Kate Middleton Isn't The Only Princess Who Went Through A Public Health Battle
The world was shocked and saddened when Catherine, Princess of Wales, revealed she was undergoing treatment for cancer. Not only did the news come weeks after King Charles' announcement that he too had been diagnosed with cancer, but Princess Kate's revelation also arrived after a protracted absence while she ostensibly recovered from abdominal surgery to address ... well, Buckingham Palace never really explained that. Nor did it explain the specific type of the disease that she or her father-in-law were fighting.
In both cases, the public perceived that they weren't getting the whole story from Buckingham Palace — which more than checks out with the British royals' long tradition of keeping their health issues secret.
In fact, looking back at what's taken place in Britain. — and to be fair, in other parts of the world — it's clear that when royals experience any sort of medical crises, no matter how hard palace PR attempts to keep a lid on it, these health issues tend to eventually play out in public. For proof of this, read on to discover that Kate Middleton isn't the only princess who went through a public health battle.
Princess Eugenie underwent scoliosis surgery at age 12
Princess Eugenie is the second daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah, Duchess of York, born in 1990. When she was a child, Eugenie was diagnosed with scoliosis, in which the spine becomes abnormally curved. In 2002, when the princess was 12 years old, BBC News reported that she'd be undergoing surgery to correct the condition. "Princess Eugenie will be having a very minor routine operation," a Buckingham Palace spokeswoman stated.
Years later, Eugenie reflected on that experience in an essay she wrote for the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital (RNOH), where she'd undergone surgery all those years earlier. "This was, of course, a scary prospect for a 12-year-old; I can still vividly remember how nervous I felt in the days and weeks before the operation," she recalled of the eight-hour procedure, in which titanium rods were placed on each side of her spine in order to correct the curvature. "After three days in intensive care, I spent a week on a ward and six days in a wheelchair, but I was walking again after that," she added.
Eugenie famously showed off her surgery scars while wearing a low-backed bridal gown during her 2018 wedding to Jack Brooksbank; she also invited RNOH staff medical personnel involved in her operation to her nuptials. As the Duchess of York told the Evening Standard, those invitations were "in honour of the fact that [Eugenie] is walking up that aisle with a straight back because of them."
Princess Anne's fall from a horse left her with memory problems
Princess Anne — official title: Anne, Princess Royal — is the only sister of King Charles III, and she has a reputation for being Britain's hardest-working royal. A lifelong equestrian, Anne's skills on horseback led her to the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. While practicing for the Olympics, her horse stumbled while attempting a jump, sending both horse and rider tumbling to the ground, with the horse rolling on top of the royal. As The New York Times reported at the time, Anne — then 25 — suffered a hairline fracture on one of her vertebra, in addition to a concussion and assorted bruises. Royal physician Dr. Richard Bayliss told the Times that Anne's injuries were relatively minor, and certainly not enough to sideline her from the Olympics. "She should be riding again within a few weeks," the doc said.
That prognosis was correct, and Anne recovered enough to compete in Montreal. During the Olympics, however, her horse — Goodwill — made a similar stumble, sending Anne flying to the ground. She quickly got up, remounted Goodwill and continued, but later revealed that the fall had left her so disoriented that she retained no memory of what happened after she fell. "It was going very well and then I don't remember anything else. Nothing at all," Anne recalled, as reported by The Sun — which also recalled the time she'd sprained her wrist while competing in Kyiv a few years earlier.
Princess Margaret suffered multiple strokes and serious burns
Princess Margaret was the younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II and was renowned for being the "fun" royal, chain-smoking and downing cocktails while partying with the likes of The Rolling Stones. That said, Margaret was also no stranger to tragedy, including a series of devastating health woes that hit her later in life. Her downward trajectory began in 1993, when the 62-year-old royal was hospitalized for pneumonia. Five years later, she was vacationing on the island of Mustique when she suffered a stroke.
The following year, during a subsequent trip to Mustique, she had another stroke. During that vacation, she suffered severe burns on her feet when entering a scalding hot bath. Due to the combination of that accident and her strokes, Margaret had difficulty speaking and was also forced to use a wheelchair. In late 2000, she experienced yet another stroke while celebrating Christmas with the rest of the royal family at Sandringham. Another stroke followed months later, in March 2001. As Radio Times reported, that stroke left her experiencing vision problems, partial paralysis, and difficulty swallowing.
Less than a year later, the queen shared a sad announcement. "Her beloved sister, Princess Margaret, died peacefully in her sleep this morning," read the statement (via CNN). She was 71.
Liechtenstein's Princess Marie suffered a fatal stroke
Countess Marie-Aglaë Kinsky von Wchinitz und Tettau became Princess Marie became a royal in 1967 when she wed Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein, a tiny European nation (comprising just 62 square miles) bordered by Switzerland and Austria.
On August 19, 2021, news went out that Princess Marie had been hospitalized. "The Princely House regrets to announce that HSH the princess suffered a stroke yesterday," read a statement from the Princely House of Liechtenstein (via Royal Central). "She is receiving care in the hospital. The Princely Family asks for your understanding that no further information will be given at this time."
The stroke was far more serious than that statement may have indicated, ultimately proving fatal; on August 23, a subsequent statement announced that Marie had died at the age of 81. "After her health steadily deteriorated following a stroke on 18 August 2021, she passed away today in the presence of her family," that statement declared (via Tatler). Her death was marked by a seven-day period of mourning, in which flags were flown at half-mast at the royals' official residence, Vaduz Castle, as well as government buildings throughout the nation.
Princess Masako of Japan was treated for stress and anxiety
The Imperial House of Japan is believed to be the world's oldest hereditary royal family, with a history that can be traced as far back as 97 B.C. When Emperor Akihito abdicated in 2019, his son, Naruhito, and wife, Princess Masako, were elevated to emperor and empress.
Shortly before Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako ascended to the throne, the then-princess opened up about how much she'd struggled in her royal role and the concomitant mental health issues that came with it. In an official statement issued ahead of the abdication, Masako revealed that she'd received a diagnosis of adjustment disorder, a condition related to anxiety, stress, and/or depression.
The princess had largely kept out of the public eye, but the statement indicated that her condition was improving; As a result, she took on more public duties. "I am happy as I can now perform more official duties than before, little by little," she said in the statement (via BBC News). Meanwhile, a separate statement from her physicians underlined how important it was that she continue treatment and not be forced to experience any undue stress, explaining that the princess "is still on the recovery track and there are ups and downs to her condition."
Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway was diagnosed with an incurable disease
When Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby tied the knot Norway's Crown Prince Haakon in 2001, the sketchy past of the single mom and former waitress didn't exactly check all the boxes typically associated with marrying into royalty. That, however, didn't stop the couple, and she became known as Crown Princess Mette-Marit.
In 2018, Norway's Royal Court issued a statement to reveal that Mette-Marit had been diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis, a chronic condition in which scarring of the lungs makes breathing increasingly difficult; the condition has no cure. "For a number of years, I have had health challenges on a regular basis, and now we know more about what these are in," the princess said in a statement (via People). She decided to go public with her diagnosis, the statement added, because she and her husband anticipated there would be times in the future when her illness would leave her unable to perform official duties, and they didn't want her absence to spark rumors or cause concern.
Speaking with Norwegian media, Mette-Marit explained her condition had led her to become self-reflective in a way that she hadn't before. "There are many difficult and painful things about this disease, but at the same time, there is something beautiful because you find yourself," she said, as reported by Sky News. "It's an opportunity to live a little more slowly and discover which things give you energy and which things take it away."
Princess Charlene of Monaco experienced continual health woes after surgery
A former South African swimming champion, Princess Charlene joined the royal family of Monaco when she married Prince Albert in 2011. In March 2021, Charlene underwent sinus surgery; during a subsequent trip to her homeland, unforeseen complications forced her to extend her trip when doctors advised her not to fly. Princess Charlene then underwent further operations and was hospitalized in September due to unforeseen complications. Her long absence, however, led to unconfirmed rumors that the reports of medical issues were a smokescreen meant to cover up the royal couple's marital problems. In October 2021, she reportedly underwent one last procedure before finally returning.
She eventually made it back to Monaco and gradually resumed undertaking royal duties alongside her husband. "I'm really proud of my wife," Prince Albert told People in December 2022. "Charlene's doing really well. As you can see for yourself, she's been active in any number of different events. Charlene's engaging more in public life and looking after things that she's passionate about."
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden struggled with an eating disorder
Crown Princess Victoria is the eldest daughter of Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia. She became the center or rumors in the mid-1990s when the teenage royal appeared noticeably thinner than she'd been previously. After media speculation, the Swedish Royal Court confirmed that Victoria was suffering from an eating disorder.
She decided to postpone her plans to attend university, and instead went to the U.S. to seek treatment. In 2017, the princess opened up about her experience in a documentary commemorating her 40th birthday, as chronicled by Royal Central.
"In the U.S., I got professional help, which was really important for me," she said, explaining that the impossible standards she'd set for herself, as heir to the throne, had contributed to developing the eating disorder. "Just learning to put words to feelings and thus, be able to set limits and to not push myself too much, which I found easy. I wanted all the time so much more than I could do, or could be.
Princess Claire of Luxembourg was 'seriously ill with lingering illness'
In March 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic was beginning to shut dow the world, Princess Claire of Luxembourg became one of Europe's first royals to test positive for the coronavirus. Her husband, Belgium's Prince Laurent, revealed he was particularly worried about her, due to an unspecified health diagnosis she'd received a few months earlier.
"Six months ago we were hit because Claire became seriously ill, a lingering illness as they call it," Laurent told Belgian news outlet Nieuwsblad (via Royal Central). "Then on top of that, she was diagnosed with [COVID] in March." While he didn't elaborate on the nature of her illness — which had apparently impacted her immune system — he was hopeful that she'd eventually make a full recovery. "Her illness was discovered in an early stage," he added. "The treatment is now over. We can do nothing now but wait and hope she will be okay."
Whatever that "lingering illness" was, it apparently knocked Princess Claire out of commission for the next year. As Royal Central reported in October 2021, her appearance that month alongside other members of the Swedish royal family at the Terre d'Avenir Prizes marked her first public engagement in nearly two years.
Princess Alexandra soldiered on despite a debilitating diagnosis
Princess Alexandra is a valued member of Britain's royal family, sister of the Duke of Kent and first cousin of the late Queen Elizabeth II. In 2013, the 76-year-old royal was diagnosed with polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR), an inflammatory condition that causes muscle stiffness and debilitating pain. While she initially took some time off, she was expected to be back in action in no time. "It's a common condition that responds well to a course of drugs," a royal aide told the Daily Mail.
As predicted, Alexandra didn't stay away for long — and, once back in the saddle, refused to lighten her load when it came to undertaking royal duties. "Alexandra has always put duty first, second, and third," a friend told the Mail of the princess' stoicism. "She is devoted to the queen — there has never been any talk of retirement."
The 84-year-old subsequently stepped back once again after breaking her wrist but shut down speculation that her retirement was imminent when, in 2021, she actually took on even more responsibilities.
Princess Beatrix underwent surgery after a skiing accident
Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands enjoyed a 33-year reign until abdicating in 2013 so that her son, Willem-Alexander, could become monarch. A decade later, the 85-year-old royal — then demoted to Princess Beatrix because of the abdication — required surgery when she broke her wrist — an injury incurred while skiing in Austria, no less. "She has now had surgery on her fracture and has returned to the Netherlands," the Dutch government's communications office, RVD, said in a statement (via NL Times). "The princess is otherwise in good health and will recover from her fracture at home."
While the injury did force her to postpone a royal visit or two, she made a full recovery. In fact, the following year, the spry octogenarian demonstrated her uncanny vigor when she visited a Dutch farm, feeding some animals, staining some wood, and even grabbing a shovel to dig some dirt.
That was right on brand for the down-to-earth royal; prior to stepping down from the throne, Beatrix was known to maintain scheduled office hours, and any Dutch citizen was able to make an appointment to meet with her.
Sweden's Princess Christina has battled cancer more than once
Also known as Mrs. Magnuson, Princess Christina is the older sister of Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf. In 2010, she announced that she'd been diagnosed with breast cancer. Her treatment — which included three separate surgeries — was ultimately deemed successful.
That, however, wasn't her only brush with the disease; in 2016, Sweden's Royal Court issued a statement to announce that she had been diagnosed with chronic leukemia, and would cutting back on royal appearances while she underwent treatment. "Princess Christina and her family hope [that the public] understand the situation and let the princess undergo the necessary treatment in peace," read the statement (via Yahoo! Finance). She was subsequently cured via a successful stem cell transplant.
In 2018, in conjunction with her 75th birthday, Princess Christina announced she was retiring and would be stepping away from royal duties. "I have realized that life is not infinite," she said in an interview with Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter (via Express). "I don't want to be tied down by a lot of things in the future but enjoy what I have and those I have around me," she said of her decision.