It’s been one year since King Charles and Queen Camilla were officially crowned at Westminster Abbey. The coronation was held about six months after Queen Elizabeth’s passing, and now, one year on, it’s safe to say no one could have guessed what was to happen.

Aside from the ongoing feud between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, which up until this day is at a low point, the most upsetting news about King Charles and Kate Middleton’s cancer diagnosis has put the royal family at a crucial waypoint.

While the two senior members have been away from royal duties, Prince William and Queen Camilla have stepped up their efforts to uphold royal engagements and meetings with the public. Camilla and Kate have spent many days together while out on royal duty, and while they appear to be quite different, that might not necessarily be the case. Some royal experts have now disclosed more similarities between the queen and the future queen.

Monday, May 6th, marked the first anniversary of King Charles’ coronation. The grand coronation at Westminster Abbey—and gatherings all around the UK—was a day of joy for royal fans as King Charles and Queen Camilla officially became king and queen. However, plenty of people had other views.

King Charles & Queen Camilla – one year since coronation

While many agree that a coronation was a historical, no-expenses-spared event to be celebrated, others argue that the monarchy itself no longer warrants a place in modern society.

British media outlets speculated that the coronation cost around $120 million altogether, though neither Downing Street nor Buckingham Palace confirmed the exact cost.

According to a YouGov survey published just weeks before the big day, more than 50% agreed that the royals should fund the coronation themselves. That number was hardly helped by an investigation by The Guardian newspaper, which placed King Charles’s fortune at a staggering £1.8 billion (around $2.2 billion).

The total sum for the coronation was said to be double that of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in 1953. One main increase was the costs attributed to heightened security.

As a result, security at the coronation was extremely tight. The streets along the route from Buckingham Palace were packed with people, and over the weekend, many other events were held to celebrate Charles’s ascension to the throne.

The Metropolitan Police and British military carefully planned the coronation weekend to ensure the safety of all involved. A reported record is that 11,500 police worked on the event as part of British history’s most extensive security operation.

Kate Middleton didn’t want Meghan Markle in attendance

While King Charles and Queen Camilla took place in the limelight, the ongoing feud with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle put a dark shadow on the coronation. Meghan decided not to attend the significant celebration at Westminster Abbey, while Prince Harry kept his distance from his brother and sister-in-law, Kate MIddleton.

Royal family members were said to have been relieved that Harry decided to fly back to the US straight after the coronation ceremony. Meanwhile, if Meghan Markle had attended, royal expert and former BBC journalist Tom Bower said that Kate Middleton would’ve ensured they were sitting far away from any royal family member.

“We must all be grateful that Kate, in the end, I think, prevented Meghan from coming and said she ‘wouldn’t have her there under any circumstances,’” Tom Bower said on GB News some weeks before the coronation last year.

Moreover, Bower alleged that the Princess of Wales warned Meghan: “If she [Meghan] did come, she’d have to sit at the back.”

Queen Camilla and Kate Middleton were just two family members who received hefty criticism from Harry and Meghan. Harry called Camilla “wicked stepmother” as he recalled his feelings about her becoming a larger part of the family when his mother died.

Moreover, in Spare, he gave details on private text messages between his wife, Meghan, and Kate Middleton, among other things.

Queen Camilla and Kate Middleton both had a history of being criticized in British tabloids, which possibly brought them closer together. Surely, the two have discussed what the estranged Duke wrote about them at some point.

Camilla praised for efforts while King Charles & Kate MIddleton undergo cancer treatment

As Kate is receiving treatment for her cancer and King Charles is just now returning to royal duty, Camilla has taken on a great responsibility for the royal family to uphold their standards of serving the nation.

While Queen Camilla is known not to love life in the spotlight, she has put all her energy towards serving The Crown. For example, she doesn’t like giving speeches, but as King Charles isn’t there at the moment, she does it.

Moreover, royal expert Angela Levin said earlier this year that Camilla has left her comfort zone” and done all her engagements – which King Charles typically was scheduled to do – with “grace.”

Last week, Camilla was the sole representative of the royal family, attending the Easter service at Worchester Cathedral while Charles continued his cancer treatment.

In a segment on GB News America, royal expert and former royal correspondent Charles Rae praised the queen for supporting King Charles and Kate Middleton in this troublesome time, calling her a “remarkable asset.”

Rae explained that Queen Camilla has “proven herself” in recent years, not least because of how she was treated after Princess Diana’s death in 1997.

“She has proved to be a remarkable asset”

He added that Camilla is “one of the best things to happen to the Royal Family” in a “good number of years.”

“There’s no question about it, she stepped into the breach. She’s got everything on her shoulders with what’s going on, and she’s taking on even more work,” royal expert Charles Rae said.