Queen Camilla ‘pulled rank’ over the Princess of Wales yesterday during an awkward moment from Melania and Donald Trump‘s state visit, according to a body language expert.
When King Charles‘s wife welcomed the First Lady to Windsor Castle for her official state visit, she found herself in a rather uncomfortable social situation after Melania appeared to break off conversation with her to focus on Kate, 43.
In Windsor Estate’s private Walled Garden, Camilla, 78, and Melania, 55, engaged in light conversation as Charles and the US President stood close by. However, moments later, Kate approached the duo, awkwardly distracting the First Lady from the Queen.
When Melania spotted the royal mother-of-three, she quickly turned in Kate’s direction to greet her, apparently calling time on her chat with Camilla.
An animated discussion between Melania and Kate followed, with Camilla left looking blankly on as if ‘left out’ from the chat.
Now, footage has revealed just how Camilla dealt with the uncomfortable situation, with body language expert Judi James claiming the Queen is seen ‘pulling rank’ and ‘appearing to shoo Kate away’.
In the clip, the King’s wife wafts her hand to usher Kate to move towards Prince William, 43, before resuming her own conversation with Melania.
Ever the polite royal, Kate appeared to dutifully follow Camilla’s lead, moving away from the discussion and back to her husband’s side.
Queen Camilla ‘pulled rank’ over the Princess of Wales during their conversation with US First Lady Melania Trump, body language expert Judi James has claimed
Talking to The Daily Mail, James explained: ‘On the surface this was just Camilla warning Kate that her carriage was arriving, but the body language undertones look much less congenial.
‘Camilla had been chatting to Melania when Kate shot into view, clearly synchronised with William who had simultaneously moved to talk to his father and Trump.
‘Kate’s energy and her enthusiastic gesticulation seemed to tune with Melania, who turned her head away from Camilla to talk, using some subtly mirrored responses as she did so.
‘As the Princess and the First Lady appeared to be in tune here, Camilla turned her head as though feeling slightly left out.
‘When she turned back to warn Kate, she seemed to break up a good conversation, and the problem came with her quick flapping of her hand that appeared to shoo Kate away.
‘A small smile, nudge and point might have been more acceptable as a gesture to the woman who will be queen, but the lack of a smile and the hard flapping looked rather authoritative here.’
Richard Fitzwilliams, meanwhile, suggested that the perhaps ‘perfectly innocent’ gesture appeared ‘dismissive’.
He told The Daily Mail: ‘It certainly looks as though Catherine is moving away because of The Queen’s gesture.
The Queen appeared to be left out as Melania seemingly checked out of their conversation to chat with Kate
Camilla appeared to usher the future queen away from her conversation with America’s First Lady
Third wheeling? The Princess of Wales (left) is seen animatedly chatting to First Lady Melania Trump (right) as Queen Camilla (centre) looks on at Windsor Castle yesterday
‘We always see royals being impeccably polite to each other in public so there there may well be a perfectly innocent interpretation of a gesture that, at a distance, appears dismissive. It is unlikely ever to be explained but, as all such incidents are these days, it is being watched by vast numbers online.
‘Nothing, however, can alter the fact that the royal family showed that it is the ultimate soft power weapon of the British government with an unrivalled day of ceremonial brilliance.’
Mr Fitzwilliams also noted that the carriage pulling up to the royals was likely a horse-drawn one, which could have some bearing on the queen’s gesture, saying: ‘Sometimes when images are seen at a distance it is easy to misinterpret them especially when horses are involved. It seems likely that Queen Camilla was moving Catherine out of the way of a horse-drawn carriage.’
A Trump spokesperson this week said the couple was ‘thrilled’ that Kate would be ‘front and centre’ during the UK trip, saying: ‘The inclusion of Princess Kate in so many events during the state visit is an honour.’
Earlier in the day, Prince William and Kate had previously escorted the President and First Lady to Victoria House where the King and Queen were waiting for their guests from across the Pond.
Camilla, who was forced to sit the Duchess of Kent’s funeral out due to ill health, wore a vibrant sapphire blue dress with a matching coat by Fiona Clare and hat by Philip Treacy, as well as a sapphire and diamond brooch.
Meanwhile, Kate opted for a Emilia Wickstead dress, paired with a Jane Taylor dress and a studded diamond and emerald feather brooch, that had once belonged to Princess Diana.
And the First Lady looked effortlessly chic in a Christian Dior Haute Couture dark grey skirt suit that flared out at the waist and fell just below her knees.
She wore her blonde tresses in a slick bun that was largely hidden by a wide-brimmed wool hat in a brighter purple hue.
Melania was expertly poised in her heels as she walked alongside Donald, Prince William and Kate in the Walled Garden on the Windsor estate.
Later in the evening, the group reconvened to attend a glittering state banquet alongside other senior royals, including Princess Anne.
Kate looked dazzling, sporting a Phillipa Lepley silk crepe gown underneath a hand-embroidered gold Chantilly lace evening coat.
She also donned the late Queen Elizabeth II’s and the King’s Royal Family Order and a blue sash, representing that she is a Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order.
On Thursday afternoon, Kate and Melania met again as they joined a group of Scouts Squirrels, the youngest part of the UK Scouting organisation, which is designed for four to five year olds who work towards their ‘Go Wild’ badge, in Frogmore Gardens.
On their arrival, the Princess, who has been joint president of the Scouts with the Duke of Kent since 2020, and the First Lady were met by Dwayne Fields, the Chief Scout.
Dwayne escorted his guests to meet two groups of Squirrels who were taking part in a variety of activities as they learned about nature.
Kate and Melania enjoyed the opportunity to join the children as they built a bug hotel and tried leaf printing using fallen leaves collected from the gardens.
The Princess and the First Lady then led a badge presentation for the young Squirrels, before hosting a picnic for The Squirrels in the gardens.
Kate had thoughtfully organised a special packed lunch for the children, with each of the children receiving sandwiches containing honey made by The Princess of Wales herself from the Wales family’s hives at Anmer Hall.
In addition, the First Lady gifted a jar of White House honey to each of the children as a memento of their very special day.
The wellbeing of young children is something which is important to both The Princess and The First Lady, a spokesman explained.
The Princess has long been passionate about the power of enabling children and young people to experience the natural world.
The Scouts meet is part of a comprehensive schedule of events detailed by Buckingham Palace for the state visit, which started on Tuesday and runs until the end of today.
