It seems Britain’s leading royal ladies are determined to have their sisters support them every step of the way – much like Queen Elizabeth II’s close relationship with Princess Margaret.
Since Queen Camilla, 75, was crowned in May, her sister Annabel Elliot, 74, has joined her at a number of events, including sitting next to her in the Royal Box at Wimbledon this summer.
Meanwhile, the Princess of Wales, 41, has long included her sister Pippa Middleton, 39, in the bigger moments of her royal life, such as her annual carol service at Westminster Abbey.
It seems that Annabel and Pippa are a mainstay for their royal sisters, who seem to want to keep their siblings close, much like the late Queen’s apparent wish regarding Princess Margaret.
It seems Britain’s leading royal ladies are determined to have their sisters support them every step of the way – much like Queen Elizabeth II’s close relationship with Princess Margaret
It seems Annabel and Pippa are a mainstay for their royal sisters, as is the late Queen’s apparent wish regarding Princess Margaret
Annabel – an interior designer and antique dealer – has been described as her sister’s quieter counterpart.
The pair previously recalled spending their childhood rolling down hills, catching butterflies and dressing appropriately for their stern grandmother while staying at their grandparents’ home in Hampshire.
As young women, Camilla loved the debutante scene, while Annabel was more serious and preferred a quieter life – “not the kind of girl who throws her knickers on the table,” as it’s been said.
Annabel has said that Camilla, who debuted a year before her, was “a huge success, but I certainly wasn’t. I probably wasn’t as confident as she was.’
At the same time, Annabel was seen as the more intelligent sister with ‘taste’, who shunned the London party scene. Instead, she went to Florence to study art.
A friend claimed that Annabel, “with her style and good taste, is the one who should have been the duchess.”
‘She would have been perfect,’ said the friend, ‘but would never want to change her place. As for Camilla, she succeeds, in her own way.’
In 1972, at the age of 23, Annabel married her first real boyfriend – Simon Elliot, and in 1973, Camilla, aged 25, married her first husband – the dashing army officer Andrew Parker Bowles.
Annabel and her husband, who died in March aged 82, lived in a country house in the Dorset village of Stourpaine where Charles and Camilla would meet as secret lovers for discreet weekends.
Since Queen Camilla, 75, was crowned in May, her sister Annabel Elliot, 74, has joined her at a number of events
Annabel continued to support her sister through the difficulties of the relationship, ousting Camilla and removing it from public view when John Major announced the separation of the Prince and Princess of Wales in the House of Commons in 1992.
At Annabel’s 40th birthday party, Diana confronted Camilla about her relationship with Charles.
It was her 50th birthday celebration at the Ritz where Camilla came out as Charles’s partner and took the opportunity to pose for their first public photos together on the steps of the hotel.
Charles and Camilla have also been supporters of Annabel’s interior design business, reportedly paying her £1.5 million for goods and design services since the couple married in 2005.
Annabel was paid to refurbish the Duchy’s holiday homes in Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly and Wales, as well as the Duchy’s office in Restormel, Cornwall, and Penlyne Nursery, also in Cornwall.
She had also been hired to oversee a huge interior design commission from the Duchy of Cornwall – a 20-bedroom pub in the center of the model village of Poundbury in Dorset.
The Duchy admitted that the contract for the work had not been put out to tender.
But a spokeswoman said Elliot understood the Duchy’s commitment to environmental sustainability and sympathetic design that is in harmony with the local environment.
In March this year, Charles and Camilla were among the guests who flocked the streets of Dorset to pay their respects to Camilla’s brother-in-law Simon Elliot.
The businessman was married to Annabel, the younger sister of the royal family, for more than 50 years and died at the age of 82.
The Queen was so close to her brother-in-law that she invited him and her sister Annabel to join her and Charles on their honeymoon in Balmoral, Scotland, after marrying the then Prince Charles in 2005.
In an apparent show of support for the King and Queen, Pippa joined the rest of the Middletons at the King’s coronation in May.
The Princess of Wales’s younger sister has attended Kate’s annual charity concerts
The King and Queen regularly visited the couple in Stourpaine when they were dating.
The photo showed grieving friends and family of the late businessman as they arrived at the service at Holy Trinity Church in Stourpaine, Dorset, earlier this year.
Police closed all roads to the church during the service so that Simon’s coffin could be wheeled through the small village.
After the service, guests made their way to the local pub, The White Horse Inn.
Although Charles and Camilla were not in the picture when they arrived at the funeral, they are said to have attended the service as a show of support for his widow Annabel.
Funerals have previously been held at the church in Stourpaine for the Queen’s brother Mark Shand and her father Major Bruce Shand.
Leading the mourners were the three children of Simon, former Conservative Party co-chairman Ben Elliot and his sisters Alice and Catherine.
Queen Camilla was accompanied by two elegant companions as she walked with her sister Annabel and close friend The Marchioness of Lansdowne at the historic coronation ceremony earlier this year.
The 75-year-old royal scrapped the age-old tradition of having ladies-in-waiting as part of her retinue last September – opting instead for a smaller number of “Queen’s companions.”
It’s clear that both have an eye for fashion and aesthetics – having worked in interior design – as the two women struck the perfect chord between sophistication and glamour, with their dresses.
Fiona Clare designed two long, ivory dresses for Her Majesty’s Companions, designed to complement each other while maintaining individual touches in the embroidery and choice of fabric.
The Marquise has silver trim, while Annabel’s has a stand-up collar and hand-embroidered detail.
The royal family had her two confidants by her side during the festive ceremony.
The sisters have been pictured at two major socialite calendar events this summer so far.
Queen Camilla and her sister were joined by culinary royalty when both Her Majesty and Mary Berry attended the Royal Box at Wimbledon.
Meanwhile, Annabel has been spotted at a number of royal events this summer with the royal family, including Ascot
Meanwhile, the close bond between Camilla and Annabel was also seen at Wimbledon earlier this summer
Elsewhere, both were present when Queen Camilla appeared on the edge of her seat at her first Royal Ascot since the coronation.
Meanwhile, in 2014, Pippa revealed in her very first TV interview that she is extremely close to her sister Kate and that spending time with family keeps them “grounded.”
She told Today that despite her sister’s life as a high-profile member of the royal family, not much has changed.
Pippa said, “I mean, obviously she’s under pressure and everything. But we spend a lot of time together. We still do a lot together as a family.
“And I think that’s really the heart for all of us to have a really close-knit family where we can kind of be normal with each other, treat each other normal.” And that sort of grounded us, you know.”
Pippa was asked if she can still call Kate, now the Princess of Wales, for “girl talk.”
She said, ‘Yes. Yes, we have a very normal, sisterly relationship. Were very close. And, you know, we support each other and hear each other’s opinions and stuff.’