Kate Middleton's decision not to curtsy to Queen Camilla was a clear indication of her disapproval of King Charles' wife and her mishandling of his coronation, according to sources.
Princess Kate gave King Charles III and Queen Camilla a perfect curtsy during the annual Garter Day procession. The Princess of Wales, 41, watched the king, 74, and queen, 75, walk by in the annual Order of the Garter procession at Windsor Castle on Monday, June 19.
Royal expert Tom Bower claimed her lack of curtsy was down to irritation over the coronation guest list, but the Princess of Wales put the rumours to bed when she performed a curtsy to the newly crowned Queen the following day, before the two royal ladies giggled together.
Likewise, King Charles' daughter-in-law Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, dips into a curtsy to greet the monarch, as seen at her Christmas carol concert in December.
The politics behind who curtsies to who in the royal family could be presumed to be quite complicated, with a number of different titles including duchess, lady, count an countess, in the mix. The one concise rule is that all members of the Royal Family are required to bow or curtsy to King Charles and Queen Camilla.
“Kate and William were angry too. That anger went right through that small part of the congregation by the throne, at the center of Westminster Abbey.” “And in that moment it was absolutely noticeable to those people who had been excluded that nobody — let alone Kate — curtsied to Queen Camilla,” added Bower.
There's a pretty straightforward reason as to why: Twenty years ago, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, decided that players no longer needed to curtsy or bow to royals that weren't the sovereign or the heir to the throne.
According to protocol, Meghan is supposed to curtsy to those who outrank her. This includes the Queen, Prince Phillip, Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla.
Although Camilla outranks Kate as a "Majesty" compared to her "HRH" status, the princess' firstborn son, Prince George, will one day inherit the throne, which is not something the current Queen can claim.
What Kate called the Queen. While the rest of the world was required to address Queen Elizabeth as Ma'am or your majesty, those closest to her are allowed to refer to her as Mama, according to Ingrid Seward, the editor of Majesty magazine.
All royals are expected to bow or curtsy to the sovereign and his wife, King Charles and Queen Camilla. Since he ascended to the throne, Prince William and Princess Kate have been seen formally greeting the monarch with a bow and curtsy on multiple occasions.
Camilla Originally Wanted to Be “Princess Consort”
Apparently, this decision was made partly out of respect to Princess Diana—which is also why Camilla doesn't use the title Princess of Wales and instead goes by Duchess of Cornwall.
'" On the day of Charles and Camilla's 2005 wedding, the prince explained that he "mostly kept my head bowed, eyes on the floor," but felt mixed feelings about the marriage. Though William has not made similar revelations to Harry's, his wife, Kate Middleton, appears to have warmer relations with the new queen.
This deliberate gesture was believed to be a response to Camilla's recent behavior. An insider revealed: "That obvious insult raised eyebrows big-time. Apparently, Kate was seething over commands Camilla made about coronation guests and decided to make her angry feelings very obvious."
Now that Camilla is Queen Consort and known as Her Majesty, William, Kate, Harry and Meghan are all expected to bow or curtsy to her - and... Royal Family but still needs to abide by strict protocol when it... Parker Bowles — will have to bow to her now that she is Queen...
As NBC royal commentator Daisy McAndrew puts it, a “queen consort is a woman who married a man who is king,” and a “queen is a woman who is born to be queen and is head of state — not the wife of a monarch.”
Princess Diana's First Curtsy To Queen Elizabeth II As The Princess Of Wales During The Wedding Ceremony At St Paul's Cathedral, 29th July 1981. Behind Is Bridesmaid Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones .
Surprisingly, Princess Anne forms a genuine bond with Meghan Markle, defying expectations and showing a fondness for the Duchess of Sussex.
This is no longer the case, and instead, these Princesses must curtsey to Camilla as she outranks them. This of course means that Princess Anne is forced to ignore her 'blood Princess' title when it comes to greeting Camilla.
But the fact of the matter is Sophie has never had to curtsy to Meghan, nor had Edward ever bowed to Harry. Members of the royal family do not bow or curtsy to each other – it is an act reserved only for the King and Queen. Back in December, the Princess of Wales was seen curtseying for the first time to Queen Camilla.
A friend of the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh told the Mail on Sunday: “Sophie is relieved. She no longer has to curtsy to someone in the family who has not only left Royal duties but has spent the past three years criticising the institution that Sophie works so hard to support.”
The Duchess of Sussex doesn't have to bow to her nephew, Prince George, but Archie, his first cousin will have to - here's why. Meghan Markle now holds the title of HRH The Duchess of Sussex, and that gives her a few perks.
However, the royal family wasn't interested in having Camilla as its princess. For one thing, she was perceived as an “experienced” woman, which was a nonstarter for the royal family back then in terms of a suitable spouse for Prince Charles.
The royal family cannot actually force anyone to bow to them, lol, and they make it clear on their website that there “are no obligatory codes of behavior when meeting the Queen or a member of the royal family.” But then they go on to list the “traditional” forms of greeting.
When Prince William is King, Kate will indeed become Queen Consort. In short: Yes, Kate will be Queen, but there are different types of queens you should probably know about. (I mean, this is the royal family we're talking about! Things aren't simple.)