King Charles is said to be less than pleased with his daughter-in-law, Kate Middleton, as they both attended the Chelsea Flower Show on the same day this week. Sources suggest the newly crowned monarch felt upstaged by the Duchess of Cambridge at an event he is passionate about.
"Gardens are very much his thing, and given that it was always his mother's big pre-Trooping the Color day out, I think he has a right to be annoyed," a close confidant of the king shared with media.
However, a friend of Kate's disagreed with the notion that she had overstepped her bounds. This friend defended the Duchess, referencing a Daily Mail piece that highlighted disappointment over Charles and Camilla's attendance at the event receiving less media attention.
The Duchess's ally argued, "It's pathetic. It's the media whipping up another feud. Kate has been going to the Chelsea Flower show with her family since before she was a royal, and she often used to go as well as the Queen [Elizabeth] in recent years. It wasn't a secret that she was going."
The friend further justified the Duchess's attendance, stating that as senior royal figures, neither Kate nor Charles needed permission to attend the flower show. The friend dismissed the controversy as "a massive storm in a teacup," assuring that Charles had no issue with Kate's presence at the event.
Moreover, it's not just a supposed rift with Charles making the headlines. There's speculation about strained relations between Kate and Queen Camilla. This started when Kate did not curtsy to the Queen during her exit from Westminster Abbey on coronation day, an omission that didn't go unnoticed.
"Apparently, Kate was seething over commands Camilla made about coronation guests and decided to make her angry feelings very obvious," an insider revealed.
The Duchess of Cambridge reportedly received only four invitations to the coronation compared to Camilla's twenty, fuelling her frustration. Further, Camilla's decision to invite Rose Hanbury, who was rumored to have had an affair with Prince William, was seen as a direct provocation.
"While William's affair was vehemently denied, the damage was done and his marriage to Kate suffered. By inviting Rose, Camilla was going for the jugular!" the insider remarked.
These revelations, as reported by The Daily Beast, add to the unfolding narrative of tension within the royal household.
