A new photograph of The Duchess of Cornwall has been released, to coincide with the upcoming release of the her guest-edited Issue of Country Life.
The photograph was taken by her daughter-in-law, The Duchess of Cambridge and was commissioned by Camilla herself. The Duchess invited Catherine to take a series of portraits in the gardens of Raymill, Camilla’s Wiltshire retreat.
The cover image sees a relaxed and smiling Duchess of Cornwall, wearing a blue and white floral dress and cardigan, sitting on a bench with a trug filled with pelargoniums, ready to be planted.
Another photograph, taken by Kate, appears on the leader page, and shows an informal shot of The Duchess of Cornwall walking through forget-me-nots at Raymill.
Raymill has long been the Duchess’ country home. She regularly spends weekends at the Grade II listed house with her children and grandchildren, and it is just a short drive from Highgrove, Charles’ Gloucestershire retreat. The property was purchased after her divorce to her first husband, Andrew Parker Bowles.
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Raymill House, Camilla’s country bolthole
Catherine often captures informal shots of her family, including numerous official birthday photo releases and first photos of her children to share with the public.
Mark Hedges, Editor in Chief, Country Life magazine, said: “We are thrilled to have our Guest Editor captured so magnificently by royal photographer The Duchess of Cambridge.
“We understand this is the first time a formal portrait of The Duchess of Cornwall has been taken by The Duchess of Cambridge for a magazine and we are honoured to have been chosen to be the first to publish this beautiful photograph.
“The photographs are superb and we would be delighted to offer The Duchess of Cambridge another commission!”
Earlier this year, it was revealed Camilla’s edition of Country Life will reflect her passion for horses and dogs, as well as revealing her champions of the countryside, her most cherished view, and favourite recipe.
The upcoming issue comes after Camilla was interviewed by British Vogue to mark her 75th birthday, where she spoke about royal work, as well as the more personal side of her life.
The Duchess of Cornwall is the third royal Guest Editor, following The Prince of Wales, who has twice guest-edited Country Life to mark his 65th birthday in November 2013 and his 70th in 2018, the biggest selling issue of all time.
To mark his 67th birthday, Charles wrote an article in support of British farmers.
In 2020, The Princess Royal guest-edited the July 29 issue to commemorate her 70th birthday, talking about her grandchildren and lockdown, as well as her horses and dogs.