Princess Anne was named the hardest working member of the British royal family in 2024, having carried out 217 engagements in the year.
The news came even after the Princess Royal was hospitalised in early 2024 due to a head injury after being kicked by a horse, which forced her to cancel numerous engagements.
This year, the royal will embark on her first foreign visit of the year from January 21 to 22.
During the trip, Anne will unveil a new memorial to honour over 1,700 predominantly Black South Africans who lost their lives in World War I between August 3 and 14, 1914, and whose graves remain unknown. The memorial has been named the Cape Town Labour Corps Memorial.
It’s unsurprising that Princess Anne was named the hardest working royal of 2024, as she had been given the title for the past four years in a row.
It also comes off the back of her being one of the senior royals who stepped up after both King Charles and Princess Catherine took breaks from royal duties due to their cancer diagnoses in early 2024.
Every year, the hardest working royal is decided based on the amount of royal engagements members of the royal family attend. According to Reboot, the Princess Royal has attended more royal engagements than any other royals in 2024.
In addition to Princess Anne, the other royal women, including Queen Camilla and Duchess Sophie, truly helped to hold down the royal fort in 2024.
While King Charles underwent treatment for cancer, he was unable to proceed with public duties, and in the meantime, his ‘counsellors of state’ were appointed to stand in.
According to the royal family’s website, “in the event that The King cannot undertake his official duties as Sovereign on a temporary basis due to illness or absence abroad, two or more Counsellors of State are appointed by Letters Patent to act in His Majesty’s place.”
His Majesty’s current counsellors of state include Queen Camilla, Prince William, Prince Harry, Prince Andrew and Princess Beatrice.
However, as Harry, Duke of Sussex and Andrew, Duke of York are currently not working royals, other senior royals also partook in even more royal duties than usual.
Prince Edward in particular stepped up in terms of royal engagements, attending numerous events solo as His Majesty postponed public-facing duties, as per advice from his doctors.
