In March 2024 a storm blew up in a teacup when it emerged that the Princess of Wales had edited a Mother’s Day photograph of herself and her children. The Princess was obliged to apologise for tweaking the happy snap, but the outrage and intrigue around the picture seems absurd when you reflect that British royals have always controlled and curated their image.
The medium has changed since the days when Henry VIII summoned Hans Holbein to court to paint him in all his swaggering magnificence. Since Queen Victoria and Prince Albert became the first royals to pose for the camera, the rapport between monarchy and the public has deepened. But, just as in Tudor times, royal portraiture plays a role in managing perceptions.
