The decades-long relationship betweenKing CharlesandQueen Camillahas been long documented, as it infamously continued throughhis marriagetoPrincess Dianaand her marriage to Andrew Parker Bowles.
But their relationship wasn’t the first between their families: King Charles’s great-great-grandfather King Edward VII had an illicit affair with Queen Camilla’s great-great-grandmother, Alice Keppel, according toTown & Country.
Born Alice Frederica Edmonstone and raised in Duntreath Castle in Scotland, the Queen’s ancestor was a beloved member of Edwardian society.
“She was luminous, resplendent… She not only had a gift of happiness, but she excelled in making others happy. She resembled a Christmas tree laden with presents for everyone,“her daughter Violet said.
Alice Keppel.Ellis Roberts/Getty
Alice was nicknamed “Freddie” — and sometimes “Flirtatious Freddie,” perhaps due to the reported affairs that helped her move up the social ladder.
It’s a similar reputation to the one that seemed to follow Camilla when she and then-Prince Charlesfirst started dating in 1971,contributing to reportsthat claimed she didn’t meet the royal prerequisites for marrying the heir to the throne. It’s that reputation that largely caused Charles and Camilla’s initial split.
And like Camilla, who married British royal officer Bowles, Alice wed Lieutenant-Colonel George Keppel. But when they moved to London, she met King Charles’s ancestor Prince Albert Edward in 1989 — when he was 56 and she was 29.
Alice and Edward’s relationship continued for 12 years through his coronation as King Edward VII in 1902, and they were still together when he died in 1910.
Alice was reportedly at the King’s deathbed and was so hysterical that she had to be"removed from his room.”
Alexandra “preferred her to the king’s previous mistress, Daisy Warwick,” according toTown & Country,as Alice was more discreet and even helped the Kingpick out thoughtful giftsfor Alexandra, such as a set of Faberge animal collectibles.
Alice also was well-known for settling Edward’s at-times “erratic” behavior.
Edward VII.W. & D. Downey/Hulton Archive/Getty
A close palace insider recently told PEOPLE that Queen Camilla maintains a calming effect on the monarch. “She is the yin to his yang,” the insidersaid.“She is the type to say, ‘It’ll all be fine; let’s crack on and get on with things.’ "
Royal biographer Christopher Wilson, who studied the couple in the bookA Greater Love,told PEOPLEthat Camilla soothes Charles in a way no one else can.
“Her presence reassures him,” Wilson says. “Despite all the trappings of majesty, it’s cold and lonely at the top, and it’s easy to see the comfort she provides him.”
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And while Alice’s presence in King Edward’s life was largely accepted, she remains the last mistress who was given a place at court.
In fact, when his grandson Edward VIIIabdicated the throneto marry the American divorcée Wallis Simpson — the move that putQueen Elizabethin line for the throne when her father, King George VI, assumed the monarchy — Alice is rumored to have declared, “Things were done much better in my day.”
source: people.com
