The Queen hosted rape survivor Gisèle Pelicot at Clarence House this afternoon. Camilla, a long-standing campaigner on domestic and sexual violence, said she was left “speechless” by the account of her ordeal in her new memoir. 

Her Majesty previously wrote to Ms Pelicot commending her “courage” and “grace” for waiving her right to anonymity in a horrific mass-rape case involving her ­ex-husband and 50 other men. Ms Pelicot, 73, became a global hero and worldwide symbol in the struggle against sexual violence. The horrors she endured were widely publicised during a trial that lasted nearly four months.

Camilla invited Ms Pelicot, 73, to her official London residence as her UK tour promoting the book drew to a close and told her guest she read the memoir in just two days, unable to put it down.

The launch of Hymn to Life: Shame Has to Change Sides, was held at London’s Royal Festival Hall on Friday, with readings given by Hollywood actresses Kate Winslet, Dame Kristin Scott Thomas and Juliet Stevenson.

When the two women sat down over tea at Clarence House for a 30-minute meeting, Camilla said about the memoir: “I read it in the last two days, I couldn’t put it down.

“I’ve met so many survivors of rape and sexual abuse I never thought I could be shocked by anything any more, but I was shocked at your case – it left me speechless.”

Camilla has been working to raise awareness of violence against women since 2010, and has previously ­admitted it was a “gritty” subject that many have shied away from, but that she was keen to continue working on the issue.

Ms Pelicot’s ex-husband, Dominique Pelicot, was jailed for 20 years for drugging and raping her and allowing other men to rape her while she was unconscious, in abuse which lasted nearly a decade. 

The feminist icon said shame should fall on her abusers, not her.

Fifty men were found guilty of rape or sexual offences after a three-and-a-half-month trial in Avignon, which ended in December 2024.

Earlier this month, Ms Pelicot said she felt “overwhelmed” and “very honoured” to receive a personal letter of support from the Queen. She added, “although my words touched the whole world, I wasn’t expecting a letter from the Court of England”.

In her letter, Camilla told the Frenchwoman that she had “inspired women across the globe” and “created a powerful legacy that will change the narrative around shame, forever”.

“Thank you for all that you have done,” she wrote to Ms Pelicot. “You are very much in my thoughts and prayers, and I hope that you will now be able to rest and recover from this devastating ordeal.”