Maj. Bruce Shand, 89; Father of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall
Maj. Bruce Shand, 89, father of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, died Sunday at home in Dorset, on England’s south coast, her spokesman said. The cause of death was not disclosed, but Shand had been battling cancer for some time.
The former cavalry officer was credited with giving his daughter steadfast support when she was publicly vilified as the cause of the tensions that led to Charles’ 1996 divorce from Princess Diana. He is said to have demanded that Charles marry Camilla or let her get on with her life.
Charles and Camilla wed last year.
Shand was honored as a hero during World War II, even before he was wounded by a bullet to the face during the battle of El Alamein in Egypt in 1942. He was captured by Nazi forces at the battle and held in a German prison camp until 1945.
After the war, he became a partner in a wine merchant business and pursued a passion for hunting in his free time.
Camilla’s mother, Rosalind, died in 1994.
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