Sadness for Queen Consort Camilla after death of brother-in-law Simon Elliot is announced

Sadness for Queen Consort Camilla after the death of her brother-in-law of more than 50 years, businessman Simon Elliot, 82, is announced

The Queen Consort is mourning her brother-in-law of more than 50 years following the death of her sister Annabel’s husband, landowner Simon Elliot, it was announced today.

Camilla, 75, was known to be close to businessman Elliot, whom Annabel married in 1972 at the age of 23.

Elliot, whose late father was Sir William Air Chief Marshal of the RAF, has died aged 82.

The couple share three children together: ex-Chairman of the Conservative Party Ben Elliot and his sisters Alice and Catherine.

Simon Elliot, the Queen Consort’s brother-in-law, has died aged 82. The entrepreneur married Camilla’s sister Annabel in 1972 and the couple share three children, Ben, Alice and Catherine.

The closeness between Camilla and her sibling is such that Simon and Annabel joined the Queen Consort on her Balmoral honeymoon after she married the then Prince Charles in 2005.

The King and Queen’s consort regularly visited Annabel and Simon’s home in the Dorset village of Stourpaine when they were dating, before their wedding in 2005.

And it was at Annabel’s 50th birthday party at the Ritz Hotel when her sister stole the spotlight by “coming out” as Charles’s mistress, the couple took the opportunity to hang out together for the first time on the steps of the hotel to pose for their first public photos.

The Queen Consort has been close to her brother-in-law for more than five decades, the couple pictured at the wedding of Camilla's niece Alice Elliot

The Queen Consort has been close to her brother-in-law for more than five decades, the couple pictured at the wedding of Camilla’s niece Alice Elliot

Camilla, right, pictured with her sister Annabel and brother-in-law Simon Elliot before she became the Duchess of Cornwall, and now the Queen Consort

Camilla, right, pictured with her sister Annabel and brother-in-law Simon Elliot before she became the Duchess of Cornwall, and now the Queen Consort

Happier times: Camilla is seen smiling along with her late brother-in-law at Ben Elliot and Mary-Clare Winwood's wedding in London

Happier times: Camilla is seen smiling along with her late brother-in-law at Ben Elliot and Mary-Clare Winwood’s wedding in London

Simon and Annabel attend the wedding of their son Ben Elliot and Mary-Clare Winwood in 2011

Simon and Annabel attend the wedding of their son Ben Elliot and Mary-Clare Winwood in 2011

Camilla and Annabel’s younger brother, Mark Shand, died in 2014 after a fall in New York.

The Queen Consort is hosting an International Women’s Day reception at Buckingham Palace today.

Camilla has had a busy week of public engagements; yesterday she joined the King in Colchester in Essex to celebrate its new city status and shared tea with supporters of the Age UK charity and The Silver Line, a helpline for the elderly.

Their visit came in as entries for the Queen Consort’s Coronation Champions Awards, organized by the Royal Voluntary Service and supported by the Daily Mail.