Express: Prince Charles' first love wasn't Camilla or Princess Diana

Prince Charles was forbidden from marrying Lucia, the beautiful daughter of the then Chilean ambassador to Britain he met in 1969, over a difference of religious faith.

Prince Charles may have had a scandalous love life involving his former wife Princess Diana and Camilla; however, Express reported that the prince had already suffered heartbreak long before he met both of them.

In 1969, 20-year-old Prince Charles first met a young woman named Lucia Santa Cruz and the duo soon fell in love.

Lucia was the daughter of Chile’s ambassador in Britain. Even though Prince Charles was eager to marry his first love, he was not allowed to do so because of her faith.

Read more about the Royal Family on our Twitter account @amomama_usa.

Writer Fill Knappett documented the love story in the book Charles Prince of Wales, which mentioned that according to the rules of the monarchy, Prince Charles was strictly required to marry a Protestant.

Since Lucia was a Roman Catholic, the prince was not permitted to marry her. The book revealed that Lucia was employed with the master of Trinity University when she made the prince’s acquaintance.

Knappett wrote that despite their split, Lucia and Prince Charles continued to be good friends. And before the prince married Princess Diana, Lucia introduced him to a friend of hers, Camilla Shand.

Prince Charles’ affair with Camilla became a major scandal, and the bitterness between him and his wife was evident to the media and the public.

Contrary to the belief that the prince first met with Camilla during a polo match at Smith’s Lawn, they were introduced to each other in 1972 by Lucia, who lived in the same block as Camilla.

In the years that followed, Prince Charles tied the knot with Princess Diana, while Camilla went on to marry a retired military officer named Andrew Parker Bowles.

The former Princess of Wales had spoken about her husband’s affair with Camilla, stating that there were three people in her marriage.

It was not until the princess’ tragic death that Prince Charles made his relationship with Camilla public. The couple tied the knot in 2005 at Windsor Guildhall, making Camilla the Duchess of Cornwall.