Many models dream of landing a cover shoot for a magazine like Vogue, but there are some people who must be convinced to accept the honour: royals.
Though many magazines run covers that feature photos of royals, especially members of the British royal family, royals rarely agree to sit and pose for a magazine shoot.
They’re busy people and don’t want to be seen as seeking attention, so they typically leave the magazine covers to the professionals.
Royals have been appearing on magazine covers for decades. (Vogue/The Cut)
But sometimes they break with tradition and agree to sit for a cover shoot and interview, and the results have often made history.
From Princess Diana to the late Queen Elizabeth II, Catherine, the Princess of Wales, and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, each has made her mark on a magazine or two.
Some have even taken inspiration from previous royal covers – but more on that soon.
Plenty of royal men have graced magazine covers as well, from then-Prince Charles on the cover of TIME Magazine in 2013 to Prince Harry, who appeared on the cover of an issue of Town & Country magazine in 2017.
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Queen Mary of Denmark on the cover of Australian Vogue in 2004, shortly after her royal wedding. (Vogue)
Danish Count Nikolai of Monpezat is a model and has snagged a few magazine covers of his own too, including Vogue.
But here we focus on the royal ladies who have made history with their covers through the years – starting with Nikolai’s aunt, Queen Mary of Denmark.
The Tasmanian-born royal posed for the December 2004 issue of Vogue Australia, which hit stands just months after she married into the Danish monarchy.
Then known as Princess Mary, she wore a glamorous purple gown with a diamond and ruby brooch pinned to the bust, a nod to her new royal life.
But her makeup was minimal and her hair styled in a loose, undone blowout, a clear reference to her life spent as a normal Australian woman before she was swept off her feet by then-Prince Frederik.
Now she’s Queen Mary, he’s King Frederik, and this magazine cover is like a time capsule, offering a peek into the past of the woman who became a queen.
Speaking of queens, future queen consort Catherine, the Princess of Wales has also graced the cover of Vogue.
Then known as the Duchess of Cambridge, she agreed to pose for British Vogue’s 100th anniversary issue in 2016.
Catherine, the Princess of Wales on the cover of British Vogue in 2016 for the magazine’s 100th birthday. (British Vogue)
It was a surprisingly casual shoot, with Catherine dressed in a white button-down shirt, brown coat and dark hat.
The only jewels in sight were on her finger, where her wedding band and the late Princess Diana’s iconic diamond and sapphire engagement ring rested.
Many called the cover a break from royal tradition and praised Catherine for taking a more relaxed approach to the cover shoot, rather than posing for it dressed in finery and dripping with diamonds.
Her sister-in-law Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex has also snagged a few magazine covers in her time, including a recent minimalist Harper’s Bazaar shoot.
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, on the cover of The Cut magazine in August 2022. (The Cut/Campbell Addy)
Before that, Meghan appeared on the cover of The Cut in 2022, just two years after leaving the monarchy, in a close-up portrait uncommon for royal covers.
She wore a black turtle neck and large green jewelled earrings, but that’s all that could be seen of her styling.
The majority of the cover was taken up by Meghan’s face, which stared out defiantly after she and Prince Harry copped years of backlash and criticism.
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Of course, the cover sparked plenty of conversation and a fair bit of criticism as well, but Meghan’s modern approach made it clear she had a different vision for herself than what had previously been expected of royal women.
It also looked very reminiscent of another royal cover from the late Princess Diana, who graced many magazines in her time.
Diana’s photo appeared on plenty of magazine covers, even after her death, but she personally posed for Vogue several times.
Princess Diana on the cover of British Vogue in July 1994. (Vogue)
She often opted for relaxed, relatable styling with minimal jewellery and nary a tiara in sight, probably a nod to her informal title as the ‘People’s Princess’.
In this shot from 1994, she wore a simple black top with statement earrings and stared directly into the camera lens.
And doesn’t that sound a lot like another more recent royal magazine cover we just covered?
When it comes to royals who like to do things the old-fashioned way, no one does it better than Princess Anne.
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Princess Anne was resplendent on the cover of British Vogue in 1973. (Vogue)
The Princess Royal appeared on the cover of British Vogue in 1973, when she was just 23, in true blue-blooded style.
Wrapped in a pristine white fur stole, dripping in diamond jewellery, and topped off with a tiara, there was no confusing Queen Elizabeth II’s daughter for anything but royalty.
She was also wearing the engagement ring her first husband Captain Mark Phillips, whom she married the same month this issue of British Vogue came out.
Now in her 70s, Anne has graced the cover of many magazines since but nothing will ever quite top this shot.
Queen Consort Camilla, on the other hand, took some time to find her place on magazine covers.
Due to the nature of romance with King Charles III (the pair were famously affair partners during his marriage to Princess Diana), Camilla didn’t pose for many covers at the start of her royal career.
Even after she and Charles married in 2005, Camilla was more focused on her patronages and royal work than fashion and magazines.
Camilla starred on the cover of a commemorative issue of Country Life Magazine when she was still the Duchess of Cornwall. (Twitter/CountryLifeMagazine)
But as time went on she found her place in the monarchy and made her way onto the covers of magazines like Country Life.
This sweet portrait was even snapped by her daughter-in-law, Catherine, making the cover especially poignant.
Speaking of poignant covers, what could be more moving than the late Queen Elizabeth II’s first British Vogue cover in 2022?
The cover was a stunning photo of Her Majesty taken in 1957, just five years into her long and historic reign.
Queen Elizabeth II posed for this photo in 1957 and it became a Vogue cover more than 50 years later. (Vogue)
More than 50 years later it was used for the cover of a special edition of British Vogue for her Platinum Jubilee, which marked 70 years of her reign.
The late Queen sadly died in September 2022, just months after the magazine hit newsstands and made history as her first Vogue cover.
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