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She is hailed as the nation’s no-nonsense royal whose professionalism never wavers in the face of adversity.
Now, as the Royal Family faces its greatest crisis to date following the arrest of former prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, it is Princess Anne who is set to play a ‘pivotal’ role in keeping the Firm afloat, according to a royal expert.
As the Royal Family navigate the scandal, they will be looking to their down-to-earth and hardworking ‘trump card’ – the Princess Royal , 75, who is ‘synonymous with dedication to duty’, said Richard Fitzwilliams.
Mr Fitzwilliams told the Daily Mail: ‘She relishes a high workload and usually undertakes the most royal engagements of any royal. However, she prefers to avoid the media circus that follows the most high profile royals.
‘She is absolutely pivotal in keeping public support for the monarchy.’
The royal expert added that a wise and insightful Anne may likely be able to assist her brother, King Charles, with his handling of the crisis.
He explained: ‘What Anne can offer King Charles, who reportedly has been under pressure from William over his handling of this crisis, is down to earth advice.’
Mr Fitzwilliams noted that the royal siblings may ‘not always agree’, but says that in such unprecedented circumstances ‘it is pivotal that Charles listens to views which differ or are opposed to his own’.
As the Royal Family faces its greatest crisis to date following the arrest of former prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, it is Princess Anne (pictured at St James’s Palace on February 24) who is set to play a ‘pivotal’ role in keeping the Firm afloat, according to a royal expert
As the Royal Family navigate the scandal, they will be looking towards their down-to-earth and hardworking ‘trump card’ – the Princess Royal , 75, given she has for decades been ‘synonymous with dedication to duty’, said Richard Fitzwilliams
Over the course of the last few weeks, the stoic Princess Royal has routinely maintained a brave face – while also delighting royal fans with her quick wit and humble nature during her public engagements.
And as calls for Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor to do ‘the decent thing’ and remove himself from the royal line of succession mount, one may begin to question where Anne could fall amid a possible royal restructure.
As Mr Fitzwilliams noted, the Princess Royal is currently 18th to the throne, given that the altered rules of succession in 2013 ‘unfortunately were not applied retroactively’.
‘If they had been she would have been 5th behind William and his family and the public would undoubtedly welcome that,’ he explained.
Yet the public’s insatiable love for Anne has certainly shown little sign of wavering, with royal fans often taking to social media to praise the ‘humble’ and ‘class act’ princess.
Yet when the Princess Royal arrived at St James’s Palace on February 24 with King Charles, Queen Camilla and the Duke of Duchess of Gloucester, all eyes were firmly fixed on Anne as she helped hand out awards.
According to the Daily Mail’s royal editor Rebecca English, who was present at the royal engagement, ‘there were lots of people fangirling’ over Anne, with many even ‘craning their necks trying to catch a glimpse of her’.
Anne, who attended the event as Chancellor of The University of Edinburgh, was seen initially dressed in her chancellor’s robes, before conducting a meet and greet with fellow guests at the prestigious event.
As Rebecca English took to Instagram to share footage of the princess passionately speaking with attendees of the event, one royal fan praised Anne for being a ‘star’, while others noted that the Princess royal was a ‘treasure’ and their ‘favourite royal’.
Meanwhile, other royal fanatics online praised Anne for being ‘the greatest support the Royal Family needs right now’ and acknowledged her incredible stoicism despite the Firm’s ensuing crisis.
‘Business as usual,’ praised one fan. ‘A real trooper, no fuss just gets on with the job’.
Over the course of the last few weeks, the stoic Princess Royal has routinely maintained a brave face – while also delighting royal fans with her quick wit and humble nature during her public engagements
Indicative of Anne’s hard-working nature, just hours after Andrew was arrested on his 66th birthday following an allegation of misconduct in public office, the princess paid a visit to HMP Leeds as part of her role as Patron of the Butler trust.
While her first tow of engagements of the day in West Yorkshire were cancelled as her helicopter was unable to fly, Anne quickly changed her plans and travelled by train in her typical stoic style.
According to Mr Fitzwiliams, Anne’s ‘no-nonsense approach’ is her essential attribute that has truly captivated royal fans.
He explained: ‘She relishes a high workload and usually undertakes the most royal engagements of any royal. However, she prefers to avoid the media circus that follows the most high profile royals.
‘She reportedly does her own make up and sometimes drives herself to engagements. She is also famed for her unstuffy approach and often recycles outfits.’
Mr Fitzwilliams also noted that while Anne holds the Princess Royal title, the down-to-earth royal is ‘almost invariably referred to as Princess Anne’ and also chose not to bestow royal titles on her children, Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips.
Earlier this month, Anne’s unparalleled public popularity was made abundantly clear when an entire stadium of rugby fans erupted into cheers for the down-to-earth princess during Scotland’s clash against Italy on February 7.
As patron of the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU) for almost three decades, Anne is no doubt incredibly popular with the Scots and received a roaring ovation at Rome’s Stadio Olimpico during their first game of the annual tournament.
The Princess Royal was seen looking puzzled before smiling and muttering a few words to the person next to her once she realised that the cheers were for her.
Taking to Instagram to share their thoughts on the viral video, royal fans delighted in Anne’s ‘dignity and grace’, with one adding: ‘She didn’t realise the cheers were for her till someone told her. Love that smile.’
Others praised Anne for being the ‘hardest working Royal’ and a ‘class act’ who resembles many of the characteristics of her mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II.
‘She looks so much like the Queen at times,’ added one onlooker. ‘Hardest working Royal.’
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