In the new season of The Crown on Netflix, viewers will witness the unraveling of Princess Anne’s marriage to Captain Mark Phillips.
Despite the show being fictional, the real-life announcement of their separation marked a significant moment within the royal family as Princess Anne became the first child of the Queen to end a marriage.
Princess Anne, the Queen’s only daughter and second child, exchanged vows with Mark in November 1973.
The couple welcomed their son Peter in 1977 and daughter Zara in 1981 before publicly declaring their split in August 1989.
The divorce between the pair was finalized in 1992, after which Princess Anne remarried naval officer Commander Timothy Laurence later that same year.
This remarriage broke ground as it was the first instance of a child of the British monarch remarrying following a divorce, going against the norms of the Church of England as the law prohibiting this had not yet been established in 2002.
Princess Anne circumvented this issue by marrying Timothy in Scotland.
Rumors of discord in Princess Anne and Mark’s marriage began circulating shortly after the birth of Zara.
The couple was seldom seen together, with Anne preoccupied with her royal duties and engagements.
Notably, they spent significant time apart, even during their 15th wedding anniversary, often traveling separately for official engagements.
When Buckingham Palace officially announced their separation, the statement clarified that Princess Anne and Capt.
Mark Phillips had mutually agreed to separate without immediate plans for divorce proceedings.
The terms of their separation were kept private, with Princess Anne choosing to reside with the children at Gatcombe Park, a residence gifted to the couple by the Queen in 1976.
Mark, on the other hand, moved to a nearby farm on the Gatcombe Park estate and retained full access to the children.
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