Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles: 5 of Their Earliest Photos Together
Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall are celebrating 15 years of marriage and in honor of the royal couple, we’re taking a look back at some of their earliest photos together.
They met at a polo match
According to reports, Camilla and Charles were first introduced at a polo match in the early 1970s by Lucia Santa Cruz, a woman the future king had been linked to romantically. The supposed relationship between Santa Cruz and Charles didn’t go anywhere and one day Santa Cruz decided to introduce her ex-flame to Camilla, who at the time went by her maiden name of Camilla Shand.
They saw each other at multiple polo matches in the 1970s
After their initial meeting at a polo match, Camilla and Charles saw each other at a number of the same events in the 1970s. Unfortunately for royal fans, there aren’t photos (at least ones that have been made public) of Camilla and Charles at the polo match where they were reportedly introduced. However, there are photos of them at other polo matches during that decade.
Below, see Camilla and Charles at a polo match.
And here they are again, this time walking with Lady Sarah Keswick.
Below, see them at yet another polo match. Camilla’s got a slight smile on her face while talking with Charles in the No. 4 jersey, and another unnamed polo player.
Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles ‘laughed at the same silly things’
Charles and Camilla reportedly hit it off right away after they met. Royal biographer, Penny Junor, wrote about their early days in her book, The Duchess: The Untold Story. According to People, Junor shared what Charles liked about Camilla.
“He loved the fact that she smiled with her eyes as well as her mouth, and laughed at the same silly things as he did,” Junor said.
She continued, saying it didn’t take long before Charles began talking to Camilla more. “In short, he was very taken with her, and after that first meeting he began ringing her up,” Junor said.
They broke up in 1973 but stayed in contact
Charles and Camilla started dating but their romance ended when Charles joined the Royal Navy. Meanwhile, the royal family had deemed Camilla not suitable to marry Charles. After their breakup, Camilla reconnected with an old flame, Andrew Parker Bowles. In 1973, Camilla and Bowles married which devastated Charles. However, Camilla and Charles remained in contact.
Below, see Bowles (far left) standing behind Camilla and Charles on Feb. 14, 1975, leaving the New London Theatre.
In 1980, Charles began dating Lady Diana Spencer before she became Diana, Princess of Wales. After they married in 1981, Charles remained close with Camilla and the two later began having an affair. Following divorces and Diana’s death in 1997, Camilla and Charles quietly continued their relationship. They married in 2005 and have been going strong ever since.
