Who Is Prince Edward's Wife, The Countess Of Wessex?
Queen Elizabeth II may be a ruling royal, however, she's also a mother to four children who she shared with her late husband, Prince Philip. Her eldest is Prince Charles, who was followed by the monarch's only daughter, Princess Anne. Prince Andrew is the third child and second son, while Prince Edward is the youngest of the siblings. The latter prince, who is also the Earl of Wessex, happens to be married to Sophie, who was born as Sophie Helen Rhys-Jones and is now the Countess of Wessex, according to the royal family's website.
Edward and Sophie first met in the summer of 1993 while both were attending a tennis event. By January 1999, they had announced their engagement and the two were married that June at St. George's Chapel which is found at Windsor Castle. In the years since, they've welcomed two children into the world, Lady Louise and James, Viscount Severn.
While all of those details may be pretty common knowledge for anyone who follows the royal family, do you really know who Sophie is?
Sophie, the Countess of Wessex is dedicated to her life as a royal
We may hear a lot about Prince William and Kate Middleton's royal duties, not to mention the fact that, as The Sun notes, Princess Anne is apparently the hardest-working member of the family. However, Prince Edward's wife, Sophie, Countess of Wessex, is also incredibly dedicated to her duties.
According to the royal website, Sophie is a "full-time working member of the Royal Family" and "splits her time between her work in support of The Queen and visits to a large number of her own charities and organizations." In fact, along with accompanying the queen to official appearances — a source told the Express that "the Queen has grown increasingly close to the Countess of Wessex who has become a trusted companion" — Sophie is also a patron of more than 70 charities and organizations.
Granted, Sophie also spends plenty of time with her mother-in-law and royal family in a casual sense as well. "We do see quite a lot of her," Sophie told Sky News in 2016. "We're over there most weekends riding. She's sees quite a lot of us." And we have no doubt that's exactly how these family members who are obviously fond of each other like it.