9 Photos of Queen Camilla Before She Was a Royal, Including Her First Wedding in 1973

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Camilla married Andrew Parker-Bowles in 1973, while Charles married Princess Diana in 1981.

Camilla and Charles married years later on April 9, 2005, when she became the Duchess of Cornwall. She was crowned queen in September 2022.

The British royal family is no stranger to scandal, but perhaps no member of the family has been quite as controversial as Camilla Parker-Bowles (now Queen Camilla).

After all, Princess Diana moved the world when, in 1995, three years after her separation from her husband, now King Charles, she finally addressed Charles' affair with Camilla. "There were three of us in this marriage," Diana said in what is now an iconic line to the BBC's Panorama. "So it was a bit crowded."

Despite all the backlash that followed Diana's interview, and especially following her 1997 death, Charles and Camilla weathered the storms and found their way back to one another. On April 9, 2005, they officially tied the knot in a civil ceremony at Windsor Castle.On September 8, 2022, following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, Charles became King and declared Camilla his Queen.

Below, look back at Queen Camilla's life before becoming a royal, including her first picture with Charles and her first wedding to her first husband.

Prince Charles and Camilla Parker-BowlesCredit: Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images

Camilla and Charles reportedly met for the first time in 1970 after they were introduced by a mutual friend, Lucia Santa Cruz. In The Duchess: The Untold Story, author Penny Junor wrote that Charles was immediately smitten. "He loved the fact that she smiled with her eyes as well as her mouth, and laughed at the same silly things as he did," Junor wrote, per People. "He also liked that she was so natural and easy and friendly, not in any way overawed by him, not fawning or sycophantic. In short, he was very taken with her, and after that first meeting he began ringing her up."

Camilla Parker BowlesCredit: Barry Batchelor – PA Images/PA Images via Getty Images

After meeting, Charles and Camilla started dating, but they split less than a year later in 1971. Per People, the couple couldn't see a future together because she didn't meet the proper requirements to marry someone who's first in line for the British throne. Among them was the fact that she didn't have an aristocratic bloodline.

Camilla Shand and Captain Andrew Parker BowlesCredit: Frank Barratt/Keystone/Getty Images

Two years after Camilla's split from Charles, she married her first husband, British Army officer Andrew Parker Bowles, on July 4, 1973. They tied the knot at the Guards Chapel at Wellington Barracks in London.

Lady Diana Spencer and Camilla Parker-BowlesCredit: Express Newspapers/Archive Photos

Despite Camilla and Charles's history, she was still a big part of Charles' life and friend circle. So much so that Diana and Camilla were friends at first, with Diana being a frequent guest at Bolehyde Manor, the Wiltshire home Camilla shared with her then-husband Andrew.

Camilla Parker BowlesCredit: Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images

Throughout her marriage to Andrew, Camilla welcomed two children: son Tom Parker Bowles, born in December 1974, and daughter Laura Lopes, born in January 1978.

Camilla finalized her divorce from Andrew on March 3, 1995, after announcing their separation and filing for divorce in January 1995. Charles and Diana, on the other hand, finalized their divorce on August 28, 1996.

Camilla Parker BowlesCredit: Julian Parker/UK Press via Getty Images

In October 1995, Camilla made headlines for wearing a similar outfit to Diana's iconic Christina Stambolian "revenge dress." Diana had worn the look to a summer gala at the Serpentine Gallery in Kensington Gardens, London, on June 29, 1994, following Charles's bombshell interview in which he admitted to infidelity. Camilla had finalized her divorce earlier that year.

Camilla Parker Bowles and Prince CharlesCredit: UK Press

Camilla and Charles made their first official public appearance as a couple on January 28, 1999. They were attending a 50th birthday party for Camilla's sister, Annabel Elliot, at The Ritz Hotel in London. The couple arrived separately but left in the same car.

Prince Charles And Camilla Parker-BowlesCredit: Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images

In August 2026, Royal editor Rebecca English spoke about an unexpected key to Camilla and Charles's relationship. "They also live quite independent lives, and I don't think it affects their relationship at all," she said, noting that the couple is "quite used to" living apart since they dated for years without living together."

Prince of Wales and Camilla Parker BowlesCredit: Pool Photograph/Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images

On February 10, 2005, Camilla and Charles announced their engagement. The photo, taken at their Birkhall home in Scotland, shows them smiling in matching green outfits. "Mrs. Parker Bowles and I are absolutely delighted," Charles said in a statement. "It will be a very special day for us and our families."

Charles's sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, released a joint statement of their own. "We are both very happy for our father and Camilla, and we wish them all the luck in the future," they said.