King Charles named the new Princess of Wales the Colonel of the Irish Guards. This is in addition, of course, to her official royal title of Princess of Wales, the first since Princess Diana’s death in 1997. Queen Elizabeth II previously named Prince William Colonel of the Irish Guards in 2011, merely months before William and Kate’s royal wedding. PAUL VICENTE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images Princess Catherine has long honored the Irish Guards since marrying into the royal family, sporting green ensembles for her annual visits for St. Patrick’s Day. Samir Hussein/WireImage The Irish have complicated and conflicted feelings about the royals, with many seeking freedom from the British monarchy and commonwealth overall—with one brave woman telling Princess Kate on a recent visit to Northern Ireland, “Nice to meet you but it would be better if it was when you were in your own country.” Kate reportedly laughed off the remark. Arthur Edwards - WPA Pool/Getty Images Prince William is now Colonel of the Welsh Guards, as King Charles previously announced in September shortly after the Queen’s passing. Queen Consort Camilla inherited a title that was stripped from disgraced Prince Andrew: Colonel of the Grenadier Guards. Karwai Tang/WireImage Andrew was stripped of the title amid a lawsuit from Virginia Giuffre, who alleged that Andrew sexually abused her more than once when she was a minor. Andrew denied the allegations, but paid Giuffre a settlement, possibly with help from the Queen. Andrew had previously defended his longtime friendship with convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. King Charles reportedly won’t allow Prince Andrew to return to his post as a senior royal due to his association with Epstein (or perhaps simply due to the optics of such). Next, see all the royal holiday cards from 2022.
