The Duchess of Cornwall and her links to a 'passionate' previous royal consort Both women - and their husbands - had been married before they joined the royal family. After these marriages, both enjoyed a close relationship with their stepchildren and took on particular roles mentoring younger female royals. As the Duchess is said to get on well with both the Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry, and to have helped the Duchess of Cambridge adjust to royal life, so Parr was personally involved in the education of Edward and Elizabeth, and was influential in restoring Henry's older daughter, Mary, to the line of succession. Rev Partington, said: "The Duchess of Cornwall, like Katherine Parr, has significance as a royal wife, and just as Katherine had an important influence in the development of the English monarchy, in our generation Camilla is a leading figure in the royal family at a time of change." The vicar emphasised how Parr - who had strong Protestant sympathies - had played not only a pivotal role in the English reformation, but also, as an influential stepmother whose three stepchildren went on to become monarchs, had shaped the course of the monarchy and English history itself. He added: "She is a very significant figure in the English reformation, but on the whole history books write about the men. She is quite a significant figure in her own right, though. It was a time of upheaval in the English church, and during that time she was quite a pacifying influence. She was queen regent for a while when her husband went abroad - she was a very cultured and intelligent woman and she was a leading proponent of the English reformation. She was the most influential of all Henry VIII's wives. Whether the Duchess will emulate Parr by actually becoming queen is still a source of debate. Officially, she is to become Princess Consort when Prince Charles accedes to the throne. But earlier this year, she prompted speculation when, asked by a schoolchild if she would be the queen, she replied "you never know." The Duchess became involved in the new book as a result of her long-standing friendship with Lady Ashcombe, the current owner of Sudeley Castle, in Gloucestershire. This was where Parr - who married Henry VIII in 1543 after the execution of his previous wife, Catherine Howard - lived out her days after her husband died and were she was buried, after her own death in 1548. Last year the Duchess was patron of the Castle's 500th anniversary celebrations of Parr's birth and on a visit to Sudeley she met Rev Partington, who is vicar of the surrounding parish of Winchcombe. She was shown a copy of the Prayer Book written by Parr - who was the most-married English queen, having had four husbands - and Rev Partington led her to the queen's tomb in St Mary's Church where the pair said some of the prayers. The vicar, 56, later wrote to the Duchess of Cornwall asking whether she would write the foreword to a book compiling the works. In the foreword, the Duchess writes that Parr's "voice speaks to us still: her commitment to what is right and good, expressed with humility and openness to others, is as valuable now as it was in the more turbulent times of the Tudors." She adds: "Few women's writings have come down to us from so many centuries ago. In the pages that follow are found not only some of the carefully crafted prayers that Katherine intended for publication, but also the more personal hopes and fears of a woman who was as passionate in her faith as she was in other aspects of her eventful life.