Princess Anne Won’t Let Queen Camilla Break Royal Protocol

Princess Anne had a by-the-royal-rulebook response when her sister-in-law Queen Camilla asked her to break royal protocol.

The two women had a rare joint engagement on Wednesday, Nov. 20 when the Princess Royal, 74 — who is also Chancellor of the University of London — presented the Queen, 77, with an honorary doctorate of literature for her promotion of literacy and literature over many years.

Shortly after the two arrived at the University of London, Queen Camilla invited Princess Anne to enter the room before her, where they were due to meet the other four recipients of the University of London’s honorary doctorate awarded alongside the Queen. But, according to The Daily Express, Princess Anne — long a student of royal protocol — “smiled and politely refused, allowing Camilla to enter first.”

The order of precedence “is a sequential hierarchy of nominal importance,” per the outlet, and is mostly seen at work for formal or state occasions. Although Anne — the only daughter of the late Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip — was born into the royal family, Camilla as Queen ranks higher in the royal precedence. Therefore, keeping to protocol, Anne let her sister-in-law go first.

“I’ve known her a long time, off and on,” Anne said of her sister-in-law Camilla in Charles III: The Coronation, a 2023 BBC documentary. “Her understanding of her role and how much difference it makes to the King has been absolutely outstanding.”

King Charles and Queen Camilla — then Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles — married in 2005 after over three decades of knowing one another and an off-and-on relationship both before and after their respective divorces in the 1990s, Charles from Princess Diana (who died in 1997) and Camilla from Andrew Parker Bowles.

Speaking of Camilla as Queen, Anne continued, “This role is not something that she would have been a natural for, but she does it really well. And she provides that change of speed and tone.”

Honorary degrees like the one Queen Camilla received on Nov. 20 have been conferred on royals before her — she is the seventh member of the royal family to receive an honorary doctorate since 1903, according to The Daily Mail. King George V and Queen Mary also received honorary doctorates when they were Prince and Princess of Wales and, in addition to royals, notables like Sir Winston Churchill; poet, essayist and playwright T.S. Eliot; and Dame Judi Dench have also been honored in this manner.

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Before Princess Anne presented her with her honorary degree, Sir Mark Lowcock praised Queen Camilla for the way she has “embraced her role [as] a committed public servant with grace, compassion and tireless energy” since marrying King Charles, pointing out that she is patron or president of more than 100 charities.

“Her commitment to the promotion of literacy and literature stands out as a testament to her personal passion and belief in the transformative power of books,” he added. “It is only fitting that this honorary doctorate of literature recognizes Her Majesty’s exceptional efforts to advance literacy and education, not simply as a public duty, but as a personal mission inspired by a lifelong love of reading.”

“Her Majesty’s work has touched countless lives and will continue to inspire future generations of readers and writers,” Lowcock said.