When did Princess Anne get divorced?
Princess Anne's long-standing marriage to Sir Tim Laurence is well known: he was by her side every step of the way during the official mourning period for her mother, Queen Elizabeth II, recently. Anne's first husband, Captain Mark Phillips, is less familiar — particularly by young people — despite the fact that he is the father of her two children: Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall.
Glimpses of Anne and Mark's relationship have been recently resurrected in The Crown, Netflix's award-winning series about the House of Windsor.
Once, it was the stuff of scandalous, tabloid fodder: rumours of infidelity and separate lives abounded.
Princess Anne’s alleged affair with her personal protection officer was covered during season four but not all the details of the Princess Royal’s marriage were included in the show.
It’s likely that this time around at least some of the marital breakdown with Captain Mark Phillips will be dramatised onscreen, because it was a significant part of what the Queen called her ‘annus horribilis’ (horrible year) – 1992.
When and why Princess Anne got divorced in 10 points
When did Princess Anne meet Mark Phillips? Princess Anne first met Mark Phillips in 1968, reportedly at an event in Mexico attended by horse lovers. Both Phillips and the Princess were competitive horse riders, so the shared interest was initially what brought them together.
When did they get engaged? The couple’s engagement was announced in May, 1973. In the years since they had met Anne had won BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year Award and Phillips had earned himself a gold medal at the Olympics in 1972, so far they seemed perfect for each other.
The Royal Wedding: The first of Queen Elizabeth’s children to get married, Anne’s marriage to Phillips was a big deal. The wedding took place on the 14th of November, 1973 at Westminster Abbey and was declared a bank holiday. Millions of people tuned in to watch on television.
The Phillips family grows: Anne and Mark welcomed their first child, Peter, in 1977, and their second, Zara, in 1981. Mark hadn’t taken a title upon his marriage, so that meant both of their children wouldn’t have one either and would live as private citizens
Rumours abound: It wasn’t long before rumours about the couple’s marriage started circulating. Anne allegedly had an affair with her bodyguard Peter Cross in 1980. Cross sold his story to the newspapers after leaving the police force and divorcing his wife.
Even in the face of adversity, Mark Phillips said the rumours of Anne’s affair were “rubbish and fantasy.” However, Cross talking to the press did serious damage to the public perception of the Princess Royal’s marriage.
Mark’s turn to be scrutinised, came in 1985 when he fathered a child – Felicity Tonkin – outside of his marriage. This was reportedly confirmed in 1991 by a paternity test. Phillips had indeed stepped out of his marriage with New Zealander, Heather Tonkin.
Distance doesn’t always make the heart grow fonder: Over time, people noticed that they spent much of their time apart. Anne was busy with her royal engagements and other duties and they often went abroad without each other, even notably during their 15th wedding anniversary.
Separation and scandal: In 1989, it was announced that they were separating, but would still live nearby one another. This came after The Sun revealed they had private letters addressed to Anne, the palace confirmed they were from Tim Laurence, the Queen’s Equerry.
Annus Horribilis: In 1992, Mark and Anne officially divorced, and a few months later, Anne married Tim Laurence in Scotland. Although the divorce marked part of a difficult year for the Queen, Tim and Anne have been happily married ever since.
