Prince Charles has this Urdu moniker for his wife Camilla

Members of the British royal family are known to have nicknames for each other, many of which remain undisclosed to the public. It has now been revealed that Prince Charles also has a very special nickname for Duchess Camilla, his wife of 17 years, which reflects the love he holds for her.

A friend of the Prince of Wales told Rebecca English for Mail Online, "He loves his wife, he adores her. He calls her his "mehbooba" – "my beloved" [in Urdu]."

The pal was commenting on the recent momentous decision by Queen Elizabeth II that Camilla would be known as the Queen Consort when Prince Charles takes over the throne, instead of the Princess Consort title she was expected to get. The source said that Prince Charles was intent on making sure that his wife gets the honour to rule by his side when he becomes King of the United Kingdom.

"How could he be a true husband and endorse a situation when she was asked to be a second-class citizen?" the friend said.

At the time of Charles and Camilla's marriage in 2005, the palace had clarified that the Duchess will not be known as the Princess of Wales, and the Queen in the future, to honour the legacy of the late Princess Diana. A source close to Prince Charles said that ensuring that she gets the right to be called Queen was less about the role itself and more about respect.

"He feels she deserves to be treated as any other second wife. What other woman isn't allowed to be called "Mrs X" and have the same rights and privileges as a first wife? The truth is, to deny her of it would be punitive," the insider said.

Sources revealed that Charles and his team had made up their mind around four or five years ago that Camilla should become Queen Consort. "It was absolutely a done deal as far as Clarence House were concerned," and they were even planning to announce it in 2019 coinciding it with the 50th anniversary of Charles's coronation as the Prince of Wales.

However, they "bottled it" at the last minute as the occasion was more about Charles than the Queen, and they were "still nervous" about how the news would be received without the monarch's endorsement.

One senior royal aide explained that the Queen, who would be celebrating her 96th birthday in April this year, finally made the decision as over the past few months she has not been shy about talking about the future. "While most people don't want to think of the Queen's passing, she does. And she feels it is time to tie up the loose ends. This is the Queen looking forward and addressing an issue that she thinks really needs to be addressed. Nobody puts words in the Queen's mouth," the source explained.