Royal families have always carried out their functions surrounded by a certain aura of magic and mystery. But, as we are seeing in recent days with the case of Princess Catherine’s “successful abdominal surgery,” too much mystery is too much for social media and conspiracy theorists.

Catherine of Wales is not the first member of royalty to put her official agenda on hold due to an illness. The strange thing is that she stated that she does not want to make her illness public to protect her privacy, and that is what she is accused of and what she has done. the circus. It is evident that this formula has not worked well for the British royal family, which is usually a reference among the royal houses in dealing with crises, and therefore it will be difficult to see an equal attitude among European royals in the face of an illness.

An element that has been key for Middleton’s temporary disappearance to escalate to a kind of institutional crisis has been the visibility of the character, since there have been other more enigmatic and gruesome situations in neighboring royal houses and they have not transcended to the same level.

The case closest to Catherine’s is that of Princess Charlene of Monaco, who gave many more reasons to worry during her year of disappearance. Prince Albert’s wife was absent from her duties in May 2021 and did not return to public life until February 2022.

He fell ill while on a trip to raise awareness about the problem of rhino poaching in southern Africa. It was then said that the princess contracted an ear, nose and throat infection, of which no further details were given. The treatment—she underwent surgery up to three times—prevented her from getting on a plane back home and she spent half a year in South Africa away from her children.

“As I know there are rumors, let me say that it is not covid, it is not related to cancer and, if you want to talk about more speculation, it is not related to cosmetic surgery,” an upset Alberto revealed to People magazine while his wife was convalescent. Upon returning to Monaco in November 2021, Charlene was also not ready to return to her schedule and she spent about three months in a Swiss clinic. Afterwards, Alberto declared that his wife “was exhausted, physically and emotionally” and Charlene justified that “difficult moment” with some sugary, uninteresting statements.

But the one who disappears more often than any other royal is the Alawite king. Mohamed VI of Morocco has stopped several high-ranking foreign officials and members of royalty from visiting the country due to his repeated absences. Since 2009, the monarch’s health has been questioned. First because of his weight gain, then because of his rapid weight loss, because of the two confirmed heart operations and also because of his long stays in Paris, Gabon and Seychelles.

The king’s health is a topic that few media outlets talk about in Morocco, and the Alawite royal house also does not usually comment on the king’s ailments unless it is essential. He spent about 200 days outside the country in 2022 and in February 2023 he stood up to Pedro Sánchez during his official visit to Retire in Gabon. To justify one of his many indispositions, palace sources revealed that the monarch suffers from COPD.

Empress Masako of Japan also spent long periods in hiding due to her illness, and Emperor Naruhito had to admit in 2004 the drama that affected his wife due to her repeated absences. The nicknamed butterfly with broken wings has suffered chain depressions caused by pressure from the Japanese imperial house. She has been absent from countless official engagements over the years inside and outside the land of the Rising Sun, for example, the wedding of Kings Felipe and Letizia.

As attention is focused on Catherine, little is said about the details of Charles III’s cancer. The king has not disappeared from public life, but he has not wanted to communicate where his cancer is located or how serious it is. It was only revealed that it was not prostate cancer because he announced it days after surgery for an enlarged gland.