Princess of Wales Kate Middleton's latest public engagements under the microscope. Picture: Instagram @princeandprincessofwales
In this week’s royal update, Queen Consort Camilla Parker Bowles crowned jewels for her husband’s coronation, Kate Middleton’s hug is under scrutiny and King Charles visits earthquake volunteers in London.
British Queen Consort Camilla will wear Queen Mary’s Crown at her and King Charles III’s coronation in early May, said Buckingham Palace on Tuesday.
The crown is more than a century old and was commissioned by Queen Mary for her 1911 coronation alongside King George V. It will be modified for the landmark ceremony on 6 May.
This is the first time in recent history that an existing crown will be used for the coronation of a consort instead of a new commission being made, according to the palace.
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It said the move was being made “in the interests of sustainability and efficiency”.
The crown will be reset with several Cullinan diamonds – cut from what was the largest diamond ever mined when it was discovered in South Africa in 1905 – in tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth II.
The diamonds were part of her personal jewellery collection for many years and she often wore them as brooches.
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Some of the diamonds were set into Queen Mary’s Crown for the 1911 coronation and for King George VI’s coronation in 1937, when it was worn as a regal circlet.
It has been removed from its usual display at the Tower of London for the modification, which will also include some other minor changes and additions by the crown jeweller.
Four of its eight detachable arches will be removed to create a new impression, different from that of 1911.
King Charles will wear the St Edward’s Crown for the coronation service in Westminster Abbey. It has already been modified and returned to public display in the Tower of London.
The Queen Consort did test positive for Covid-19 earlier this week.
“After suffering the symptoms of a cold, Her Majesty The Queen Consort has tested positive for the Covid virus,” said a statement from the palace.
As a result, she has cancelled all public engagements for this week.
The Princess of Wales Kate Middleton’s body language and affection during public engagements is under scrutiny after her hug with her former history teacher went viral.
There is an assumption amongst royal watchers and fans of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, that Kate Middleton and her husband, Prince of Wales, Prince William’s approach to royal engagements are starkly different.
It is perceived that Kate and William are far more formal and tied to maintaining the “Britsh stiff upper lip” whilst Meghan and Harry are more informal, personal and affectionate during royal engagements with the public.
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Last week, Kate was captured on video hugging her former history teacher in preparatory school, Jim Embury, during their visit to the University of St Andrews in Scotland.
Kate was beaming during their embrace and it was reported by Bang Showbiz that she has carried his teachings to her children.
“The things you taught me, I now teach to my children,” she said.
According to reports, the mother of three had no idea Embury will be in attendance, whilst the teacher was aware of Kate’s appearance earlier on the day.
Twitter commentators couldn’t help but scrutinise the interaction and compare Kate’s apparent changed approach to that of Meghan’s. Kate and Embury hadn’t seen each other in 25 years.
There were also theories that Kate and William’s latest affectionate appearances are a publicity stunt, as the social media debate was divisive. Some critics think Kate is coping Meghan’s style and approach to royal duties.
The monarch visited volunteers in West London on Wednesday, observing what they are doing in assisting with aid for Türkiye residents who fled the country. This after the devastating and deadly earthquake that left over 33 000 people dead, including impacting Syria.
On 6 February, a 7.8 magnitude quake struck near the Türkiye city of Gaziantep, close to the Syrian border.
The quake caused outrage across the affected areas and has left millions of people homeless.
The King said he was “deeply sorry” for the disaster and visited centres that housed Syrian and Türkiye citizens who were affected by the earthquake.
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Compiled by Sandisiwe Mbhele, additional reporting by AFP
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