> From what I've heard (which admittedly isn't
> very much), I thought that Ms. Parker-Bowles
> was a "commoner."

Hmmm... You may be right on that. I thought she was a Lady at the very least. I'll check though.

> Is there a past precedent
> for a commoner attaining royalty status by
> marriage like that?

Most certainly. The most obvious example that comes to mind is Anne Bolyn, the second wife of King Heny VIII. She was a serving maid before their wedding.

Most monarchs marry members of the aristocracy, or nobility of other countries, for political reasons, but there's no prohibition against marrying the lower classes.

> > Also on Charles' coronation, his eldest son
> (Prince William) will take all the titles that are
> attached to the Heir Apparent. These include
> Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall and the
> Grand Cross Knight of the Order of the Garter,
> to name but a few.
>
> "Order of the Garter?" Where do all these
> interesting names and titles come from?

The Order of the Garter was known as "The Most Noble and Honorable Knightly Order of St. George" until 1349. The modern name actually refers to a minor scandal involving the Prince of Wales of the day (later Richard II). The Order of the Garter, incidentally, is the highest ranking knighthood the British Crown can award.

As for strange names for knightly orders, the Danish Order of the Elephant, or the Hungarian Order of the Copperpot?

> > winter"Did that help clear up the
> confusion?"mute
>
> Yes, quite a bit, thank you. Of course, as often
> happens, the explanation has led to more
> questions...

Glad I could help.

> Wow, I had no idea that the mother of Queen
> Elizabeth II was still alive!

101 years old, August just gone. So far she's got something like 6 artificial hips :)

> Gri"learning something every day"shny

winter"Always glad to help"mute