What Is Camilla Parker Bowles' Net Worth?
Camilla Parker Bowles, Duchess of Cornwall LG, GCVO, CSM, PC is the wife of Charles, Prince of Wales. Camilla Parker Bowles has a net worth of $5 million. Parker Bowles has been a member of the British royal family since 2005. Since her marriage to Charles, the Duchess has become heavily involved with bringing public attention to the dangers of osteoporosis, and she has worked to raise awareness for important issues such as sexual abuse, rape, poverty, and animal welfare. In February 2022, Queen Elizabeth II announced that when Charles ascends to the throne, she wants Camilla to be named Queen Consort instead of Princess Consort, as was previously announced at the time of Camilla and Charles' engagement.
Early Life
Camilla Parker Bowles was born Camilla Rosemary Shand on July 17, 1947, in London, England. She grew up in Plumpton, East Sussex, with father Major Bruce Shand, mother Rosalind, younger sister Annabel, and younger brother Mark. Camilla's father was a businessman who formerly served as an officer in the British Army, and her maternal grandfather was Roland Cubitt, 3rd Baron Ashcombe. During her youth, Parker Bowles joined Pony Club camps, where she learned to ride a pony and went on to win rosettes at local gymkhanas. She has described her childhood as "perfect in every way." Camilla attended Dumbrells School, Queen's Gate School, and the Swiss finishing school Mon Fertile. She then spent six months studying the French language and French literature at the University of London Institute in Paris. Parker Bowles was a debutante in London in 1965, and she found work as a secretary for various firms before being hired as a receptionist at the Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler decorating firm.
Public Life
After marrying Charles, Camilla became the second highest ranked woman in the British order of precedence. She has three ladies-in-waiting, and her chief lady-in-waiting, Amanda MacManus, is a long-time friend as well as her assistant private secretary. Camilla made her first overseas tour in 2005 when she and Charles traveled to the White House to meet with President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush. They accompanied the Bushes to New Orleans to meet residents who had been affected by Hurricane Katrina. Parker Bowles conducted naming ceremonies for the ships MS Queen Victoria and HMS Astute in 2007, and in 2009, she and Charles met with Pope Benedict XVI during a visit to Italy. In November 2010, the car Camilla and Charles were riding in was attacked by protesters during the British student protests, but they were not harmed. In 2011, she represented the royal family at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships, and she traveled to Tottenham with Charles after the London riots. In 2013, Parker Bowles attended the State Opening of Parliament and took her first solo trip outside the U.K. when she traveled to Paris. In 2019, Camilla and Charles became the first members of the British royal family to visit Cuba.
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Parker Bowles is a patron of Animal Care Trust, Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, The Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists, British Equestrian Federation, Youth Action Wiltshire, London Chamber Orchestra, Trinity Hospice, Arthritis Research UK, Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Maggie's Cancer Caring Centres, and numerous other organizations. In 2015, Camilla became president of the Women of the World Festival, which "celebrates women and girls, taking a frank look at the obstacles they face and discussing solutions for change." She was named vice-patron of the Royal Commonwealth Society in 2018 and the Royal Academy of Dance in 2020.
Personal Life
In the late '60s, Camilla began an on-and-off relationship with Guards officer/Blues and Royals lieutenant Andrew Parker Bowles. Their engagement was announced in 1973, and they married on July 4, 1973, at London's Guards Chapel, Wellington Barracks. Considered the "society wedding of the year, the ceremony was Roman Catholic, and 800 people attended, including Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and Princess Anne. Camilla and Andrew welcomed son Tom on December 18, 1974, and daughter Laura on January 1, 1978. Though Camilla chose to remain Anglican instead of converting to Andrew's religion, the children were raised Roman Catholic. After living apart for years, Camilla and Andrew filed for divorce in December 1994, and the divorce was finalized a few months later. Camilla reportedly met Prince Charles in 1971 while she and Andrew were broken up (and Andrew was dating Charles' sister). They began a friendship that eventually turned into a romantic relationship, but they put the relationship on hold in early 1973 when Charles joined the Royal Navy, and it abruptly ended soon after. Though the couple reportedly became romantic again by 1980 when Camilla was married to Andrew, Charles married Lady Diana Spencer in 1981.
In 1993, Camilla and Charles were embroiled in a scandal known as "Camillagate" after a transcript of a secretly recorded phone call was published in the tabloids. Camilla was vilified by the media, and after both she and Charles ended their marriages, he stated that his relationship with her was "non-negotiable." Charles appointed Mark Bolland to improve Camilla's public image, and she began accompanying Charles on official engagements in 2000. She became the president of the National Osteoporosis Society in 2001 (both her mother and maternal grandmother died of the disorder), and Queen Elizabeth II invited her to the Golden Jubilee in 2002. Camilla eventually moved into Charles' home, Clarence House, and news of their engagement came in February 2005. The couple married at Windsor Guildhall on April 9, 2005, and the reception took place at Windsor Castle. They spent their honeymoon carrying out their public duties in Scotland. In February 2022, both Camilla and Charles tested positive for COVID-19.
Honours
Parker Bowles has been awarded the Commemorative Medal for the Centennial of Saskatchewan (2005), Royal Family Order of Queen Elizabeth II (2007), Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012), Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (2012), Companion of the Order of the Star of Melanesia (2012), Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012), Royal Lady of the Most Noble Order of the Garter (2022), Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal (2022), the Netherlands' King Willem-Alexander Inauguration Medal (2013), France's Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit (2014), and Mexico's Sash of the Order of the Aztec Eagle (2015). She has been appointed an Honorary Fellow of King's College London (2007), Honorary Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Joiners and Ceilers (2011), Chancellor of the University of Aberdeen (2013), Member of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council (2016), Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Vintners (2017), and Honorary Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Plumbers (2017), and she has received honorary degrees from the University of Aberdeen (Doctor of Laws, 2013), University of Southampton (Doctor of Science, 2016), and University of Chester (Doctor of Letters, 2018).
Camilla's honorary military appointments include Colonel-in-Chief of The Royal Australian Corps of Military Police (2012), Colonel-in-Chief of The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada (2011), Commodore-in-Chief of the Naval Medical Services (2006), Lady Sponsor of HMS Astute (2007), Royal Colonel of the 4th Battalion of The Rifles (2007), Honorary Air Commodore of RAF Halton (2008), Honorary Air Commodore of RAF Leeming (2008), Commodore-in-Chief of Naval Chaplaincy Service (2009), Lady Sponsor of HMS Prince of Wales (2017), and Colonel-in-Chief of The Rifles (2020).
