Meghan Markle Is Now Less Popular Than Camilla Parker Bowles, According to Poll
The royal family includes over a dozen high-ranking members who carry out duties for the public. However, not everyone is well-liked by the average person. In fact, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall is often known for being one of the least popular royals. Yet, she is now considered more popular than Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.
Camilla Parker Bowles was once extremely unpopular with the public
The public first learned about Camilla when she was revealed to be Prince Charles’ mistress. At the time, Charles was married to Princess Diana, who spoke to journalists about how her husband’s affair had devastated her. This led many people to side with Diana and consider her a victim in the royal family.
After Diana died in 1997, Charles and Camilla continued their relationship, albeit quietly. They got married in 2005, though the public still did not like Camilla much at that time.
However, Camilla has managed to gradually change her image in the media. For example, she keeps her personal life rather private and acts in uncontroversial ways as to not attract scandals. Additionally, whenever people see her, she is usually promoting meaningful causes, such as child literacy, women’s health, and sexual assault advocacy.
According to a poll by YouGov, Camilla is now the 9th most popular royal out of 15 on the list. Thirty-seven percent of Britons approve of Camilla.
Meghan Markle’s popularity in the U.K. has been declining
Meghan joined the royal family in 2018 after marrying Prince Harry. Her wedding attracted attention from all over the world, though it seems her popularity has not increased over time.
The YouGov poll shows that Meghan is now behind Camilla in popularity—11th place. Meanwhile, only 32 percent of Britons approve of her.
Meghan’s decline in popularity could be due to “Sussexit” in early 2020. She and Harry decided to step down from being senior royals and worked towards financial independence. However, they have also come under fire for trying to have a lavish lifestyle in Hollywood and not being politically neutral enough as royals.
Meghan Markle reportedly did not listen to Camilla Parker Bowles’ advice on dealing with criticism
Camilla surely knows a thing or two about how to improve one’s reputation. She reportedly met with Meghan before the latter’s 2018 wedding.
“Meg was really grateful to Camilla who was very supportive and invited her out for private lunches, particularly around the time of her marriage,” an insider told the Daily Mail. “She listened to her and understood that it’s really difficult joining the Royal Family from an otherwise ‘normal’ life. Much like Meghan, Camilla had experienced a lot of negative press and hostility from courtiers due to her relationship with Charles when he was still married to Diana.”
However, advice does not work if the receiver does not heed it, and this seems to be the situation Camilla and Meghan were facing.
The source added, “[Camilla] was very sensitive to Meghan and provided her with support, advising her to ride out the storm and that it would all pass – but ultimately Meghan didn’t listen.”
