Queen praises guest Gisele Pelicot and says she was left 'speechless' by ordeal
Camilla invited Ms Pelicot, 73, to her official London residence as her UK tour promoting her memoir drew to a close
The Queen has told French rape survivor Gisele Pelicot she was left "speechless" by the account of her ordeal at the hands of her ex-husband in her new memoir.
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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.
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.
Dominique was dubbed "The Monster of Avignon" for his appalling crimes.
The launch of her autobiography, titled 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.
The Queen wrote to the 73-year-old last year to praise her "extraordinary dignity and courage" in a letter the survivor said left her "overwhelmed" and which is now framed in her office.
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 anymore, but I was shocked at your case - it left me speechless."
The 73-year-old, who waived her right to anonymity as a survivor of sexual abuse, 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.