The Palace Papers

“The Palace Papers” was recommended to me by a friend who knows I like reading non-fiction books on British royalty, past or present. And I liked this book! It’s got an interesting premise: the book covers the four most recent women who have married into the line of succession for the British throne (Diana, Camilla, Kate, Meghan) and specifically delves into how their upbringing either prepared them for their role as royal consort or did not. Obviously, two of them faired well (Camilla and Kate) while two struggled (Diana and Meghan). The book’s author takes the reader through how the similarities and differences between how the two sets of women were raised directly impacted their future happiness with being married to royalty. It’s an interesting notion that I never thought about before, but after reading the book, I could see it. In Camilla’s case, she and Charles were introduced in their early twenties, although they had been circling each other for years. Camilla’s mother had made sure she grew up socializing with royals (Camilla’s great-grandmother was even the mistress of King Edward VII), so Camilla knew how the “game” was played and who were all the big players. In Kate’s case, her mother made sure she too knew the rules of mingling in high society and conspired to bring her daughter into William’s sphere ASAP by persuading Kate to change her college plans from Edinburgh to St. Andrews once William announced that’s where he was going. But both Camilla and Kate had to play the long game. When Charles’ first marriage to Diana crumbled, Camilla had to wait another nine years to marry him. Likewise, Kate had to wait eight years for a proposal from William, earning her the nickname “Waity Katie” in the press. It must have been hard for both women, but each had been taught patience from a young age and both were political savvy enough to know they needed to remain as calm and dignified as possible through it all. All this was in contrast to Diana and Meghan. For Diana, once her marriage began to falter, she used the media to “get back” at Charles. The book detailed several instances where she called photographers to give them a heads-up of where she’d be, then cursed them in public about invading her privacy. She played a dangerous game, and it eventually led to her death, not to mention the toll it took on her sons mentally and emotionally. She knew the rules too but was so young and naïve when she married Charles that she didn’t know how to actually play by them, making her tenure as a royal consort stressful and unhappy. And poor Meghan, she didn’t know anything when she married Harry. Not the game, not the rules, not the characters, not even what was expected of her as a British citizen. Without any of this background, she was almost doomed from the beginning. So all that to say, this book does a good job making the reader see the role of royal consort in a new light. I used to think “preparing” women to be a socialite was doing them a disservice. After all, women should be encouraged to get an education and support themselves in today’s world, right? But maybe that’s not the right mindset for a British royal consort to have. Both Camilla and Kate were taught the strict rules of British high society from a young age. Both had ambitious mothers who helped mold them when they were young and then strategically placed them to enter the sphere of their chosen royal (Charles or William). And each had to be politically savvy enough to know when to wait, when to push, how to keep their emotions in check publicly, and how to always, always keep their eyes on the prize. After reading this, I would never want to marry a British royal, and I wouldn’t do a good job in that position anyway. I’m way too outspoken, independent, and casual, three things that apparently makes you very unsuitable for the role. This is an interesting take on the current royal situation, merging both past and present, and I do recommend it as a good non-fiction read.