Friday, November 8, 2024

The royal family member who has quietly been there all along

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King Charles was spotted at the Royal Ascot alongside a familiar face.

We see her pop up time and time again at royal events, but very few people actually know who she is.

Lady Sarah Chatto arrived in a carriage alongside her husband Daniel Chatto, Princess Anne and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence. But who is she and how is she related to the royal family?

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Lady Sarah Chatto attended the Royal Ascot alongside her husband and Princess Anne. (Getty)

Well, Sarah is actually the King’s maternal cousin.

She was born at Kensington Palace on May 1, 1964, to Anthony Armstrong-Jones and Princess Margaret, Queen Elizabeth II’s younger and only sister.

Sarah is Princess Margaret’s only daughter, however she does have an older brother, David Albert Charles, otherwise known as the Earl of Snowden.

400806 02: (FILE PHOTO) Britains Princess Margaret (R), Lord Snowdon (L), and Viscount Linley (2nd, L) pose for a photograph with Margarets infant daughter Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones in 1964 at Kensington Palace in London. Princess Margaret died peacefully in her sleep at 1:30 a.m. EST at the King Edward VII Hospital in London February 9, 2002, announced Buckingham Palace. (Photo by Getty Images)
Lady Sarah Chatto is the youngest daughter of Anthony Armstrong-Jones and Princess Margaret. (Getty)

While polar opposites, Margaret and Elizabeth were as close as sisters can be.

Elizabeth was always the typical older sister, responsible, organised and discreet; while Margaret was known to rather enjoy the spotlight, galivanting across the world attending fabulous parties.

“Lilibet is my pride. Margaret is my joy,” King George IV once famously said of his two daughters.

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400806 34: (FILE PHOTO) Princess Margaret sits in 1970 with her children Lord Linley and Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones. Buckingham Palace announced that Princess Margaret died peacefully in her sleep at 1:30AM EST at the King Edward VII Hospital February 9, 2002 in London. (Photo by Getty Images)
She also has an older brother, David Albert Charles. (Getty)

Despite their differences, the two remained close, raising their children alongside one another.

Because of their close upbringing, Sarah formed a close relationship with the current King, something they still hold on to to this day. She was also said to be a particular favourite of her aunt, Queen Elizabeth II. 

Sarah spent much of her childhood inside Kensington Palace, and her parents were said to be very present during her upbringing.

Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones (later Lady Sarah Chatto), George Windsor, the Earl of St Andrews and Lady Helen Windsor (later Lady Helen Taylor) during Christmas at Windsor Castle, 1969.
The pair spent their childhood growing up alongside King Charles. (Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Margaret was known for her artistic flare, and Sarah’s father Anthony Armstrong-Jones was also a bohemian society photographer.

Their artistic influence seemed to stick with both of their children, with Sarah going on to now be an artist and curator and her brother, David now a furniture maker.

In 1973, when Sarah was just nine-years-old, she served as a bridesmaid for her cousin Princess Anne, once again reprising that role in 1981 for the wedding of Charles and Diana.

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Wedding of Prince Charles and Diana
She served as a bridesmaid in the wedding of Princess Diana and Prince Charles. (Getty)
Sarah Chatto as a bridesmaid at the wedding of Prince Charles and Diana
Sarah was just a teenager at the time. (Getty)

She is also the godmother to both Prince Harry and Lady Louise Windsor.

After school, she went on to study art before spending two years at her father’s side in India while he worked as the production photographer for the 1984 film A Passage to India.

It was there that she met her now husband, Daniel Chatto, who was working on the 1983 film Heat and Dust at the time.

They were married in an intimate ceremony with just 200 guests at St Stephen’s Walbrook on 14 July, 1994.

In 1994 she married Daniel Chatto in an intimate ceremony. (Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)

Zara Tindall, Lady Frances Armstrong-Jones and Tara Noble Singh served as her three bridesmaids.

The couple share two sons, Samuel Chatto, whom they welcomed in 1996, and Arthur Chatto, born in 1999. 

Sarah’s mother passed in 2002 at the age of 71. Margaret’s health had notably deteriorated in the later years of her life, and her death was the cause of her fourth stroke.

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Princess Margaret’s funeral was one of the few times Queen Elizabeth was seen crying. (Tim Graham Photo Library via Get)

Margaret’s funeral was one of the very few times that Queen Elizabeth II was seen crying.

Sarah went on to keep a close relationship with the royal family following her mother’s passing.

She sent both her sons to Eton College, the same school both Prince Harry and Prince William attended.

Autumn Phillips, Peter Phillips, Arthur Chatto, Lady Sarah Chatto and Daniel Chatto attend the wedding of Prince Harry to Ms Meghan Markle at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle on May 19, 2018 in Windsor, England.
She sent both her sons to Eton College, the same school as Prince William and Prince Harry. (Getty)

Samuel followed in his mother’s footsteps, now a working artist, whereas Arthur worked as a personal trainer before joining the Royal Marines. 

In 2004, Sarah was named the Vice President of the Royal Ballet. Her mother was once the President. 

She continued to attend many royal events alongside her aunt and cousins over the years, and in 2022 she farewelled the late Queen Elizabeth alongside her husband and two sons.

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Sarah Chatto attended the Queen’s funeral. (Getty)
LONDON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 19: (front row) King Charles III, Camilla, Queen Consort, the Princess Royal, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duke of York, the Earl of Wessex, the Countess of Wessex, (second row) the Duke of Sussex, the Duchess of Sussex, Princess Beatrice, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and Lady Louise Windsor, and (third row) Samuel Chatto, Arthur Chatto, Lady Sarah Chatto, Daniel Chatto in front of the coffin at the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey on September
She sat alongside her family behind Princess Beatrice. (Getty)

The family attended the funeral held at Westminster Abbey, sitting behind Princess Beatrice and her family.

Following her aunt’s death Sarah has taken a small step back from the spotlight, focusing heavily on her work as an artist.

However, she is still regularly seen alongside her family at royal events, including the coronation of King Charles and Queen Camilla. 

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