London, Sep 1 (AP) Britain's Queen Camilla once demonstrated her resilience and quick thinking when, as a teenager, she thwarted an indecent assault. A new book on the royal family reveals that Camilla defended herself by removing her shoe and striking the assailant in the groin. This incident occurred aboard a train heading to London's Paddington Station in the mid-1960s. According to an excerpt from “Power and the Palace” by Valentine Low, a former royal correspondent for The Times of London, the man seated next to her attempted to make inappropriate contact. Camilla recounted the attack to former Prime Minister Boris Johnson during his tenure as mayor of London.
Camilla reportedly told Johnson, "I did what my mother told me, I took my shoe off and whacked him in the nuts with the heel," as quoted by Low to the BBC. Upon reaching Paddington Station, Camilla took the commendable step of notifying a man in uniform, leading to the assailant's arrest. This proactive measure on her part has accentuated her image as someone who embodies grit within the royal family. The British media embraced the story with gusto, with headlines ranging from the straightforward “Queen fought off sex attacker” in the Daily Telegraph to the Sun's more sensational “Camilla whacked groper in goolies.”
The anecdote came to Low through one of Johnson's former aides, who believed it fueled Camilla's advocacy for charities supporting domestic violence survivors. Despite its personal significance, Camilla has been reluctant to discuss the incident publically, feeling that her experience, though distressing, pales in comparison to the gravity of struggles faced by countless other women and girls. “She didn't want to draw attention to her at the expense of their experiences,” Low explained.
Buckingham Palace has opted not to comment on the revelation. Meanwhile, “Power and the Palace,” which sheds light on the intricate relationship between the British monarchy and its political leadership, is slated for publication later this month. The book has already piqued public curiosity after excerpts in The Times of London suggested that the late Queen Elizabeth II disapproved of the UK's decision to exit the European Union. (AP) SKS GSP
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