What's the Age Difference Between Royal Couples?
In the fourth season of Netflix's The Crown, the audience closely followed the beginning of Prince Charles' courtship with Diana Spencer into their marriage and its subsequent troubles. In the series, members of the royal family often criticize Diana's need for attention and the Prince and Princess of Wales's relationship woes, often attributing it to Lady Di's youth and the couple's generational gap. While their hefty age difference was speculated to be one of the factors for their eventual divorce, Charles and Diana aren't the only royal couple with an age gap between them. Continue on to find out more about the age differences between your favorite married monarchs.
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip
While the Queen was born on April 21, 1926, her husband was born on June 10, 1921, which made them only five years apart. However, the young then-Princess was only 13 when she began sending letters to Philip who was, at that time, serving in the Royal Navy. The couple did not become engaged until Elizabeth had turned 21, as stipulated by her father.
Prince Charles and Princess Diana
The Princess of Wales was born on July 1, 1961, almost 13 years after Prince Charles' (now King Charles) birthday on November 14, 1948. When they married, Diana was freshly 20 years old, while her husband was 32. In The Crown, Charles often equates Diana's immaturity with her youth. After 15 years of marriage, during which they had Princes William and Harry, the couple suffered a highly public divorce in 1996.
Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall
After his divorce from Diana, Charles remarried to his longtime love Camilla Parker Bowles nèe Shand. The two met in their youth through a mutual friend, however, due to the royal family's disapproval, the current Queen Consort moved on and married her longtime on-again-off-again boyfriend Andrew Parker Bowles in 1973. During their first marriages, the Prince of Wales and Parker Bowles admitted to maintaining a romantic relationship. In 2005, after both experienced their own divorces, Charles married Camilla, who is a year older, having been born on July 14, 1947.
Prince William and Kate Middleton
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have one of the smallest age gaps in the royal family being only 5 months apart. Kate Middleton was born on January 9, 1982, while William was born on June 21 of the same year. The two met as students at the University of St. Andrews. Today, the parents to George, Charlotte, and Louis are 41 years old.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are three years apart, with the Duchess of Sussex being born on August 4, 1981, only a few years before her husband's birthday on September 15, 1984. The two were married in May 2018, and welcomed their first child, Archie, a year later, followed by welcoming their second child, Lilibet, in 2021
