It’s been an interesting year for the British royal family. Some royal commentators say that the monarchy hasn’t seen such a disastrous year since 1992, which had Princess Diana writing a tell-all book about the Royal family as well as Fergie being caught having her toes sucked.
In a 1992 speech, the Queen described the year as her “annus horribilis”, which is a Latin phrase meaning “horrible year”.
“1992 is not a year on which I shall look back with undiluted pleasure,” she said at an event marking the 40th anniversary of her accession to the throne.
However, the year of 2019 is set to give 1992 a run for its money. Let’s take a look back at the year that was 2019 for the British Royal family.
The birth of Prince Archie
Many were thrilled when it was announced that Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan were expecting their first child.
The arrival of newborn Archie was positive until it was announced that the couple would be keeping details of his christening private.
The British tabloids were fuming, especially as the couple had used taxpayer money to fund the renovations of Frogmore Cottage.
Things only got more intense for the couple as reports came out about Meghan stopping a fan from taking a selfie with her at Wimbledon, where she was there in a “private capacity” supporting long-time friend Serena Williams.
The couple also received heavy criticism for using private jets while preaching about environmental concerns.
The engagement of Princess Beatrice
Princess Beatrice announced her engagement to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi in September, much to the joy of her parents Prince Andrew and Fergie.
The pair have known each other since 2011 but started dating seriously in 2018.
Royal fans are curious as to where the wedding will be held, as her fiancé is Italian. However, Beatrice might decide to have the wedding in England as her family are part of the monarchy.
Prince Philip’s car crash
Prince Philip got into a car accident in early January and flipped his Land Rover while driving without a seatbelt.
The accident occurred outside the Queen’s Sandringham estate, with the 97-year-old Duke saying he was “dazzled by bright sunlight”.
He flipped into a Kia car containing two women and a nine-month old baby.
The Duke suffered criticism for being slow to apologise to the others involved.
Kia passenger Emma Fairweather said that she was yet to hear from the Duke after the accident.
“I’m lucky to be alive and he hasn’t even said sorry,” she said.
“It has been such a traumatic and painful time and I would have expected more of the Royal Family … It could have been so much worse.”
Prince Philip later wrote a note saying he was “very sorry” about what happened.
“I was somewhat shaken after the accident, but I was greatly relieved that none of you were seriously injured,” he said.
The tell-all documentary that solidified rumours of a rift between Prince William and Prince Harry
The African tour with Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan was a last-ditch attempt to turn the public favour towards them, but a documentary that saw the duo opening up about pressures of living in the spotlight did just the opposite.
Prince Harry explained that mental health required “constant management” and confirmed reports of a rift between himself and his brother Prince William, saying that “we’re certainly on different paths”.
“We don’t see each other as much as we used to because we’re so busy … But I love him dearly and the majority of the stuff is created out of nothing,” he said.
“But as brothers, you have good days, you have bad days.”
Meghan was also criticised for saying that she was struggling to adapt to the “British sensibility of a stiff upper lip”.
“I think I really tried to adopt this British sensibility of a stiff upper lip. I tried, I really tried, but I think what that does internally is probably really damaging,” explained Meghan.
“The biggest thing I know is that I never thought this would be easy, but I thought it’d be fair, and that’s the part that’s really hard to reconcile. But I don’t know … I’m taking each day as it comes.”
Prince Charles shows more signs of taking over for Queen Elizabeth II
Prince Charles, now aged 71, is showing no signs of slowing down by consistently carrying out around 500 royal engagements per year.
There are rumours that he is going to take over the monarchy and become King once the Queen turns 95, which she will do so in 18 months.
This is the same age that Prince Philip withdrew from his public duties.
The scandal that surrounds Prince Andrew and his controversial friendship with Jeffrey Epstein thrust Charles into the spotlight and gave him a chance to prove that he can be in charge.
A royal source told The Sun: “The scandal surrounding Andrew and Epstein gave Charles an opportunity to step in to show that he can run The Firm. No one is bigger than the institution of the Royal Family. Not even Andrew, the Queen’s favourite son.
“Charles recognised that and acted decisively — like the king he may well soon be. This was the moment when Charles stepped up as Prince Regent, the Shadow King.”
The scandal surrounding Prince Andrew and his friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein
Prince Andrew faced intense media speculation over his friendship with deceased paedophile billionaire Jeffrey Epstein.
It was not speculation he handled well, as many watched on in horror during his interview on Newsnight where he gave bizarre responses to questions about his friendship.
The interview was described as “nuclear level bad”, with Prince Andrew saying the following:
“Do I regret the fact that he [Epstein] has quite obviously conducted himself in a manner unbecoming? Yes.”
Interviewer Emily Maitlis said “Unbecoming? He was a sex offender.”
Virginia Roberts is one of 16 women who says she was abused by Epstein and claimed that she was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew three times between 2001 and 2002.
These are claims that Prince Andrew has aggressively denied, as he claims that he could not have had sex with 17-year-old Roberts on March 10th 2001 as he had been at a Pizza Express in Woking that evening.
In the interview, Prince Andrew was told how Roberts had been “very specific” about him and the night that they met, with claims that Prince Andrew was “profusely sweating”.
Prince Andrew said that he is unable to sweat.
“I didn’t sweat at the time because I had suffered what I would describe as an overdose of adrenaline in the Falklands War when I was shot at and I simply…it was almost impossible for me to sweat,” he explained.
Since that interview, he has since stepped down from royal duties after furious public backlash from the interview, ranging to lack of empathy for the victims of Epstein as well as claims that the Duke of York was supportive of the friendship with Epstein until it became publicly unacceptable to do so.
However, he has received unwavering support from his ex, Fergie.
As the year draws to a close, it’s safe to say that the royal family are eager for a fresh start in 2020.
