• INTRO
  • EARLY YEARS
  • LOVE AND PHILIP
  • WORKING MOTHER
  • WINDSOR WIVES
  • THE NEXT GENERATION
  • ELIZABETH AS QUEEN
  • SNAPSHOTS FROM A ROYAL LIFE
  • EIGHT FACTS FOR EIGHT DECADES
  • QUIZ
  • LATEST STORIES
  • WINDSOR WIVES
    Sophie

    It is Prince Edward’s wife, Sophie Wessex, who enjoys the warmest relationship with the monarch. "Such a sensible girl," the head of the Windsor clan said after meeting her. As a palace official explains: "She likes Sophie because she is so unaffected and because she's made Edward so happy."

    After she suffered the shock of an ectopic pregnancy in December 2001, the Countess of Wessex sank into a deep depression, from which her mother-in-law's dedicated support was instrumental in helping her recover. And no one was happier when, in 2003, Sophie and Edward welcomed their daughter Louise.

    PROMOTION