Queen Elizabeth's "True Favorite" Is Taking Over One of the Late Monarch's Beloved Roles
It's a position steeped in history.


Queen Elizabeth worked tirelessly on behalf of her hundreds of patronages over the years, and in the past two years since her death, many of her roles have been re-allocated to other royals. Now, in a major sign of her role in the family, Duchess Sophie has been given one of the family's most historic royal charity appointments.
The Duchess of Edinburgh—who turned 60 in January—is the new royal patron of Mother's Union, a role previously held by Queen Elizabeth. Per the Royal Family, the organization's "members bring hope and practical support to millions of people every year through parenting, literacy and community development programmes."
The late Queen and her daughter-in-law Sophie shared a particularly close bond, with Prince Edward's wife being called her "true favorite" in the family. That being said, Sophie's new patronage has an especially heartfelt meaning, as Queen Elizabeth's own mom, the Queen Mother, once held the role. Queen Victoria also served as patron in the late 1800s and was one of the first supporters of the historic organization for women.
Duchess Sophie, seen during a Feb. 13 visit to RAF Wittering, has taken on one of the late Queen's longtime roles.
The Queen and Duchess Sophie shared a warm relationship.
"With the exception of her daughter Anne, the Queen was closer to Sophie than any of the other royal women," Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty, told OK! in January. "It really was a genuine closeness, and Elizabeth was always Sophie's biggest confidante."
Seward continued that the late monarch thought Sophie was "very down to earth, because she refused to have expensive security and things like that, and she loved her lack of airs and graces. I think she saw Sophie as a bit of a surrogate daughter, too."
The Duchess of Edinburgh also shares a close bond with "royal sister" Princess Kate, and has been supportive of the princess as she's battled cancer over the past year.
On Thursday, Feb. 27, Duchess Sophie marked her new patronage by visiting one of Mother's Union's projects, English for Women, in Chelmsford, England. According to Buckingham Palace, the project is working "to reduce isolation of those in local communities who experience language barriers in their everyday lives, many of whom are fleeing challenging situations."
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Kristin Contino is Marie Claire's Senior Royal and Celebrity editor. She's been covering royalty since 2018—including major moments such as the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's coronation—and places a particular focus on the British Royal Family's style and what it means.
Prior to working at Marie Claire, she wrote about celebrity and royal fashion at Page Six Style and covered royalty from around the world as chief reporter at Royal Central. Kristin has provided expert commentary for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, US Weekly, the Today Show and many others.
Kristin is also the published author of two novels, “The Legacy of Us” and “A House Full of Windsor.” She's passionate about travel, history, horses, and learning everything she can about her favorite city in the world, London.
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