In the final official photographs taken of the late monarch on 7th September 2022, Queen Elizabeth II looks small. Her hands boasting purpling bruises, the frailty of the 96-year-old evident in the way she clutches her walking stick, body hunched as she shakes hands with then-incoming Prime Minister, Liz Truss.
Despite ongoing reports of ill health, no-one expected that less than 24 hours after these photos were taken, the Queen’s death was to be announced, triggering an outpouring of grief from across the globe.
It’s been a tumultuous 12 months for the Royal Family, who are thought to be mourning the anniversary of the late Queen’s death in a private ceremony. King Charles III has the mammoth task of leading and modernising a new ‘slimmed down’ monarchy, which has faced growing questions about its relevance particularly amongst younger generations – all amidst a searing rift within his own family, as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have vocally decried ‘The Firm’ in a series of searing interviews and confessionals.
How have the royals adjusted to life without their matriarch, and what’s next for this family in flux? Cosmopolitan UK looks back over a big year for the royal family.
King Charles and Queen Camilla
Having waited to ascend to the throne for 74 years, King Charles III had plenty of time to prepare. While there were concerns that the new monarch, who had been a vocal activist for causes such as the environment, could be less impartial than his mother, royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams believes he has adapted to the constraints of monarchy.
“Overall, Charles has done a good job,” Fitzwilliams tells Cosmopolitan UK. “His speech to the nation after the Queen’s death provided unity.
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“He has made efforts to modernise the royals, and this change comes gradually. We’ve seen him signal support into research on the monarchy’s ties to slavery.
“He has received great public support, a year after the Queen died.”
It’s true that the new(ish) King is generally well-liked. YouGov ranks him as the UK’s fifth most popular royal, with a 55% approval rating. We've come a long way since 'tampongate'.
But that's not to say Charles's reign has been entirely faultless. The lavish coronation ceremony (reportedly a ‘pared down’ affair), which took place earlier in May, was lambasted for being out of touch during a cost-of-living crisis - definitely not a good look for a new King.
Elsewhere, his fiery temper has threatened to boil over; one outburst saw him moaning about a pen, while he was also seen looking grumpy in his carriage on the day of the coronation.
“We have to remember, these are pressured times,” Fitzwilliams argues. “It is a stark contrast to the Queen, who was never fazed throughout her reign. But sometimes, we do need to see these flashes of humanity.
“We also have to remember he is significantly older now, and so we may not see him undertake so many public arrangements. He has only done one trip abroad to Germany this year. We may see him rely more on the younger royals to establish firmer popularity with newer generations.”
Of course, Charles’s ascension meant Camilla was crowned. While the late Queen Elizabeth II gave her blessing for Camilla to be known as ‘Queen Consort’ after Charles became King, the ‘consort’ seems to have been quietly dropped.
It’s a sharp rise to the top for someone previously touted as ‘the most hated woman in Britain’, but on the whole, Camilla is one of the more popular royals. Her YouGov approval rating stands at 42%, with Fitzwilliams saying her more ‘ordinary’ nature – a Strictly Come Dancing fan with a warm demeanour to those she meets, helps her appeal.
“Camilla has been a vital support to Charles,” Fitzwilliams says. “She’s done very well at ascending to that role. Charles and Camilla are soulmates. She helps him to be more approachable.”
Camilla hasn’t been without her own missteps; she was criticised for inviting Jeremy Clarkson for a dinner just days after his now infamous column, in which he said he ‘hated’ Meghan Markle ‘at a cellular level.’ However, she has been widely praised for her extensive charity work, delivering a powerful speech in October for domestic abuse charity, SafeLives, in October last year.
William and Kate, The Prince and Princess of Wales
The Prince and Princess of Wales saw their popularity take a battering earlier this year after the release of Prince William’s memoir, Spare. William and Harry’s fisticuffs and ‘private Olympiad’ of a rivalry was made public for the world to see, with a fight at Nottingham Cottage becoming water cooler chat across the world.
Kate Middleton’s cool relationship with Meghan Markle, with the pair butting heads over a shared lipgloss, also presented a frostier depiction of the Duchess of Cambridge.
The Prince of Wales also received criticism recently for not attending the Women’s World Cup final, where England made the final. While he made a video for Instagram with Princess Charlotte, the opportunity not to cheer on the England Woman’s football team, particularly as President of the Football Association, was an ‘own goal’ says Fitzwilliams.
“He initially claimed not to go because of emissions,” he explains. “In that case, you wouldn’t have any royal trips abroad at all. He should have gone, it was embarrassing.”
But that’s not to say that the Prince and Princess of Wales are unpopular – far from it. William is the second most popular royal, boasting a 67% popularity rating on YouGov, while Kate is the fourth, with 62%.
Their charitable endeavours have also been applauded. Prince William’s Homewards UK charity, which looks to battle homelessness, has been well-received when it launched in June, while Kate’s charity, Shaping Us, has also been praised for focusing on young children. Their popularity is only bolstered by the appearances of George, Charlotte and Louis at royal engagements, regularly marked as ‘scene stealers’ by their cheeky antics and impressing on the public just how ‘normal’ they appear.
Kate has established herself as a party girl in more recent weeks, secretly heading out to a 24 hour rave at Houghton Festival in Norfolk over the summer (a girl after our own hearts!).
“They are the future of the royals,” Fitzwilliams explains. “Having a smaller royal family with fewer engagements allows them to make more of a visible impact.”
Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been at the centre of much royal scandal over the last year. As well as the revelations of their Netflix three-part documentary, Harry and Meghan, which re-treaded much of their widely watched Oprah Winfrey exclusive, Prince Harry’s explosive memoir Spare not just spilled the tea on life as a royal, but rather smashed the gilded teapot.
Although the book was an instant best-seller, YouGov gives Harry only a 27% approval rating, just two places above disgraced uncle, Prince Andrew (yikes).
The Sussex family, now permanently based in California, are now foraying to more creative projects. So far, they’ve had a mixed reception: Prince Harry’s documentary on the Invictus Games fell far short of the popularity of the Harry and Meghan Netflix special, while Meghan’s Archetypes podcast on Spotify was dropped after one season.
However, their upcoming Netflix adaptation of the novel Meet Me at The Lake, is hotly anticipated. Meghan is also thought to be making a return to Instagram and reviving her lifestyle blog, the Tig, with plans to launch a wellness empire also reportedly on the horizon. The pair have recently been enjoying the A-List lifestyle, spotted dancing together at a Beyonce concert. Could a new life on the showbiz circuit be exactly what the Sussex family needs?
“The fact the royals are marking the Queen’s death privately without Meghan and Harry shows that the rift is far from being healed,” Fitzwilliams argues. “But outside royalty, the pair still have phenomenal attention on them."
