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    1. Celebrity
    2. Royals

    Queen Camilla Has a "Secret Steely Nature" Behind Her "Sweet Smile," Says Royal Expert

    "There's a ruthless streak to Camilla which she takes care to keep hidden from view."

    Amy Mackelden#039;s avatar
    By Amy Mackelden
    Published 17 May 2026 In News

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    Queen Camilla wears a beige coat with a brooch
    (Image credit: Getty Images/Chris Jackson)
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    Queen Camilla has been in the public eye for decades. After her husband, King Charles, acceded the throne, Camilla took on an even bigger role within the Royal Family. And according to one royal author, The Queen contains multitudes.

    Speaking to the Daily Mail, royal author Christopher Wilson explained, "She's every bit as convincing as the old Queen Mother was when it comes to putting on a sweet smile and saying just the right thing to put people at their ease."

    Wilson also suggested that there's much more to The Queen than meets the eye. "But—again like the Queen Mom—there's a ruthless streak to Camilla which she takes care to keep hidden from view," the author noted.

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    As for why Queen Camilla might keep some of her cards close to her chest, Wilson shared that she takes her role as King Charles's wife very seriously.

    "Her job, as she sees it, is to support and protect her man," Wilson claimed.

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    HMThe King accompanied by HM The Queen reads the Kings Speech at the 2026amp;nbsp;State Openingamp;nbsp;ofamp;nbsp;Parliament Westminster

    "Her job, as she sees it, is to support and protect her man," Wilson claimed.

    (Image credit: Getty Images)

    While Queen Camilla didn't join the Royal Family until 2005, when she married King Charles, she allegedly knows just how important the institution is.

    "Monarchy is about survival, and Camilla understands that," Wilson told the outlet. "She's read the history books and knows how, when the House of Windsor was brought to its knees in 1936 with the abdication of King Edward VIII, [the Queen Mother] put fire in the belly of her reluctant husband, turning him into a successful wartime monarch who did a great double act with Prime Minister Winston Churchill."

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    Per Wilson, "King George needed her ironclad courage, just as King Charles needs Camilla's today."

    Queen Camilla cinderella moment

    "There's a ruthless streak to Camilla which she takes care to keep hidden from view."

    (Image credit: Getty Images)

    Basically, Queen Camilla is a great source of strength to King Charles and she's apparently just as focused on protecting the Royal Family's future.

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    Amy Mackelden
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    Weekend Editor

    Amy Mackelden is the weekend editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.

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