If there is one woman Queen Camilla can count on, it is Lady Fiona Lansdowne, wife of Charles Petty-Fitzmaurice, 9th Marquess of Lansdowne. For fifty years, their friendship has weathered all storms. And when the former became Queen of England, her long-time friend was there, unwavering support, as always.
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In January, the 68-year-old Marchioness was still quick to defend Queen Camilla when Prince Harry, in his memoirs, sought to portray his mother-in-law as "dangerous" and "nasty", ready to sacrifice him "on the altar of his public relations". Lady Lansdowne stepped up to the plate, declaring that Camilla was "hurt" by these personal attacks, in the columns of the Times. "Of course it bothers her, of course it hurts. But she doesn't let herself get down," she told the British newspaper. "His philosophy is always the same: 'Don't make a deal out of it, it will work out. And the less we say, the faster the damage is repaired." A philosophy that Camilla Parker Bowles has always followed, especially since the British tabloids threw themselves on her after discovering her extramarital affair with Prince Charles in the 1990s.
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Unwavering support
At the forefront of the crises that punctuated Camilla's life, Lady Fiona Lansdowne was, unsurprisingly, appointed among the six "companions" of Charles III's wife, these "ladies-in-waiting" responsible for accompanying and assisting the new sovereign during her travels. It must be said that their duo has been working wonderfully for years. They are used to laughing together (Camilla has the reputation of having a lot of humor), have shared everything (or almost). During the divorce from Andrew Parker Bowles, she hosted Camilla at Bowood House, the Lansdowne residence in Wiltshire, for five months. At the death of Princess Diana, she again who distanced Camilla from the media debacle.
However, without the scandal of "Tampongate", this night phone call between Charles and his mistress revealed by the British press in 1993, Lady Fiona Lansdowne could have remained in the shadows. But the (very) intimate recording decided otherwise. It highlighted the network of country houses that Charles and Camilla used to see each other. And among them... Bowood, owned by the Lansdowne, where their ten grandchildren visited (although Fiona and Charles Lansdowne never had children, the Marquess was the father of four children from his first marriage to Lady Frances Eliot).
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In pictures
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View slideshow14 photos
"Very trustworthy and jovial"
Although seven years younger than Camilla, Fiona Lansdowne has always stood by his side. This interior designer by profession, also godmother of Laura Lopes (Camilla's daughter), knows how to be an attentive ear, gives a hand when she can... In short, she is an unwavering support (and indispensable when you integrate the Windsor clan, isolated from the rest of the world). She helped organize a surprise party in Highgrove for Charles' 50th birthday and accompanied Camilla on a holiday in the Aegean Sea in 2007, when she wanted to escape the uproar caused by the tenth anniversary of Diana's death.
"He is a very confident, jovial person who sees the glass half full," says an old friend, as reported by the Daily Mail. "But above all, she knows how to laugh at herself. Camilla likes it a lot. Since becoming queen, Camilla has reduced her circle of friends, but she still has time for Fiona."
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