Timothy Laurence

Vice Admiral Sir Timothy James Hamilton Laurence, born on March 1, 1955, in Camberwell, South London, is a retired officer of the Royal Navy. He is married to Princess Anne, the Princess Royal, who is the only sister of King Charles III.

Laurence is the younger son of Commander Guy Stewart Laurence (1896–1982), who was later a sales executive for MAN Marine Engines, and Barbara Alison (née Symons, 1928–2019). He has an elder brother, Jonathan Dobree Laurence (born in 1952). The Laurence family traces patrilineally to Zaccaria Levy, a Jewish merchant from Venice, possibly of Baghdad origin, who migrated to England in the late 18th century. Levy's son, Joseph, adopted the family surname Laurence.

He attended The New Beacon Preparatory School and Sevenoaks School in Kent. Laurence studied Geography at University College, University of Durham, on a Naval Scholarship, earning a Bachelor of Science (Hons) degree with an Upper Second-Class classification. During his time as an undergraduate, he served as editor of the student newspaper Palatinate.

Laurence was commissioned into the Royal Navy as a midshipman on January 1, 1973, and became an acting sub-lieutenant two years later, on January 1, 1975. After completing initial training at Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth, he was assigned to HMS Aurora, a frigate based in Plymouth. He was promoted to lieutenant on March 1, 1977, ten months ahead of schedule. His early naval postings included attachment to HMS Vernon, the Royal Navy's training establishment, and service aboard the Ton-class minesweeper HMS Pollington.

He served as the Second Navigating Officer of the Royal Yacht HMY Britannia and as Navigating Officer on HMS Sheffield, a destroyer, from 1980 to 1982. In 1982, Laurence commanded the patrol boat HMS Cygnet off Northern Ireland during operations against IRA gunrunners, an assignment for which he was Mentioned in Despatches. After attending the Principal Warfare Officer course at HMS Dryad, he served on HMS Alacrity, a frigate.

On March 1, 1985, Laurence was promoted to lieutenant commander. In March 1986, he attended the Royal Australian Navy Tactics Course at HMAS Watson in Sydney, during which he received his first staff appointment as equerry to Queen Elizabeth II, serving from October 11, 1986, to September 16, 1989. He was promoted to commander on December 31, 1988.

In October 1989, Laurence was posted to HMS Boxer and became the commanding officer on January 30, 1990, at age 34. From 1992 to 1994, he served on the Naval Staff at the Ministry of Defence, London. In May 1994, he was appointed First Military Assistant to the Secretary of State for Defence, Malcolm Rifkind. Laurence attained the rank of captain on June 30, 1995, and commanded HMS Cumberland until 1996, including a deployment in the Adriatic with NATO's IFOR.

He was appointed Commanding Officer of HMS Montrose and Captain of the 6th Frigate Squadron in August 1996. His ship conducted patrols of the Falkland Islands during this period. From 1998, he was involved in implementing the 1998 Strategic Defence Review at the Ministry of Defence.

Laurence has held various academic and military leadership roles, including as a Hudson Visiting Fellow at St Antony's College, Oxford in 1989. He served as Assistant Commandant at the Joint Services Command and Staff College starting June 15, 1999. Between 2001 and 2004, he was Director of Navy Resources and Programmes at the Ministry of Defence.

Promoted to rear admiral on July 5, 2004, Laurence became Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff for Resources and Plans on April 30, 2007. He advanced to vice admiral and served as chief executive of Defence Estates, later the Defence Infrastructure Organisation. In 2008, he was admitted as a Younger Brother of Trinity House.

His later roles included Head of Profession for Property Asset Management in the UK government, which he assumed in July 2009. That year, he was awarded honorary membership by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Laurence retired from the Royal Navy in August 2010, after which he engaged in various non-executive and charitable pursuits related to property development, regeneration, and heritage conservation.

He was involved in organizations such as Capita Symonds, Dorchester Regeneration, and Purfleet Centre Regeneration. He also served as a senior military adviser to PA Consulting until 2015. Laurence served as Master of the Worshipful Company of Coachmakers and Coach Harness Makers in 2010/11, and was Chairman of the English Heritage Trust from April 2015 to December 2022. Additionally, he was Vice-Chairman of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission until June 30, 2019, and a Trustee of the HMS Victory Preservation Company.

Laurence's other engagements include membership of the Great Western Advisory Board, presidency of Kent County Cricket Club in 2020, and election as a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in 2021. In December 2023, he was appointed Chairman of the Science Museum Group.

He married Princess Anne on December 12, 1992, in a Church of Scotland ceremony at Crathie Kirk near Balmoral Castle. The marriage followed rumors of Princess Anne's marital difficulties and prior to her divorce from Captain Mark Phillips. Laurence was appointed a Personal Aide-de-Camp to the Queen in 2008, and in June 2011, he was invested as a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. He was further promoted to Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order in August 2025.

Following his marriage, Laurence and Princess Anne leased Gatcliffe Park in Gloucestershire and resided at various locations in London, including apartments in Buckingham Palace and St James's Palace. In January 2025, Laurence withdrew from an official visit to South Africa with Princess Anne due to a torn ligament sustained during estate work at Gatcombe Park.