Many royal fans are just now discovering why Queen Elizabeth II chose not to attend the wedding of King Charles and Queen Camilla.
Today, Wednesday, April 9, marks the 20th wedding anniversary of King Charles and Queen Camilla. The royal couple is currently in Italy on a state visit, and to celebrate the milestone, a video was shared this morning on the Royal Family’s official X (formerly Twitter) account. The video, commemorating two decades of marriage, was captioned, “20 Happy Years!” followed by a white heart emoji. Similar tributes have been posted across social media, with fans offering heartfelt congratulations.
One fan wrote, “Wishing King Charles and Queen Camilla a HAPPY 20th WEDDING ANNIVERSARY!” However, a TikTok user pointed out, “Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip did not attend King Charles’ wedding to Camilla.”
20 Happy Years! 🤍 pic.twitter.com/NuIXKbUDZW
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) April 9, 2025
Indeed, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip were notably absent from the civil ceremony, which took place at Windsor Guildhall. The wedding was a small gathering of just 28 guests, including Prince William, Prince Harry, and Camilla’s children, Tom and Laura Parker-Bowles.
At the time, a palace representative explained the Queen’s absence by stating that the couple wanted a private, understated event and that her presence would have attracted significant attention, making it difficult to keep things low-key.
However, royal biographer Robert Hardman later suggested that the Queen’s decision may have also reflected her disapproval of the nature of the wedding arrangements, though not the union itself.
Despite not attending the civil ceremony, Queen Elizabeth did participate in a subsequent religious service of prayer and blessing held at St George’s Chapel.
She and Prince Philip also hosted a reception at Windsor Castle afterward, where the Queen wore white in honor of the occasion.
Coinciding with their anniversary, this trip marks Charles and Camilla’s first official state visit to Italy since ascending the throne. On April 8, they arrived in Rome, where their celebrations continue.
To mark both the anniversary and the royal visit, the Royal Family’s X account posted a message along with two new portraits of the couple. The caption read: “As we begin our first visit to Italy as King and Queen, we are so looking forward to celebrating our twentieth wedding anniversary in such a special place – and with such wonderful people. A presto, Roma e Ravenna!”
