Another 'annus horribilis' in the British royal family: two cancers, scandals and estrangements

“It has been an incredibly tough two months for our entire family.”

This was one of the phrases in the speech with which Kate Middleton, 42, made public this Friday, March 22, that she suffers from cancer.

An illness that was detected after undergoing abdominal surgery last January.

The Princess of Wales, according to what she says in the video she shared, has been undergoing chemotherapy treatment since then.

“I'm fine, stronger every day and focusing on the things that will heal me.”

A few words of optimism, but news that is a new blow for the British royal family.

The last few months have been so complicated that they could well be compared to that

annus horribilis

of 1992, as Queen Elizabeth II defined it then.

When Charles of England acceded to the throne at the age of 74, after the death of his mother in September 2022, he wanted to multiply his events and public appearances to consolidate his image and popularity, after decades of waiting: he has been the longest-serving heir in the history of the British monarchy.

But his plans were cut short in January.

On the same day that it was announced that the Princess of Wales had undergone abdominal surgery – which Kensington Palace then denied was due to anything cancerous – Buckingham Palace announced that the king was going to be admitted to the same clinic. private London to treat his prostate hypertrophy.

As has now happened with his daughter-in-law, it was through this intervention that cancer was discovered, of which no further details have been given.

More information

Kate Middleton reveals she is being treated for cancer

Charles III during an audience with Korean War veterans, on Tuesday, at Buckingham Palace.Jonathan Brady (via REUTERS)

The illness of the monarch and the Princess of Wales put Queen Camilla and William of England in a leading role.

They are two of the so-called councilors of state, people who can replace the monarch in his public duties in case of serious illness, incapacity or absence abroad (also are princes Anne and Edward, Charles' brothers).

A mechanism that has not been officially activated, since Charles III continues to handle official matters.

But the surprise was huge when the heir to the throne announced that he was going to step away from his public duties for a few days to take care of his children and his wife.

Given the absence of his father, he resumed his schedule a few days later: for the presentation of decorations, at a gala dinner to raise funds, at the funeral of his friend Thomas Kingston, at a meeting on homeless people this week... But he canceled his attendance at the mass in memory of Constantine of Greece, his godfather, shortly before the ceremony began in St. George's Chapel at Windsor Palace.

Although he has been seen, his schedule has been reduced considerably.

So the entire weight of the monarchy's visibility fell on Queen Camilla, who began to almost exclusively represent the British royal house at public events.

In these first months of 2024, the queen has become the most active member of the Windsors.

But her overload took its toll, and in early March she announced she was taking a week's vacation.

“I think Carlos himself has told him to take a break.

She has not stopped working and she has represented her husband throughout this time.

The idea that he takes a few days may be a sign that the king's treatment is progressing favorably," British royal biographer Angela Levin then told GB News.

Queen Camilla, on Thursday, during an event in Belfast.Samir Hussein (via REUTERS)

But not only is the disease diminishing the British royal family this year, but also other scandals due to the personal decisions of its members.

The most serious issue, beyond health, is that of Prince Andrew, the third son of Queen Elizabeth II (after Charles and Anne, before Edward).

At 64 years old, the always called favorite of Elizabeth II has been in disgrace for almost five years, when his association with the pedophile magnate Jeffrey Epstein was uncovered.

He himself acknowledged that he was not “up to par” in a convoluted BBC interview that he finished off.

But this year his name has once again been muddied for two reasons.

First because in January dozens of documents belonging to Jeffrey Epstein, with whom he was a friend for years, and he appeared in them, were declassified.

His involvement with minors and in the tycoon's parties is no longer an open secret, but something that witnesses and victims leave black and white in their judicial statements and through evidence.

While it is true that there is no closed list of the late Epstein's clients, Andrés of England's name appears next to his on dozens of occasions in the declassified documents.

For example, of the first 40 known documents, his name appears in 12 and the main plaintiff, Virginia Giuffre, who maintains that she had non-consensual sexual relations with him, cites him numerous times.

Rufus Sewell as Prince Andrew in 'Scoop', which Netflix will release on April 5.Netflix

The second issue, and one for which his name will be much more exposed in the coming weeks, is the Netflix premiere of

Scoop

(

The Great Exclusive

, in Spanish).

It is a film about him, in fact, about that complicated BBC interview in which nothing went well.

Prince Andrew will be played by Rufus Sewell, while Gillian Anderson will play journalist Emily Maitlis.

As the platform has announced, “the interview is important, but it is 5% of the story, what we will do is get to where it all began.”

The film's premiere, scheduled for April 5, will put it back in the spotlight.

Furthermore, Andrés has also had to face the fact that another of his family members has cancer.

The prince married Sarah Ferguson in 1986, they separated in 1992 and finally divorced in 1996, but since then, and especially these years, they have remained very close;

in fact, they even share a house.

And precisely in January of this year, the Duchess of York announced that she had been diagnosed with skin cancer, which joins the breast cancer for which she was treated and which she announced in June 2023. Although she is not exactly a member of the British royal family, her daughters (Beatrice and Eugenie) are, and Sarah Ferguson maintained a close relationship with both Diana (who introduced her and Andrew) and with Queen Elizabeth II until her death in September 2022. In fact, last Christmas she could be seen again with the Windsors at Sandringham for the first time in 30 years.

Another complex issue in the universe of the British royal house is that of Henry of England and his wife, Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex.

Both have lived in California since March 2020, where they moved, as they have explained on numerous occasions, exhausted from media persecution and dissatisfied with their role in the royal family.

In February of this year, the youngest son of Charles of England went to visit his father when it was learned that he had cancer.

“How did you find out?” they asked him in a television interview a few days later.

“Talking to him,” he explained.

“I got on a plane and went to see him as soon as I could.”

However, Enrique's relationship with his brother (as well as with Kate), as he revealed in his memoirs and as has been known from interviews and other biographies, is practically non-existent.

In his biography, the youngest of Charles and Diana's children revealed that the first-born even physically attacked him during a fight.

Now, from California, several sources close to them have explained that neither he nor Markle had information about what was happening to his sister-in-law, after so much speculation.

The couple – who do not have official social networks like the Duke and Duchess of Sussex – have spoken out on the matter less than three hours after the Princess of Wales' statement with a statement wishing her “health and a speedy recovery.”

And also “privacy and peace”, in a clear reference to something they themselves have never had.

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