Queen Camilla will no longer acquire new animal fur for her wardrobe, PETA U.K. announced on Wednesday.
She follows in the footsteps of the late Queen Elizabeth II, who announced in 2019 that no new items for her wardrobe would contain real fur. This is thought to be the first time Queen Camilla has taken an official stance against the fur industry.
“PETA is toasting Queen Camilla with a glass of the finest claret for being a true queen by standing with the 95 percent of British people who also refuse to wear animal fur, as polls show,” said PETA president Ingrid Newkirk in a statement. “It’s right and proper for the British monarchy to reflect British values by recognizing that fur has no place in society — and it makes the [Ministry of Defence’s] use of real bear fur for the royal guard’s caps ever more preposterous and out of touch.”
For two decades, PETA U.K. has been campaigning to compel the Ministry of Defence to end the use of bearskin for the King’s Guard’s caps.
It takes the skin of at least one bear to make a single cap. According to public records obtained by PETA U.K., the ministry purchased 498 bearskin hats between 2017 and 2022. PETA first offered the ministry a faux fur alternative produced by ECOPEL in 2017. ECOPEL has committed to supplying an unlimited amount to the ministry for free for a decade.
At the Royal Maundy Service in March, Queen Camilla sported a faux fur hat Lock & Co., which she’s worn on multiple occasions since 2022.
