King Charles' royal clear-out after Queen’s death left 'sour taste' for staff

01 July 2023 , 09:27
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King Charles III - as he ascended to the throne, a reported hundred staff were warned about redundancy (Image: PA)
King Charles III - as he ascended to the throne, a reported hundred staff were warned about redundancy (Image: PA)

In the aftermath of the death of Queen Elizabeth a royal clear-out left a “sour taste” for many staff, a new book claims.

King Charles spent decades waiting and readying himself to ascend to the throne.

In an extract from an updated version of Valentine Low’s Courtiers reported by The Times, it was revealed how, as the king set out on his new job, a huge number of people who had worked for him, had lost their own.

It described how, with the late Queen’s death, the royal family went from having three power centres - the Queen, Charles, and William - to just two.

With this, came redundancies which left a “sour taste” in the mouth for a number of royal staff.

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King Charles' royal clear-out after Queen’s death left 'sour taste' for staffWhilst senior royals mourned, staff received letters warning of redundancy (Getty Images)

The book is reported as saying: “Everyone knew there would be redundancies, but the harsh way the news was delivered left a sour taste in the mouth for many.

“Four days into the period of official mourning, around 100 staff at Clarence House received letters warning them of possible redundancy.”

This included the late Queen’s personal aides who too were told they may lose their jobs.

The timing of the news, during the official mourning period, was also said to have left some people “absolutely livid” and others “visibly shaken”.

King Charles' royal clear-out after Queen’s death left 'sour taste' for staffThe late Queen at London Fashion Week in 2018 with Angela Kelly (right) (Getty Images)

Anger was said to have not been directed at the King, but possibly towards treasurers who saw only the financial, and not the human, costs.

This led to Angela Kelly, the former right-hand woman to the Queen, losing her grace-and-favour home and taking to social media to reveal she was moving.

She posted: "Getting ready to say goodbye. I am moving at last to my new home which I will be able to call My Home at last."

Angela Kelly, who was the former monarch's personal dresser and designed many of her most memorable and colourful outfits, took to Instagram in April to say she would be leaving her property on the Windsor estate following the death of her former boss.

It came as she was left facing an uncertain future with King Charles, who was said to be not a fan of hers.

Although it was later reported the new monarch secretly gifted her a new home in Yorkshire, so she could be near her family.

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Charles is believed to have had concerns Ms Kelly's books, which were mainly based on the monarch's wardrobe but also included behind-the-scenes pictures.

A source previously told the Daily Mail: "His concerns were solely about protecting both the dignity of the Queen and the Crown.

"Nothing has changed with his mother's death. If anything, he is more determined to defend her reputation and her legacy."

Kieren Williams

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