Queen Camilla was s*xually assaulted as a teenager while travelling alone on a train, according to a startling new revelation in a royal biography.

The alleged incident — which took place when she was just 16 or 17 years old — is detailed in Power and the Palace: The Inside Story of the Monarchy and 10 Downing Street, an upcoming book by former royal correspondent Valentine Low, currently being serialised in The Times.

The Queen reportedly recounted the traumatic experience to then-Mayor of London Boris Johnson, during a conversation about opening rape crisis centres in the capital.

“She was on a train going to Paddington — she was about 16, 17 — and some guy was moving his hand further and further,” recalled Guto Harri, Johnson’s former communications director.

When Johnson asked what happened next, Camilla’s response was both powerful and poignant.

“I did what my mother taught me to. I took off my shoe and whacked him in the nuts with the heel.”

According to Harri, Camilla then reported the incident immediately upon arriving at Paddington Station, locating a railway official and ensuring the man was arrested. Buckingham Palace has declined to comment on the claims.

Why the Queen Spoke Out

The conversation reportedly occurred as Boris Johnson was preparing to launch three new rape crisis centres in London. Harri said Camilla’s decision to speak about her experience privately was driven by her deep support for the initiative.

“I think she formally opened two out of the three centres. Nobody asked why the interest, why the commitment. But that’s what it went back to.”

A Lifelong Advocate for Survivors of Abuse

Queen Camilla has used her royal platform to champion the fight against domestic and s*xual abuse for over a decade. Her work has been praised by charities, survivors, and campaigners across the world.

She has served as patron of several key organisations, including SafeLives, which supports survivors of domestic violence in the UK. In 2025, she hosted a reception at Clarence House to mark the charity’s 21st anniversary.

During another event in 2022, marking 50 years of the domestic abuse charity Refuge, the Queen reflected on how far society had come — and how far it still has to go.

“Fifty years ago, there was almost no support available: no helplines, no counselling, nowhere to go, no specialist laws, and very little public understanding,” she said. “It was a taboo subject: what happened at home stayed at home.”

Her advocacy extends globally. Queen Camilla is patron of The Mirabel Centre in Lagos, Nigeria — the country’s first s*xual assault referral centre. She has visited domestic abuse shelters in the USA, India, and the Balkans, and has hosted pivotal events at Clarence House to bring together experts and survivors to discuss change.

In 2013, she launched the Wash Bags project, supplying essential toiletries to survivors of s*xual assault undergoing forensic examinations.

A Voice for the Silenced

In her 2024 documentary Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors, Camilla shared her personal commitment to tackling coercive control — a particularly insidious form of abuse.

“You meet somebody, you think they’re wonderful… and then bit by bit they start to undermine you. They take away your friends, your family. They take control of your money. They start dressing you. And all the while, you still believe it’s because they love you.”

The documentary was widely praised, with domestic abuse charity Tender highlighting how it “demonstrated the lack of understanding across society around domestic violence and abuse.”

During a 2022 speech at Buckingham Palace, marking the UN’s 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, Camilla called violence against women and girls a “global pandemic.”

“If we could just get more people discussing it… that would be the start of real change.”