wedding group photo following their earlier marriage at The Guildhall, at Windsor Castle on April 9, 2005 in Berkshire, England. (Photo by Hugo Bernand/ROTA/Anwar Hussein Collection/Getty Images)Hugo Bernand/ROTA/Anwar Hussein Collection/Getty Images (Hugo Bernand/ROTA/Anwar Hussein Collection/Getty Images)

However, Harry detailed his feelings about Camilla in his 2023 memoir, Spare, calling her “dangerous” and accusing her and his father of planting stories about him, William, and their respective families.

“There are published reports that Willy and I snuck out of the church and hung JUST MARRIED signs on their car. I don’t think so. I might’ve hung a sign, BE HAPPY. If I’d thought of it at the time,” Harry wrote in his memoir, per The Royal Observer. He claimed he and William had a tough conversation with their father before his second marriage, telling him, “We support you, we said. We endorse Camilla, we said. Just please don’t marry her. Just be together, Pa.”

What Did Princess Diana Say About Camilla?

Princess Diana recalled confronting Camilla during a party in 1989 in audiotapes secretly made for Andrew Morton’s book Diana: Her True Story, per Reader’s Digest.

Diana said she went up to Camilla at her sister Annabel’s 40th birthday and said, “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.’ And I said, ‘I’m sorry I’m in the way … and it must be hell for both of you. But I do know what's going on. Don’t treat me like an idiot.’”

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The Princess of Wales touched on Charles’ affair during a 1995 interview with BBC Panorama. When asked about the breakdown of her marriage, Diana said, “There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded.”

This story was originally published by Parade on Apr 9, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”