Queen Camilla, the eldest of three children, grew up sharing a close bond with her siblings. Their tight-knit family faced both joys and sorrows together, including the “utterly” devastating passing of the youngest child.
Queen Camilla and her siblings enjoyed a happy and adventurous childhood in the peaceful Sussex countryside. However, their early years were not without sibling rivalry, which led to an astonishing incident.
Despite these childhood tensions, the siblings remained close over the years. They celebrated marriages, welcomed children, and faced the profound grief of losing loved ones, including the “sudden and tragic” death of their youngest sibling.
An Idyllic Childhood in Sussex
Queen Camilla was born Camilla Rosemary Shand on July 17, 1947, in London. She grew up on a large country estate in Plumpton, Sussex, with her parents and younger siblings.
The Shand family home, The Laines, was a seven-bedroom former rectory on the edge of Plumpton village. The house offered breathtaking views of the South Downs from every window.
It was built in the 18th century and featured high-ceilinged rooms with garden views. The property also housed a paddock, wide lawns, a secret garden, a swimming pool, and a tennis court. An orangery was added in the 70s, enhancing its charm.
“Now that is one stunning house!” an admirer of the home shared. Another person commented, “Really nice country home.” Queen Camilla’s father, Bruce Shand, was a successful wine merchant and the Vice Lord Lieutenant of East Sussex.
Her mother, Rosalind Shand, came from a wealthy family that played a significant role in developing many parts of London. Queen Camilla spent much of her childhood riding ponies with her siblings, creating memories that would last a lifetime.
“I was one of the very lucky ones. I had the idyllic childhood right in the country, sitting on the South Downs with my brother and my sister and our pets and our ponies. I think it was a very simple childhood,” she shared.
The Queen’s education began at Dumbrells School in Sussex before she enrolled in Queen’s Gate School in South Kensington at age 11. After leaving Queen’s Gate, she attended a Swiss finishing school and practiced French in Paris.
The Shand children enjoyed a warm and close relationship with their parents. This was not common for many of their generation, who were often raised by nannies. Annabel Elliot, Queen Camilla’s younger sister, reminisced, “We had this enchanted childhood.”
“Unlike a lot of our generation, we had this incredibly warm, easy relationship with our parents. We didn’t have nannies. All our friends growing up would immediately be drawn to my mother. She was completely straightforward, and one of the warmest, kindest people,” she continued.
This nurturing environment extended to their friends as well. Jane Churchill, whose parents were best friends with the Shands, opened up about life at The Laines. “Life at the Laines was wonderful,” she said.
“The odd thing for that sort of family is they were brought up in a completely unsnobbish way. That’s where Camilla has the edge. It’s no different to her to talk to a duke or a dustman,” Jane continued.
Queen Camilla fondly remembered her childhood rides to school on ponies with her siblings. “Sometimes in the summer, we used to ride to school on our ponies, probably something that’s more Australian than English,” she remarked.
“But we used to ride and then tie them up and ride back again. It just shows how things have changed because in those days there was nothing on the roads,” the Queen continued.
The Shand children split their time between their home in East Sussex and their second house in South Kensington. Queen Camilla’s early years were rich in love, warmth, and adventure.
In 1965, she came out as a debutante in London, a common practice for upper-class girls at the time. While many of her peers were focused on future marriages, the Queen enjoyed the social scene in London for a little while.
Annabel Elliot: The Steadfast Sister
Queen Camilla’s younger sister was born in 1949, followed by their brother, Mark, in 1951. From their early years, the trio shared a close bond. Annabel was slightly more academic than Queen Camilla and grew to be a grounded adult.
The Queen was known for her bounciness and social flair as a child. Her younger sister, on the other hand, provided a stable and steady presence in the family. In 1972, at 23, Annabel married Simon Elliot, a Dorset landowner and the son of an air marshal.
On the other hand, she ran an interior design and antiques business for over 3 decades. In 2008, the Queen’s sister lent her services to the Duke of Wales and worked on his home in Wales, Llwywormwood.
Annabel and Simon’s marriage lasted several years, and the couple welcomed three children: Ben, Alice, and Catherine. Sadly, in March 2023, Annabel’s husband died.
However, she did not have to endure this profound loss alone, as she had her older sister by her side. Simon had been close to the Queen for five decades. He even joined her and King Charles’s honeymoon at Balmoral in 2005.
In 2021, Simon and his royal sister-in-law attended the premiere of the Bond movie “No Time To Die.” He was also one of the many guests at Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral in September 2022.
Through thick and thin, Queen Camilla and Annabel remained best friends. In a testament to their enduring bond, Buckingham Palace confirmed that Annabel would support the Queen Consort on her coronation day in May 2023.
Annabel was joined by one of the Queen’s Companion, Lady Lansdowne, and the honor spoke volumes about the depth of the relationship between the sisters.
Mark Shand: The Spirited Adventurer
Mark Shand was the youngest of the Shand siblings and shared a close, yet complex, relationship with his sisters. As a child, he experienced intense sibling rivalry.
He admitted that when he was eight, he wanted to murder one of his siblings, driven by jealousy. “She was everybody’s favorite. She could do no wrong — and, when she did, I was blamed,” he recalled.
Queen Camilla’s younger brother described how he “loathed [one of his sisters] with an obsessive passion.” He once planned to “do her in” during a moonlit night. Which sister was it? He wouldn’t say.
It was the code of the Shand family. “None of us has ever broken ranks,” his mother revealed, highlighting the unity and loyalty that later defined their clan.
Despite these childhood tensions, Mark and his sisters grew to adore each other. Duncan McLaren, a family friend, remembered, “Mark was always the joker in the pack, the one who was getting up to trouble. His mother adored him. His sisters adored him.”
Queen Camilla also reflected on the siblings’ childhood dynamics, saying, “I never took the lead very much, we just did things together. My brother had a very bad temper and was quite spoiled sometimes, but it was very evenly shared out.”
Mark’s education journey was tumultuous due to his rebellious spirit. He attended Milton Abbey School in Dorset but was expelled for smoking cannabis. In 1990, he married Clio Goldsmith, and together they had a daughter, Ayesha.
Professionally, Mark was a man of extraordinary vitality and passion. He dedicated his life to conservation, becoming a tireless campaigner for endangered species. He served as the chairman of the Elephant Family, an organization focused on saving the endangered Asian elephant.
Tragically, in April 2014, Mark’s life was cut short by a serious head injury sustained during a fall in New York. The 62-year-old was rushed to the hospital on a Tuesday night but succumbed to his injuries on the Wednesday.
Clarence House released a statement expressing their profound grief. “The Duchess, the Prince of Wales, and all her family members are utterly devastated by this sudden and tragic loss,” the statement revealed.
Queen Camilla’s life has been deeply influenced by her close relationships with her siblings. Their tight-knit bond, formed during an idyllic childhood in Sussex, remained strong throughout their lives.