Following the very sad passing of Queen Elizabeth II at the age of 96, there have been a lot of changes taking place for the Royal Family, not only on a personal and emotional level, but with regards to titles and roles too. As well as welcoming King Charles III onto the throne, Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cornwall and Cambridge, have been granted the titles of Prince and Princess of Wales, and Camilla is now Queen Consort.
One of the Queen's eight grandchildren, Princess Beatrice, has also seen a big change in role and responsibility following the death of her grandmother too; the eldest daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah, Duchess of York, has become a Counsellor of State.
As for what that entails, it means that Beatrice is now one of only four people who is able to act on behalf of - and fill in for - King Charles III when instructed to. Her new duties will include partaking in privy council meetings, signing documents and receiving the credentials of new ambassadors.
Before Queen Elizabeth II's death, the required four Counsellors of State were her two sons, Prince Charles and Prince Andrew, and Charles' two sons, Prince William and Prince Harry. However, now that Charles has stepped into his new position as reigning monarch, a new Counsellor of State was in need of being appointed.
Previously, it was known that the Counsellors of State would step in for Her Majesty should she be unable to carry out her duties due to "illness or absence abroad" – and that's exactly what Beatrice will be prepared to do for Charles moving forward.
The responsibility has fallen to her because she is the highest candidate in the line of succession who is over the age of 21-years-old. Currently, Princess Beatrice is ninth in the order of inheriting the throne.
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Despite not appearing in the line of succession, King Charles' wife of seventeen years, Camilla, Queen Consort, is also able to fill in for her husband should she be instructed to.
Recently, Beatrice's husband, Italian count Edo Mapelli Mozzi, shared a previously unseen image of the Queen and her husband of 73 years, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, along with giving an insight into how he and the Princess were processing the loss of Her Majesty.
"Incredibly hard to process the last 24 hours. What an incredible woman and extraordinary mark she’s left on the entire world," he wrote in an emotional Instagram post. "She was the rock on which modern Britain was built.
"Feeling very lucky that our little ones got to spend wonderful time with her this summer. Rest is Peace Your Majesty. We will miss you so much. Brokenhearted 💔".
Our thoughts are with all of the Royal Family at this sad time.
Jennifer Savin is Cosmopolitan UK's multiple award-winning Features Editor, who was crowned Digital Journalist of the Year for her work tackling the issues most important to young women. She regularly covers breaking news, cultural trends, health, the royals and more, using her esteemed connections to access the best experts along the way. She's grilled everyone from high-profile politicians to A-list celebrities, and has sensitively interviewed hundreds of people about their real life stories. In addition to this, Jennifer is widely known for her own undercover investigations and campaign work, which includes successfully petitioning the government for change around topics like abortion rights and image-based sexual abuse. Jennifer is also a published author, documentary consultant (helping to create BBC’s Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next?) and a patron for Y.E.S. (a youth services charity). Alongside Cosmopolitan, Jennifer has written for The Times, Women’s Health, ELLE and numerous other publications, appeared on podcasts, and spoken on (and hosted) panels for the Women of the World Festival, the University of Manchester and more. In her spare time, Jennifer is a big fan of lipstick, leopard print and over-ordering at dinner. Follow Jennifer on Instagram, X or LinkedIn.
