February 10, 2005
By Glenn Frankel
Washington Post Staff Writer
LONDON, Feb. 10 -- Prince Charles announced Thursday he plans to marry Camilla Parker Bowles, his long-time lover and the woman who was part of a tangled royal triangle of scandal and passion that contributed to the breakup of his marriage to the late, legendary Princess Diana.
The heir to the British throne said his marriage to Parker Bowles will take place on April 8 at Windsor Castle. Because both Charles and Camilla are divorced persons whose affair helped lead to the end of their marriages, the wedding will be a private civil matter, not a Church of England ceremony. It will be followed by a service of prayer and dedication that will be presided over by Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Photo: 
Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles, whose betrothal was announced today, attended the Mey Games in Caithness, Scotland, on Aug. 7, 2004. (AP File Photo)
But the ghost of Diana, who died in an auto accident in 1997, lingers. Officials at Clarence House, Charles's headquarters, were at pains to make clear that Parker Bowles will take the title of Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall, and will not be known as the Princess of Wales, the title held by and popularly identified with Diana. They also noted that when Charles, who is 56, becomes king, Camilla, 57, will be known as the Princess Consort, and not as Queen Camilla.
The announcement was rushed through Thursday after the Evening Standard newspaper broke the story, but it appeared carefully choreographed. Within minutes of the official declaration, Charles's mother, Queen Elizabeth II, issued a statement saying she and his father, Prince Philip, were "very happy" about the marriage. Prime Minister Tony Blair and the leaders of the two main opposition political parties expressed their joy. And the Archbishop of Canterbury weighed in as well, saying "I hope and pray that it will prove a source of comfort and strength to them and to those who are closest to them."
The archbishop's support was considered crucial because Charles, when he becomes king, will also hold the title "Supreme Governor of the Church of England." Williams in his statement said the plans for Charles and Camilla to have a civil ceremony "have my strong support and are consistent with Church of England guidelines concerning remarriage which the Prince of Wales fully accepts as a committed Anglican and as prospective Supreme Governor of the Church of England."
Popular approval from the British public may be another matter. Polls have consistently shown a small majority favoring Charles's remarriage, but deeply opposed to Camilla becoming queen. Diana is still adored by a portion of the public, many of whom hold Camilla responsible for the breakup of the royal marriage. Diana made her own feelings known about Camilla in a 1996 BBC interview when she said with bitterness, "There were three of us in this marriage. So it was a bit crowded."
While some Britons do not approve of Camilla, many questioned her status as Charles's unofficial consort and wondered whether such a relationship would be proper once he became king.
Winston Churchill, a former Conservative member of Parliament and close friend of the prince, told the BBC the couple was "taking the plunge to finally end the limbo which they have been in, which must have been difficult enough for Prince Charles but a nightmare for Camilla . . . not to be able to accompany the person she loves in public."
Robert Lacey, biographer of Queen Elizabeth, said the monarch undoubtedly approved of the marriage. "The queen doesn't like complications, and this move simplifies things both from the point of view of the public perspective but also, very importantly, from the point of view of the church. It's a typical British compromise: she won't have his premier title [Prince of Wales] and they won't be wed in a church. But they will finally be married."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A13019-2005Feb10.html