Over the years, Princess Anne has developed a reputation as one of the most hard-working and dutiful members of the Royal Family. In 2021 alone, the Princess Royal undertook no less than 387 official engagements – two more than her older brother, King Charles III.
Discover our latest podcast
Making history – again
The Independent reports that Princess Anne made history on Monday evening (September 12) when she stood guard over the Queen’s coffin for the Vigil of the Princes.
Until now, this had been a tradition only carried out by male members of the Royal Family.
BBC News reflected on the image and symbolism that Princess Anne represented, standing in her honorary Royal Navy ceremonial uniform. They hailed the Princess Royal as a princess ‘raised in a modern era’ and ‘an equal to her brothers.’
A Knighthood
Express.co.uknotes that Princess Anne already made history when she became a Knight of the Garter instead of a Lady of the Garter.
King Edward III created The Order of the Garter in 1348, inspired by the legendary Knight of the Round Table.
It is up to the Sovereign to appoint either men or women to the Order in appreciation of outstanding public service, national contribution or personal service to the Monarch.
Princess Anne requested to become a Knight as Ladies of the Garter didn’t have the same status. The Princess Royal ‘wished to be held in the same rank as her brothers’, reports Express.
All the right ingredients to be Queen
As per royal.uk, Princess Anne’s first public engagement was in 1969, aged 18. Since then, she has completed close to 500 overseas visits and is a patron of 300 charities.
In 2021, Princess Anne was the busiest Royal, having carried out the most official duties.
In 1987, Queen Elizabeth II awarded Princess Anne the title of Princess Royal. According to BBC News, this symbolised how much the Royal Family valued her dedication and hard work.
"I was fortunate to share the last 24 hours of my dearest Mother’s life. It has been an honour and a privilege to accompany her on her final journeys.
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) September 13, 2022
"Witnessing the love and respect shown by so many on these journeys has been both humbling and uplifting."
- The Princess Royal
According to a YouGov poll, Princess Anne is the fifth most popular Royal and the third most popular living Royal behind the Princess of Wales and the Prince of Wales. That’s two spots in front of her brother, King Charles III.
Express reports that Kinsey Schofield, founder of To Di For Daily podcast, explained that Princess Anne and King Charles would make great monarchs.
But she also stated to The Daily Star:
The Princess Royal has a much better reputation than Prince Charles and a no-nonsense approach about the world. I think people appreciate her blunt honesty.
In June of this year, Express.co.uk ran a poll asking its readers whether Princess Anne should be considered for the role of Queen.
Almost 60% of voters agreed. Many voters stated qualities such as honesty, dedication, and compassion as the reasoning behind why they believed Princess Anne would make a great Queen.
Read more:
⋙ Princess Anne will make history after taking military title from Prince Harry
⋙ Royal Family: This rule stops Princess Anne from being Counsellor of State
