Over the years, The Duchess of Edinburgh has built a reputation for being one of the most hardworking and compassionate members of the Royal Family.
Often described as the ‘Royal Family’s secret weapon’, Sophie has brushed off the label during an interview with The Sun following a trip to Bosnia to mark the 30th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide.
Remarking about the label, HRH quipped, ‘it’s all very well being a secret weapon, but if no one knows, maybe it’s too secret’, but added ‘I suppose I should take it as a backhanded compliment.’
Her Royal Highness highlighted how she doesn’t see herself ‘in a frontline position’ but admits that there are fewer working members of the Royal Family these days, especially following the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s departure from Royal duties and the Duke of York stepping back from public duties. Additionally, some members of the Royal Family, such as the Duke of Kent and Princess Alexandra, are slowly stepping back from duties due to their age.
This latest overseas visit to Bosnia reflects Sophie’s growing portfolio of global topics. Over the past year, she has traveled to Chad to bring attention to the refugee crisis resulting from the Sudan conflict and became the first Royal to visit Ukraine in 2024 since the war began.
Despite her low public profile, Sophie is increasingly stepping into a more visible role. More than two years after being named the Duchess of Edinburgh – a title previously held by the late Queen – Sophie reflected on the emotional significance of following in such historic footsteps. “It was quite large shoes to fill,” she admitted. “It felt like quite a big moment, but being practical, my role and my husband’s role is to support the King.”
Indeed, since Prince Edward was granted the Duke of Edinburgh title on his 59th birthday in March 2023, the couple has continued to serve the Crown in a impactful capacity and continue to attend state occasions such as Trooping the Colour and a procession to mark 80th anniversary of VE Day. However, Sophie joked she ‘quite liked’ her former title, Countess of Wessex.
The Duchess’ work often centres on some of the world’s most harrowing issues, particularly sexual violence against women in conflict zones. As a key individual collaborating with the UK government on these issues, Sophie has made it her mission to highlight these topics.
She noted that “they are not easy subject matters, but every time I go somewhere it serves to strengthen my resolve to do as much as I can and to continue to tread this path because I have absolute faith in the women of the world to solve so many issues that we have alongside men, who of course, we can’t do it without.’
She added: ‘It is always emotional, of course it is always emotional, but you have to see through the emotion to find the strength and it is always there.’
Sophie concluded by saying that she hopes that her engagements and visits in this area ‘creates continuity’ and that she can make ‘a difference’ as it’s ‘very hard because sometimes these issues are very overwhelming because of the scale’. She noted how that if she ‘can keep banging the drum, it perhaps creates traction somewhere’.
