| Sophie | |
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| Duchess of Edinburgh (more) | |
_(cropped).jpg) Sophie in 2023 | |
| Born | Sophie Helen Rhys-Jones 20 January 1965 Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford, United Kingdom |
| Spouse | |
| Issue | |
| House | Windsor (by marriage) |
| Father | Christopher Rhys-Jones |
| Mother | Mary O'Sullivan |
| Education | West Kent College |
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| Royal family of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms |
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Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh (born Sophie Helen Rhys-Jones, 20 January 1965) is a member of the British royal family. She is married to Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, the youngest sibling of King Charles III.
Sophie grew up at Brenchley, Kent, and later attended West Kent College, training as a secretary. She then worked in public relations, representing firms across the UK, Switzerland and Australia before opening her own agency in 1996. She met Edward in 1987 while working for Capital Radio; they began dating in 1993. Their engagement was announced in January 1999, and they married on 19 June at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle. The couple have two children: Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor and James Mountbatten-Windsor, Earl of Wessex, who are respectively sixteenth and fifteenth in line to the British throne as of 2024[update].
In 2002, Sophie closed her business interests and began full-time work as a member of the royal family. She is the patron of over 70 charities and organisations, including Childline and the London College of Fashion. She undertakes over 200 engagements each year, including visits to schools, universities and military bases.[1][2] Her charity work primarily revolves around people with disabilities, women's rights, avoidable blindness and agriculture.
- ^ "The Countess of Wessex". The Royal Family. 4 November 2015. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- ^ "2018 royal work statistics: who's been busy, who's been busier (congrats, Your Maj!)". Maclean's. Archived from the original on 18 January 2021. Retrieved 15 December 2020.