Princess Anne, the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II, turns 72 this Monday, August 15. A love life that made a big noise, a remarkable sports career… He is still one of the most loved members of the English royal family.
On August 15, 1950, 21 cannon shots were fired in Hyde Park, one of the nine royal parks in London, England. A princess is born, Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise Mountbatten-Windsor, better known as Princess Anne. The second of four children and only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, she celebrates her 72nd birthday on Monday August 15. The official page of the royal family also wished him a happy birthday on social media.
Known for her frankness, which she inherited from her father, we also know The Princess Princess, a title bestowed by her mother in 1987, a rather frugal attitude that contributes to her popularity. For example, he would wear the same yellow ensemble to his daughter Zara’s christening in 1981 and then to a visit with the Queen to Lake Windermere 32 years later. A poll released by the Yougov Institute in August 2019 ranked her eighth among the fifteen favorite members of the British royal family.
Avant-garde princess
On November 14, 1973, the fourteenth in line to the British throne married Captain Mark Phillips. Their wedding is the first for a royal family to ever be televised. Never one to be noble, Princess Anne’s husband had rejected the Queen’s offer of a wedding gift. Two children are born from the union of the couple: the king’s choice, Peter in 1977 and Zara in 1981. They will either not be ennobled, but will be in line to the British throne.
A few years later, the love story breaks up. The newspaper in 1989 Sun publishes the love correspondence between Princess Anne and one Timothy Lawrence. If the Buckingham Palace rejects any prospect of divorce, then the latter is announced in 1992. on April 23. It seems that what is the motive? A DNA test confirms that Mark Phillips is the father of a baby girl born to an adulterous relationship in 1985. A few months later, on December 12, 1992, Her Royal Highness married her sweetheart in accordance with the Scottish Presbyterian rite, which allowed divorced persons to remarry.
In the video, Elizabeth II and Princess Anna congratulate the “caregivers” via video conference.
royal jokes
However reserved, the princess has not avoided the tabloids. In 1970, her relationship with her older brother, Prince Charles, caused the ink to flow. Her boyfriend at the time was none other than Andrew Parker Bowles. A family name we know well because Parker Bowles later became the first husband of what was then known as Camilla Shand, the future mistress and second wife of Prince Charles.
Much later, in 2001, it was for speeding that his majesty made headlines. Carelessness, which then condemns him to a fine of £400. Princess Anna is also known for the aggressiveness of her dogs. Like in 2003, when one of the Queen’s corgis was euthanized after being bitten by Florence, the princess’ bull terrier.
But the most obvious fact about him remains the kidnapping attempt, of which he became a victim in 1974. on March 20. As she was leaving a charity gala just minutes from Buckingham Palace, the car she was in with her husband Mark Phillips. Lady’s companion and her bodyguard, James Beaton, are attacked. Attacker Ian Ball shoots several times at the passengers of the car. James Beaton is hit by three bullets. The driver of the princess, the police officer and the journalist at the scene were also injured. The kidnapper’s aim was to kidnap his highness for a ransom of two million pounds. Ian Ball, who was finally arrested, will be sentenced to life imprisonment. Declared mentally deficient, he has since been committed to a psychiatric hospital. As for the wounded, everyone will survive.
Passion and representations
An avid equestrian, Princess Anne has represented her country in equestrian competitions more than once. 1971 European team competition champion, 1976. participated in the Olympic Games in Montreal in July. He is also a member of the International Olympic Committee and Chairman of the British Olympic Committee.
True to her royal duties, Anne remains one of the royals who provides the most formal representations. In 2016, he had no fewer than 509. Patron of more than three hundred charities, he has chaired Save the Children since 1970, which helps children suffering from hunger and disease around the world. Also passionate about lighthouses, he is patron of the Northern Lighthouse Council, the organization responsible for maritime navigation around the coasts of Scotland and the Isle of Man. She shares the same responsibilities as a grandmother, as she currently has four granddaughters: Savannah Phillips (born December 29, 2010), Isla Phillips (born March 29, 2012), Mia Tindall (born January 17 ). , 2014) and Lena Tyndall (born June 18, 2018). In short, a busy schedule, even at 71.
* This article, originally published on August 15, 2021, has been updated.
Source: Le Figaro
