Royal insiders have expressed concerns that King Charles was overshadowed by the Princess of Wales on his first visit to the Chelsea Flower Show as monarch.
His Majesty, known as an avid gardener and nature lover, attended the annual event in London on Monday 22 May for the first time since ascending the throne.
During their visit, the monarch and his wife, Queen Camilla, presented a medal commemorating his late mother, Queen Elizabeth, to honor the leaders in garden art – and will be given to 70 people at a time to commemorate Her Majesty’s 70th birthday awarded. regnal year.
However, some royal sources have raised concerns that Charles and Camilla’s visit was overshadowed by a surprise appearance by Catherine, Princess of Wales, at the same event on the same day.
Kate was seen meeting young people from ten schools taking part in the Royal Horticultural Society’s (RHS) campaign for school gardening, where she encouraged participants to “work hard”.
Catherine, Princess of Wales, attends the first children’s picnic at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show on Monday
Kate’s surprise appearance sparked great cheer from show-goers, but some royal sources doubted she eclipsed the king and queen
But the huge media coverage of the younger royals’ visit has sparked fears in some quarters that Charles could be eclipsed by his daughter-in-law, a claim echoing claims when he was married to his first wife, Princess Diana.
A source told the Chron’s Richard Eden: “Given his love of gardening, His Majesty’s appearance at Chelsea was an important engagement.”
“It is a shame that his visit to Her Majesty the Queen received less attention than expected.” I hope you are not too disappointed.’
In his controversial memoir, Spare, Prince Harry claimed he and his brother William were limited in the number of public appearances they made.
The king’s youngest son wrote: ‘Pa and Camilla didn’t like that Willy and Kate drew attention away from them or their concerns.’ They had often openly scolded Willy about it.’
Harry was referring to an occasion when his sister-in-law was scheduled to take an engagement at a tennis club on the same day that Charles and Camilla were due to perform at an official event elsewhere.
This was strictly forbidden, Harry explained, as such a ‘pretty’ photo would ruin Charles and Camilla’s chances of making the front page of the newspapers the next day.
He said: “This could not be tolerated.” When he was told it was too late to cancel the visit, Pa’s spokesman warned: “Just make sure the Duchess isn’t holding a tennis racquet in any of the photos. “
King Charles, who comes to the show with Queen Camilla, is a well-known garden and nature lover
Concerns that Kate might eclipse the king echo similar claims during his first marriage to Princess Diana (pictured)
King Charles tours a garden at the Chelsea Flower Show after arriving with Camilla on Monday
King Charles hugs Korean designer Jihae Hwang as he visits her garden, A Letter From A Million Years Ago
On Monday at RHS Chelsea, the King and Queen showed no signs of irritation at the surprise visit from the Princess of Wales as they enjoyed themselves at the flower show.
Charles and Camilla took separate tours of some of the gardens, with the King revealing that he was scouting for plants at Highgrove to replace the plants eaten by rabbits.
The Queen, meanwhile, couldn’t resist making an unscheduled stop at a garden in Chelsea to try out her swing.
Camilla stormed into the James Smith-designed London Square Community Garden, which aims to encourage people to meet, relax and share food while connecting with nature.
Her Majesty admired the stunning flowers and the huge communal table featuring chessboards and droughtboards with recycled chairs designed by Jay Blades of The Repair Shop, who was a guest at the coronation.
The couple later presented the first medals in the “Garden of Royal Reflection and Celebration” to garden designer Piet Oudolf, Baroness Janet Fookes, an advocate for horticulture in Parliament, and environmental advocate Judy Ling Wong.
RHS President Keith Weed said: “The Royal Horticultural Society has been extremely fortunate to have had Her Majesty as our Patron throughout her reign.”
“This award recognizes both Her Majesty’s glorious reign and the work she has done to raise the profile of British horticulture nationally and internationally through her visits to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and other work.”