Prince Edward's children James and Louise. Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex - Member of the British Royal Family: Biography
In 2017, Elizabeth II and her husband will celebrate their seventieth anniversary. Over these many years, not a single public scandal occurred between them. The couple raised three sons and one daughter.
The youngest son is Edward, Earl of Wessex. This will be discussed in the article.
Mother
Elizaveta Alexandra Maria was born on April 21, 1926. She is known throughout the world as Elizabeth II and is the reigning Queen of Great Britain. She began ruling in 1952. She comes from the Windsor dynasty.
The future queen received her education at home. It had a humanitarian focus. She studied historical disciplines and practiced horse riding from childhood. She still has an interest in history and horses.
In 1934, the young lady met her distant relative Philip, who many years later became her husband. Elizabeth's parents wanted a more advantageous candidate for their daughter, but did not oppose the marriage. The ceremony took place in 1947. Edward, Earl of Wessex appeared in their family when Elizabeth was thirty-eight years old.
Initially, Elizabeth took third place in the succession to the throne. But fate turned out differently. At twenty-five she ascended the throne.
Father
Philip Mountbatten was born on June 10, 1921. He belonged to the reigning Danish family, which at one time ruled Greece. He has family ties with many European rulers. So Philip is the great-grandson of Christian the Ninth, the great-great-grandson of Victoria (Queen of England) and Nicholas the First (ruler of the Russian Empire).
Due to political events, his family was expelled from Greece. Philip lived in France, England, Germany, and Scotland. He decided to connect his life with the navy.
Before marrying Elizabeth, Philip took the surname Mountbatten. To do this, he used his mother’s surname, changing it into English. He also had to change his religion and accept From Greek Orthodoxy he had to convert to Anglicanism and renounce his previous titles. He ceased to be Prince of Greece and Denmark, and became Duke of Edinburgh, and also Earl of Merioneth, Baron of Greenwich. Such titles were awarded to Philip
The father of Edward, Earl of Wessex, completed his naval service at the age of thirty. Since 1952, he dedicated his life to serving the royal family.
Edward's childhood
The youngest son of the royal family, Edward, Earl of Wessex (born April 10, 1964), cannot be a monarch. He escaped this burden of responsibility. This is due to the system of succession to the throne. With each new child, grandchild, etc., who is born into the families of his two older brothers, he will fall lower and lower in the list of succession to the throne.
While receiving his education at school, Edward studied rather mediocrely. This did not stop him from entering and graduating from Cambridge University. He received a degree in history, and a couple of years later became a Master of Arts.
Career
Upon completion of his studies, Earl of Wessex Edward, whose biography is connected with the British Crown, decided to try his hand at military affairs. This path turned out to be very difficult for him. He completed twelve months of training with the Royal Marines, but during this time the media regularly reported that he was unfit for military service. He was often called "mama's boy." One day, the Marines wore T-shirts that made up a phrase that humiliated Edward. Loosely translated, it sounds like “You can make a prince out of a frog, but you can’t make a marine out of a prince.”
Despite all the difficulties, Edward received the rank of colonel. Sometimes he can be seen in a naval uniform.
Failures in military service forced Elizabeth's son to change his activities. He decided to try his hand at the entertainment industry. He began working in an organization that was involved in theatrical productions. In 1993, Edward founded his own company. She was engaged in the production of television films. By 2002, he left his post as managing director. The matter did not bring him success. In addition, the media accused him of using the queen's influence to promote his causes.
Today he concentrates his energies on the affairs of the royal family.
Personal coat of arms
Since Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex is a member of the royal family, he has his own coat of arms. It is based on the symbol of the monarch of the United Kingdom.
Main elements of the coat of arms:
- coat of arms of Scotland;
- coat of arms of England;
- unicorn;
- leopard.
A member of the British royal family has the crown of the children of the monarch on their coat of arms.
Wife and kids
Edward met his future wife Sophie Rhys-Jones in 1993. They dated for about four years until the Queen intervened. Elizabeth even allowed Sophie to spend the night at Buckingham Palace.
The engagement took place in 1999. In the summer of the same year the marriage took place. It was held at Windsor Castle, in St. George's Chapel. From now on, the queen's youngest son began to be styled His Royal Highness the Earl of Wessex.
The family lives in a house with fifty-three rooms, which is located in They rented it for one hundred and fifty years.
In 2001, Sophie was urgently hospitalized with a suspected ectopic pregnancy. The fetus had to be surgically removed from the fallopian tube. Thus ended the first pregnancy for thirty-six-year-old Sophie.
Two years later, Sophie became pregnant again. This time everything went well. Pregnancy didn't even stop her from riding. A month before the expected date of birth, the woman felt acute pain in her abdomen. Several hours were lost in the general chaos. When Sophie was taken to the hospital, the doctor decided to perform an emergency caesarean section. It turned out that Sophie had a placental abruption. The girl who was born needed medical care, and her mother was saved with the help of a blood transfusion. The girl was named Louise Alice Elizabeth Mary.
The family had their next child only in 2007. Sophie went through several IVF procedures and achieved results. A boy was born, who was named James Alexander Philip Teo.
The children of Edward, Earl of Wessex, occupy an important place in their father's life. He could be seen pushing children in a stroller; at home they like to watch their favorite TV series together. Having children changed Edward's views regarding the role of family in his life.
Elizabeth II and Sophie
Since joining the royal family, Sophie has developed a good relationship with Elizabeth II. The Queen believes that her youngest son was lucky to have his wife. For many years, Sophie has remained the queen's favorite.
Elizabeth takes her with her to various events. Both women are interested in military history and horse riding. Sometimes they retire to the royal archives, where they communicate on topics that interest them.
If Elizabeth feels unwell, her daughter-in-law is next to her. The Queen appreciates her for her friendliness and unobtrusiveness. The Queen loves her grandchildren Louise and James just as much.
Sophie of Wessex visiting the Royal Air Force Station, April 24, 2019In 2015, Vanity Fair magazine included Her Royal Highness Sophie of Wessex in its list of the most stylish people on the planet, while Kate Middleton and other representatives of the British monarchy were not on it. But even earlier, the wife of Elizabeth II’s youngest son received the unofficial title of beloved daughter-in-law ─ this status, in particular, is confirmed by the privilege of accompanying the Queen in the same limousine, as well as representing Her Majesty at all official events of foreign monarchs. How did Sophie manage to secure friendship with Queen Elizabeth II and, at the same time, become one of the most stylish royals? Let's try to figure it out.
Sophie of Wessex's simple and elegant style is indeed worthy of praise, but her modesty is also worthy of special mention: a few years ago, the Countess admitted that she "struggled" with the "obligation" of wearing designer clothes, sincerely believing that the tags on her clothes would be more interesting to the public than hers. support for charitable organizations. However, all the worries were in vain: you need to try very hard to find references to the brands of Sophie of Wessex’s outfits. There are much more mentions in the media about her socially useful work, and first of all this concerns the study of military history and foreign visits.
So what is the secret of the Countess's style? We believe that this is her own talent. Back in 1991, she demonstrated elegant, relaxed sets, when there was no talk about the status of the Countess, and the lion's share of press attention was given not to her, but to the Queen's other daughter-in-law, Princess Diana. Miss Rhys-Jones, which was the name the Countess of Wessex bore before her marriage, in her youth loved high-waisted jeans, wide jackets, multi-colored tracksuits and miniskirts - in general, everything that designers have been so actively singing for several seasons in a row.
Sophie in her youth was often compared to the late Diana, referring to their stunning similarities. But if outwardly they really seemed like sisters, then the fates of both turned out completely differently. Sophie found herself at court in adulthood - at the time of her engagement to Edward in 1999, she was 34 years old, and between them there were no obstacles, such as palace intrigue, a secret affair, or bulimia, which exhausts the physical and mental strength (read: The Spencer family: who is behind the tragedy of Princess Diana in fact). To date, the union of Sophie and Edward is the only one that has stood the test of time: Prince Charles, Princess Anne, and Prince Andrew have all separated from their first spouses.
Since Sophie Rhys-Jones became Her Royal Highness, her style has changed little. Despite her successful career (by the time of her marriage, Sophie had her own PR agency) and acquired high position, her manner of dressing remained simple and did not at all betray her royal status. Let's start with the fact that even the wedding dress, although it looked royally beautiful, was still not as luxurious as Diana Spencer or Sarah Ferguson. In ordinary life, Sophie preferred two-piece suits with a skirt, long coats, wide-brimmed hats and classic pumps with low heels.
Sophie, despite all persuasion, refused to wear designer clothes. The exception was hats from Jane Taylor, whose creations can often be seen at the Ascot races and other events for the British nobility.
“The Countess of Wessex is one of my favorite clients. Her elegant style is timeless, but she is someone who can try something bold and unusual,” Jane Taylor said of her.
Sophie of Wessex has no stylists, and all her outfits are entirely her work. Over time, of course, branded items appeared in the countess’s wardrobe, but, as a rule, not the most obvious brands for the British: Diane Von Furstenberg, Prada, Helmut Lang. However, Sophie’s list of favorites also includes a British brand - Emilia Wickstead.
"When I found this list, I thought, 'Are they sure they mean me?' - she joked. However, there is no doubt that the editors of the famous magazine knew what they were doing: photographs of Sophia of Wessex from a variety of events are much more eloquent than all words. The Countess is graceful in both trouser suits and fluffy skirts of Dior's New Look, and nude tights, so hated by all stylists, do not look like some serious fashion sin on her. However, there is one constant in her style, and this is the “royal” length of dresses and skirts, which has never risen above the knee.
Now the world media pays less attention to the Countess than her star daughters-in-law, Duchesses Kate and Megan. There is a simple explanation for this - the line of succession to the British throne. Sophie's husband Edward is eleventh in line for the crown. This means there is a 99% chance he will not ascend to the British throne. Therefore, Edward and Sophie have fewer royal responsibilities, that is, the couple makes fewer official appearances. However, they are the ones who represent the British royal family in meetings with monarchs of other countries outside the UK. Sophie, on behalf of the Queen, was present at almost all the weddings of modern princes and princesses, at the coronation of Prince Albert in Monaco and at his wedding to Charlene. In May 2017, Sophie became Elizabeth II's envoy to the double jubilee of the Norwegian monarchs Harald and Sonja (perhaps
“Soon to be princess - five minutes to a princess” - the definition of the official girlfriend of His Highness Edward Windsor over time began to seem almost a mockery to her: “five minutes” stretched out for many years. These years changed Sophie so much that at times it seemed as if a hundred years had passed since their first meeting.
The start of the photo shoot was delayed, and the prince was clearly unhappy. There were only a few days left before the opening of the charity tennis championship, held under the patronage of the royal house, and today the advertising booklet for the tournament was supposed to be shot. But when Edward, accompanied by his retinue and security, arrived on the court, it turned out that the tennis player with whom the filming was agreed upon was ill. One of the competition organizers pointed to Sophie (she worked at a PR agency and was involved in the tournament’s advertising campaign):
"Your Highness, perhaps you could film with her?" Turning his head, Edward saw a pretty blonde girl, who, standing to the side, was cheerfully chatting about something with the photographer. “Why not,” the prince shrugged and added quite indifferently: “She, in general, is not bad.”
In addition to other advantages, Miss Sophie Rhys-Jones also had a “royal” height - against the background of her 165 cm, Edward looked quite courageous. Sophie, who that day found herself on a real closed royal court for the first time and was photographed in the company of a real prince, so gracefully fluttered between the court and the dressing room, changing her T-shirts, so tenderly bowed her pretty head on His Highness’s shoulder, that in the two hours while filming was going on , simply captivated all the men present on the court. Or rather, everyone except Edward. After that, they met several times (Sophie and her boss came to Buckingham Palace for meetings about the tournament’s advertising campaign), but the relationship between the young people remained purely business.
“Great guy, always so charming,” Sophie shared her impressions in response to questions from curious friends. “So?..” - they did not let up. “Well, that’s okay,” Sophie shrugged.
My friends didn't believe me. Edward Windsor was never considered a Casanova or a playboy in England, but reports about His Highness's new "acquaintance" regularly appeared in the press. If he had not been born a prince, Edward would probably have become an actor: a passion for the performing arts lived in him since childhood. By the way, it also served as a reason for scandals: at one time, photographs of Edward appeared in the tabloids every now and then, captured in a very informal setting, surrounded by some grimacing young people. The press reproached His Highness for at least frivolity, and conservative public opinion muttered angrily: why, they say, is our prince so delighted with this frivolous atmosphere of acting and these cheeky servants of Melpomena? Edward only repeated: “I adore the theater,” but the further he went, the more he became imbued with the code of conduct accepted in the royal family, and the less often he gave reasons for new scandals. The actor in him finally and irrevocably lost to the prince.
His Highness lost his innocence in the arms of a 21-year-old court maid - Edward himself was barely 18 at the time. The story of seduction - although it is still unknown who actually seduced whom - developed rapidly and ended in a slight scandal: having dressed and gently kissed the happy Eddie on the cheek, the young lady from the prince's bedchamber went straight to the servants' room, crowded with people. Here she was greeted with a storm of applause and publicly declared from the threshold: “An impudent, shameless fellow!” The next morning, the entire Buckingham Palace was talking only about the details of the highest son’s first sexual experience, and the embarrassed prince was afraid to stick his head out of his room for several days.
Best of the day
While Edward was at school, his person attracted little attention from the ubiquitous paparazzi, but when he entered Cambridge, the situation changed radically. As soon as the prince appeared in the company of a young woman, cameras immediately began to chirp around him. For several days and nights, journalists were on duty on the roof, watching through telephoto lenses outside the windows of the apartment of Corinne Taylor, Edward’s classmate, with whom, according to rumors, His Highness was very infatuated. The photographs they took became the reason for an extraordinary meeting of the university council, at which Edward was gently hinted that Cambridge should not be the scene of such scandals. And in general, it is unbecoming for a prince of the blood to have a relationship with an untitled student. As a result, unfortunate Corinne was forced to change her educational institution, and Edward became even more withdrawn into himself.
The royal family, no less closely than the paparazzi, followed the adventures of their “youngest” and did not sit idly by. One day, the king and queen of Norway organized a grand party to which almost all members of the crowned families of Europe were invited. Ten princes and half a dozen princesses - representatives of various royal dynasties - gathered at the party. The wise monarchs decided to introduce all their unmarried and unmarried offspring in the hope that one of them would find their precious crowned half in this “boat of love.” Edward was introduced to Princess Martha Louise of Norway, as well as Astrid de Schouten, heiress to the aristocratic Wethall family. However, no one was caught in the Amur network, so skillfully woven by moms and dads that evening. The heirs and heiresses of high-profile families honestly chatted and danced for the allotted time and, with a sense of accomplishment, safely went home.
But even guided by his own taste, Edward could not find a suitable match for a long time. Romances flared up one after another, but were short-lived and died out without having time to lead to anything serious. For several months he wooed the 17-year-old model Rommie Ellington - and when he finally won ("The next morning Eddie was terribly proud that he managed to take me to the castle and leave me there all night under the nose of the queen."), he soon realized that The relationship with Rommie will sooner or later end in failure. Rommie was a child of a completely different world - she loved parties and parties. She didn’t give a damn about royal etiquette: when they tried to explain to her how His Highness’s girlfriend should behave, Rommie only wrinkled her nose cutely and expressed herself in the sense that she saw it all in the coffin. In general, Edward had to part with Rommie. As with the others: one was too eccentric; another loved giving interviews to tabloids and posing for the paparazzi; the third had the idiotic habit of sneaking up behind him in the morning and saying, “Hello, chicken!” slapping His Highness on the soft spot; the fourth wanted to become a princess so much that from the first day of their acquaintance she spoke only about the upcoming engagement... The old truth - there is no perfection in this world - was confirmed, alas, again and again. Edward was ready to come to terms with this, but then he met Sophie.
He called her only after the end of the tournament, when more than two months had passed since the day they first met. His Highness's phone call came as a complete surprise to Sophie. They chatted a little, and at the end of the conversation, Edward invited the girl to play a game of tennis, and at the same time have dinner at the palace. It was an amazing evening - Cinderella was getting ready for her first ball...
The Rees-Joneses lived near Oxford - a typical English family with slightly above average income. Sophie's father was involved in selling cars on the continent, and her mother worked as a manager in a bank. Both of them greatly valued their reputation as a respected, respectable couple and were firmly convinced that we needed to live in accordance with traditions - it was not ours and it is not ours to change. It was a quiet, measured life - good private schools for his son and daughter, weekends sailing or in the hunting meadows, a glass or two of good English gin and tonic after dinner - many years later, after learning that his daughter was going to marry a prince England, Sir Christopher Rhys-Jones will exclaim: “God, for the first time in my life I need a drink in the morning!”
As a child, Sophie was considered neither a good girl nor a naughty girl. Because they knew that it could be different. However, Sophie never rushed to extremes. She loved to joke and laugh, but never allowed herself to be vulgar. She was upset that her parents couldn’t buy her a pony (almost all her friends from Kent College had their own stables), but this and other experiences did not turn into obsessions or develop into complexes. Sophie danced well, showed good results in running and swimming, was great at making friends and attracted the attention of guys, although she did not wear makeup at all.
Sophie had her first admirer when she had just turned 9 years old. At that time, their school held a competition “Who can make the best face.” Sophie boldly went on stage - and one of her classmates was so shocked by what he saw that after the competition he plucked up courage, walked up to the winner and, sniffling, kissed her on the cheek. Miss Rhys-Jones generously forgave the impudent young man and even allowed him to walk her home.
After graduating from college, Sophie went to study secretarial courses, and in her free time she worked as a waitress in small restaurants. Having escaped the clutches of conservative school morality, the young lady was now partying as hard as she could - Sophie loved going to pubs with friends, smoking like a steam locomotive, dancing until she dropped, and flirting with guys. More than frivolous jokes, told by her with a completely spontaneous expression on her face, became hits and brought the company to hysterics. At Capital Radio she met Chris Tarrent, a famous DJ, and their friendly relationship gradually developed into a romantic one. It is this relationship that will cause a scandal when the British tabloid The Sun publishes a very revealing photo of the future princess. In fact, there were many such photographs - Sophie and Chris loved to have fun and saw nothing wrong with it. At one time, topless pictures even adorned her home albums. (Naturally, after meeting His Highness, the frivolous photographs had to be removed from there.)
While Prince Edward grew up and matured, working in the former colonies or serving as an officer in the Royal Marines (falling in love with models, actresses and athletes along the way), Sophie also did not waste time. She worked in the tourism industry, traveling around Europe and Australia. Returning to London, Miss Rhys-Jones decided to try her hand at PR, worked for the Cancer Care Foundation, and on weekends, together with her dentist friend Tim King, she plowed the skies over old England in a small private jet. There was nothing left before meeting His Highness, but, entering another risky “tailspin,” Sophie, of course, had no idea about this.
..."Under no circumstances use a cell phone for private conversations - you can be wiretapped. Try to take out bags of garbage right before the garbage collectors arrive - otherwise the next day the whole country will start discussing what you ate for dinner, what shampoo you washed your hair with and what products you used used personal hygiene. Raise the curtains on the windows as little as possible - at least when you are in the apartment. Never answer their questions on the street, no matter how innocent they may seem - only at official interviews or press conferences. If you are all If one of the pa-parazzi takes you by surprise, be sure to inform us, and it is important to do this as soon as possible” - Sophie already knew these traditional instructions from the chief of the royal security service by heart. A few years ago, they seemed like the ravings of a madman to her, but she soon became convinced that it was simply necessary to comply with these unspoken laws - having become Edward’s “official” lover, Sophie had to accept the rules of the game. There were many of these rules, and they regulated literally everything - from the procedure for serving tea with chocolate cake in the palace on weekends to the process of drawing up official statements for the press or refuting the next newspaper “duck”.
Sophie recalled the first time she came to the palace - after that memorable tennis game to which Edward invited her. Then he seemed cold to her, even insensitive. Later, Sophie realized that the prince’s arrogance, his arrogant sarcasm, was simply a manner of hiding emotions, something that people who are forced to live according to the canons of royal etiquette have been accustomed to for years. This was discovered that evening when they had dinner and chatted casually in His Highness's apartment. It quickly became clear that their tastes coincided in almost everything. Edward simply melted before our eyes:
his interlocutor was not a bit like all those boring aristocrats, flighty top models and neurasthenic theater divas. Sophie turned out to be an absolutely down-to-earth girl - and Edward liked it more and more every minute.
“Two guys have been calling you all morning - a certain Richard and a certain Guz,” a colleague said one day when Sophie came to work. “By the way, they both have suspiciously the same voices.” Sophie just smiled:
His Highness turned out to be no great master of conspiracy. Half an hour later, Edward-Richard-Goose called back and told Sophie that he was inviting her to a family dinner at the palace.
The tabloids have relished stories a thousand times about what funny incidents happened to the girlfriends of Elizabeth’s sons who attended the official reception. They wrote that one of the lovers of either Edward or Andrew came to the palace... with her pillow - once the girl had the imprudence to leave traces of mascara on the royal bed linen and was terribly upset about it. Another “princess” cut her finger in the bathroom and hastily wrapped it in a towel hanging on the wall. When the unfortunate woman saw that she had stained the royal monogram with blood, she became so hysterical that the entire Windsor Palace shook. Sophie laughed until she cried when she read these stories.
However, as soon as she herself stepped into the twilight of the Green Living Room, Sophie immediately felt that her hands were no longer obeying her, and her body began to tremble with excitement.
The guests began with aperitifs in the Green Drawing Room, then moved on to dine in the Dubovaya Drawing Room. Sophie watched in rapture as footmen in black liveries with scarlet cuffs and shiny buttons slowly and solemnly served food on huge trays. She heard the quiet clatter of heavy silverware, the splash of wine filling ancient glasses, saw the queen’s pearl necklace shimmer... The majesty of the palace overwhelmed newcomers only in the first minutes - then it began to fascinate.
Since that weekend, Sophie Rhys-Jones has become a regular guest at Her Majesty's court and a participant in all rituals associated with the life of the royal family. On Sundays she attended services in the palace church. And one day, in the twilight of the cathedral, Sophie suddenly saw herself standing in front of this altar in a snow-white wedding dress.
December 17, 1993 - Sophie remembered this date perfectly, because it was on that day that an event occurred that completely turned her life upside down. In the morning, a tall, intelligent-looking young man entered the office of their foundation. The stranger walked towards Sophie's desk, bowed his head in mock respect and said loudly: "Miss Rhys-Jones, will you allow me to call you first Your Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge?" There was deathly silence in the room. The employees stared at Sophie, their mouths open in surprise.
Five minutes later, Andrew Norton, the author of numerous publications about the royal family, who became famous after publishing the revelations of Princess Diana of Wales, was already showing Sophie photographs of him and Prince Edward the night before in her apartment. Smiling triumphantly, Norton asked Sophie to make a statement to the press. Blushing in surprise, she wrote: "The Prince and I are good friends, we work together. He and I are private individuals and I have nothing more to add." The journalist took the paper and hurried to take his leave. Edward, having learned about what had happened, was very upset: “No, no, you did everything right, only...” He never said what “only”. In the evening, the prince picked her up and they went to the palace for another weekend. On the way they were already chased by paparazzi on three motorcycles...
"Edward is in love!" "The prince has finally found the girl of his dreams and is getting married!" The newspapers were full of the most idiotic headlines, several dozen photographers accompanied Sophie on the way home and back, neighbors complained to the police that some subjects were constantly roaming around the roofs of their houses at night. The prince walked darker than a cloud and eventually wrote a letter to the press, in which he asked not to interfere in his personal life and to give him and Sophie time and the opportunity to sort out their relationship. Edward was not a snob - on the contrary, he believed that both Diana and Sarah breathed new life into the musty atmosphere of the palace chambers. But at the same time, His Highness shuddered when he recalled the scandalous photograph of Sarah Ferguson, in which the future princess languidly offered her “financial advisor” her leg for a kiss. Edward believed that the incident made his brother Andrew look like a complete idiot to everyone.
And Sophie was torn by contradiction. On the one hand, she couldn’t help but be flattered that she was finally recognized as the prince’s “official” girlfriend. On the other hand, Sophie was terribly afraid, cursed her own stupidity and prayed to God that none of the photographs of her “fun life” would appear in the press.
They continued to meet with Edward. In 1994, he invited her to celebrate the New Year at one of the royal estates - the Sanrindham House estate in North Norfolk. Sophie recalled with a smile her former excitement and confusion - now she had become a real court lady and felt like a fish in water in these intricate labyrinths of royal etiquette. She already knew exactly how many times a day she needed to change clothes (for riding, hunting, second breakfast, tea, lunch), what she could wear for dinner and what she could not wear, how many aperitifs they would serve before the meal and how many martinis it cost limit yourself so as not to look inappropriate at the table. The Queen and Prince Philip treated Sophie very well, and she was even allowed to ride to church in Her Majesty's car. One day Sophie heard rumors that Edward had already consulted with his mother about their engagement. In general, everything went well. Even the entertainment accepted in the royal family - leisurely conversations, careful, correct jokes, which at first seemed so dreary to her, were now perceived by Sophie in a completely different way. At least here she was at peace - she didn’t have to run away from persistent reporters, constantly repeating “No comment!” and flinch from unexpected photo flashes.
Outside, however, everything remained the same. One day, Edward, unable to bear another “well, when?!”, sharply told reporters: “If you finally shut up, do something else and let us collect our thoughts, the engagement will happen much faster!”
On the morning of her 29th birthday, she woke up with some extraordinary joyful feeling - for some reason Sophie was sure that today, on her birthday, she would definitely receive a small “modest” ring from Edward. Soon she was delivered a gift from His Highness - an amazingly beautiful and very expensive... travel suitcase. Sophie sat clutching that stupid suitcase in her bedroom, not knowing what to think. Her lover turned out to be, to put it mildly, not a very romantic person. In his letters, he could call Sophie “my beloved,” draw countless hearts at the end, could send her huge bouquets of roses and take her to fabulously beautiful places for the weekend - or he could give her a suitcase for her birthday. At that moment, when she was ready to get angry and say nasty things to him, His Highness burst into her apartment and joyfully announced that they were going to Buckingham Palace to celebrate her birthday. At the end of the evening, Edward gave Sophie another gift - a photograph of himself from his time in the Marine Corps in an elegant silver frame. “After all, Edward is not only a romantic,” one of her friends noted on this occasion. “He is also a prince.” Sophie never received the ring that day. As on Edward's birthday, on Christmas, New Year and Valentine's Day... The newspapers put forward forecast after forecast regarding the upcoming engagement - but none of them came true.
Nevertheless, attempts to find incriminating evidence on the future Princess of Cambridge did not stop. Actor Greg Matthew was offered a fee of half a million dollars for the story of his relationship with Sophie Rhys-Jones - there were rumors that they were lovers in Australia. Greg tactfully refused. A certain German lawyer turned out to be more “frank” - Sophie did not even suspect the existence of this man. He said that during one long-ago party, Sophie was so eager to jump under his blanket that the unfortunate man “was only able to stop her by a miracle.” The Daily News published an article entitled "The Film That Shocked the Prince." It was about an amateur film made by Sophie during her wild youth, in which Miss Rhys-Jones “danced frivolously in a tight minidress to the accompaniment of playful music, and then, with lust in her gaze, wrapped herself around a muscular macho man and merged with him in a long kiss." In fact, the prince was not shocked at all - he laughed until he cried, and then told Sophie that she had acted very wisely by not continuing her film career.
By 1995, Sophie had already become His Highness’s constant companion at all official receptions. Edward introduced her to the highest circles of the English aristocracy, from the prince's girlfriend she turned into his bride, but nothing was announced about the date of their engagement.
Events related to the scandal surrounding Charles and Diana, then their sensational divorce - everything seemed to be going against Sophie. Having agreed to the role of the prince’s “unofficial” bride and having served in this capacity for three years, she understood that it was too late to retreat, and there was nowhere to go - she could only wait. One of Sophie’s close friends recalled: “The need to constantly control yourself, always think about what can be said, what cannot be said - you wouldn’t wish this on your enemy. This way of life has changed our Sophie a lot. She has become somehow focused, detached. And “she kept an eye on the press all the time - as if she was expecting that not today or tomorrow something terrible would get there, and she would no longer be able to change anything.”
Sophie and Edward were thirty by then. They were the only unmarried couple left in their circle. Sophie became even more cautious, refusing interviews and filming; she and the prince spent more and more time at home, preferring television to social gatherings.
It was 1997 - the newspapers were gossiping more and more insistently that Edward was going to leave her. The prince insisted that they definitely needed to look for some kind of house.
Edward's palace apartments consisted of two bedrooms. When Sophie stayed with him, she occupied one bedroom, the prince - the other. He could not advertise their relationship in front of his family and servants - this was also a rule of etiquette. For several years now, after every night spent together, His Highness, at exactly 5.30, on tiptoe, like a boy, made his way to his bedroom, so that half an hour later he would be ready for the arrival of the valet with morning tea and biscuits. It was also impossible to breathe more freely somewhere in nature - the lovers had to think only about whether the paparazzi were hiding in the bushes.
To somehow distract herself from the feeling of uncertainty and constant waiting, Sophie decided to start a business. The company, thanks to the charm of its owner and direct connection with the royal family, quickly developed, and soon the R-JH trademark spread throughout the world. The company's partners were the houses of Chanel, Dior, and Christian Lacroix. Sophie changed her hairstyle, began to dress by Thomas Startsevsky, attended all the world's fashion shows, and gave a huge interview to Hello magazine, which delighted all members of the royal family. The same issue of the magazine published photographs of Princess Diana and her new admirer Dodi al-Fayed. And two weeks later they died.
No matter how much Sophie worried about Diana’s death, she could not help but understand that the engagement would have to be postponed again. Sophie quietly went about her work and oversaw the renovation of the mansion Edward had purchased a few months ago. The company was doing well. Before meeting the prince, Sophie earned 20 thousand pounds a year, but now she was rapidly approaching her first million. And yet... in January 1999 she will turn 34. And Sophie still remained “a princess within five minutes.”
This happened shortly before Christmas - Edward invited her to Bermuda, they rented a luxurious cottage, and one day during a candlelight dinner, His Highness suddenly uttered this phrase:
Sophie, will you marry me?
And she couldn’t think of anything better than to simply answer:
Yes please!
If only His Highness knew how much was behind this “please”! However, Edward was probably the only one who guessed about this.
On January 6th, the Prince officially announced his engagement to Miss Sophie Rhys-Jones. This time, Edward decided to abandon extravagant gifts such as a suitcase and presented the bride with an amazing ring worth 55 thousand pounds - three diamonds set in white gold. "I hope that we will avoid a pompous wedding and celebrate it in a small circle of home. We chose St George's Church - since Sophie visited it with the Queen five years ago, she has always wanted to get married there."
The wedding was scheduled for June 19. And at the end of May, what the future princess was so afraid of happened: the British tabloid The Sun finally got hold of one of her photographs from 11 years ago. In it, a cheerful Sophie sits in a car with Chris Tarrent, who playfully lifts up her T-shirt. The photograph was sold to the newspaper for $150 thousand (according to other sources - for $400 thousand) by a certain Carra Noble, a former friend of Sophie. Upon learning of this, Sophie realized that everything was lost...
However, nothing happened. Members of the royal family unanimously defended their future relative. Edward stated that he was fully aware of the bride's long-ago adventure. Public opinion sounded wise and convincing - in the sense that Diana's tragedy alone would be enough for us. The Sun newspaper formally apologized to Sophie and admitted the publication was a mistake.
And Carra Noble was fired from her job that same day.
British Royal Family December 3rd, 2005
The British monarchy has been alive and well for many centuries; it is the oldest management institute in the United Kingdom. Queen Elizabeth II is a descendant of Saxon monarchs. She reigns for more than forty years, fulfilling the role of a constitutional monarch. This means that although the crown belongs to the queen, in practice the country is governed by ministers responsible to parliament.
According to the English Law of Succession of 1700, only descendants of Princess Sophia (granddaughter of King James I (1603-25) of the Protestant faith) can be heirs.
The sons of the monarch and their descendants have priority over daughters in inheriting the throne, and daughters, in turn, over the brothers of the monarch. The daughter who inherits the throne becomes queen regnant and receives the powers of the crown as if she were a king. While a king's consort has the rank and title of her husband, a queen regnant's consort has never been allowed by the constitution to have any special rank or privileges.
British Royal Family (B ritishRoyalFamily):
5 Queen ElizabethII- Queen of Great Britain; full name - Elizabeth Alexandra Maria Windsor;
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh - husband of Queen Elizabeth;
5 prince Charles- The queen's eldest son, heir to the British throne. Full name: Charles Philip Arthur George Windsor
William and Harry - Princes: William Arthur, Prince of Wales and Henry Charles, Prince of Wales, children of Prince Charles and the late Lady Diana, Princess of Wales;
5 Camilla Parker-Bowles is the second wife of Prince Charles, the official title is "Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall"
5 Princess Anne– daughter of Queen Elizabeth II;
Captain Mark Phillips - Princess Anne's first husband (divorced);
Peter Philips and Zara Philips 6 - their children
Timothy Lawrence (Commander) – Princess Anne's second husband
5 Prince Andrew– second son of Queen Elizabeth II, Duke of York; full name - Andrew Albert Christian Edward Windsor;
Sarah Ferguson - ex-wife of Prince Andrew;
Beatrice and Eugenie of York - princesses; their children;
5 Prince Edward- youngest son of Queen Elizabeth II, Duke of Edinburgh, full name - Edward Anthony Richard Windsor.
Sophie Rhys-Jones - his wife 6
Louise – their daughter, Lady Louise Winsor
Prince Michael of Kent and Princess Alexandra are cousins of Queen Elizabeth II 6
Previously, all the attention of the press was focused on Princess Diana, now on Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle, and all this time the main one remained in the shadows Elizabeth's favorite. In 2015 the magazine Vanity Fair named the most stylish people on the planet, among whom only she was present from the royal family.
We are talking about Prince Edward's wife Her Royal Highness Sophie of Wessex, née Rhys-Jones. Of all the queen's close associates, it is Sophie who has the privilege of accompanying her in her personal limousine and representing her at official events. How did this happen?
Even before marriage in 1991 Miss Rhys-Jones she was distinguished by an extremely amazing sense of style, appearing in public in elegant, casual outfits. And this did not change with the acquisition of the title; the Countess does not use the services of court stylists, creating her wardrobe independently.
As she herself admitted, it was difficult for her to wear branded clothes; the woman was afraid that the tags on her outfits would distract journalists from herself and her activities.
She is often compared to Diana and indeed, they could easily pass for sisters, but their fates diametrically opposed. Sophie entered the royal family at 34, and her marriage to Edward is the only one that has stood the test of time among all of Elizabeth's children.
But, of course, it was not her style that made her the queen's favorite. Sophie is distinguished by such traits as responsibility and flexibility; before marriage, she owned her own PR agency. Perhaps that experience helps her successfully cope with her responsibilities.
Prince Edward - tenth contender to the throne, that is, it is very unlikely that he will receive it, because their couple receives much less attention from the press, and there are almost no royal duties. However, it was the Countess of Wessex replaces the queen if he is unwell.
Common interests with Elizabeth also played into their hands: horse riding and military history. Often women retire together in the royal archives, and even at family holidays you can often see them together.
In addition, they often visit each other without warning. By the way, Edward and Sophie two children, who are also Elizabeth’s favorites; she, like their father, spends a lot of time with them.
Until 2002, Sophie managed to successfully combine her own business and royal duties, but after scandal in 2002 she was forced to trade PR for ribbon cuttings and social events.
Then the journalist Mahmoud Mazher managed to get a scandalous interview by deception, where the Countess of Wessex criticizes Tony Blair and the British government and admits that she uses royal connections to support her own business.
Over the past few years, Countess Sophie has attended every royal wedding in Europe on behalf of the British throne. So she has a warm relationship not only with the Queen of England. By the way, she even managed to make friends with Princess Anna, who previously could not stand her daughters-in-law.
But now, if the media pays attention to her, it is only to admire her once again subtle sense of style countess. She is the living embodiment of the opinion that you can look beautiful in inexpensive things. Some of her favorite brands include: Diane Von Furstenberg, Prada, Helmut Lang.
As a result, Sophie is the only one in the world who has earned the full favor of the British Queen and, even more, managed to become her soul mate,
