A secret royal plan to force abdication? A rift between brothers that could grow even wider?
King Charles waited 70 years for the crown, but how long is his reign expected to last?
For many members of the British public, it was hard to even think of the British monarchy
when Queen Elizabeth II wasn't in charge. She sat on the throne for an impressive 70 years,
reaching the advanced age of 96 and working up until two days before her death. She was,
without question, dedicated to the crown unlike any other. And while King Charles III could have
another two decades in him — taking him to 93 years old — the public might not get to see
similar dedication in the same vein as his mother. Even as he took on the monarchy in the immediate
wake of his mother's passing, Charles was on the receiving end of public pressure. Far more people
wanted to see Prince William, Prince of Wales, as king, skipping Charles almost entirely. And,
while the monarchy seldom bows to public pressure, the late queen was said to have put a plan in
motion to ensure her son steps down from the throne by the time he turns 80. A high ranking
royal source told OK! Magazine that Elizabeth devised that plan before her death, ensuring that
the monarchy would survive far past a possibly tumultuous Charles reign. The source told OK!,
"Her Majesty isn't certain her family is up to the job of guiding Britain for the next 100 years."
When Prince William does eventually take the throne — whether that's through an act of
abdication on King Charles III's part or in the event of Charles' death — he will immediately
be named king. As you may recall, Charles became king as soon as Queen Elizabeth II
died. Formalities — even the national anthem — were changed in the direct aftermath,
shifting royal allegiances from the late queen to the new king.
In the event that William takes the throne, he will receive the title of king along with the
responsibilities of the crown, but his actual coronation will likely take place months after.
This will be the case for a variety of reasons — if William becomes king due to Charles' death,
a national mourning period will follow, making an immediate coronation a bit
inappropriate. Furthermore, a coronation takes ample planning and cannot be thrown
together in a matter of weeks — it's an affair that takes months, if not years,
to plan, so time is certainly needed to get everything right.
In fact, as of this video, King Charles III has yet to enjoy a coronation. Charles'
coronation — known as Operation Golden Orb — is set to take place on May 6,
2023, almost eight months after the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.
"God bless the queen!"
Quite a lot of attention was paid to Camilla Parker Bowles' title when she married then-Prince
Charles in 2005. It was announced at the time of the wedding that Camilla would take on the title
of princess consort following her husband's ascension to the throne. It should of course
be noted that Camilla had a fairly low approval rating, as much of the public still see her as the
"other woman" in the relationship between Charles and the late Diana Spencer. But, amid her Platinum
Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II announced that Camilla would instead take the title of queen consort,
a rather significant jump. She is now colloquially referred to as Queen Camilla now that King Charles
III is the reigning monarch, setting a precedent that Princess Catherine will surely follow.
Catherine — who married Prince William in 2011 — will most likely be named
queen consort when her husband takes the throne. Why the "consort" designation?
Consort is given to those who are royal by marriage, not royal by blood. Catherine,
born to a wealthy but title-free family, was not royal until her wedding and as such will
likely have the consort attachment. But she will likely be called Queen Catherine by the public.
If William were to die before Catherine and their eldest son — Prince George of
Wales — was to take the throne, Catherine would likely be named the queen mother.
King Charles III has spent the majority of his life waiting
to assume the throne. At 73 years old, Charles is finally fulfilling
a role that he's been preparing for since he was practically in diapers.
"God save the king."
As for Prince William, Charles' eldest son had been second in line to the throne for
his entire life, but his position in the line of succession changed
significantly when Queen Elizabeth II died.
William is now the direct heir to the throne. When William becomes king,
his son, Prince George of Wales, will become the direct heir to the throne.
Princess Charlotte's position will change too. When William becomes king, the young girl will
become second in line to the throne. However, it is only thanks to an act passed in 2013 that
Charlotte won't be circumvented in the succession line, and we're here to break it all down.
King Charles was, of course, the direct heir to the British throne for decades. When she was born,
Princess Anne — Charles' younger sister and Queen Elizabeth II's second eldest
child — was directly behind him. But when Elizabeth had Prince Andrew and Prince Edward,
the two younger siblings jumped ahead of Anne in the line of succession,
all thanks to her gender. As Charles, Andrew, and Edward had children of their own, Anne's
place in line continued to get pushed back — as it stands, Anne is 16th in line to the throne.
Thanks to the Succession to the Crown Act, William's daughter, Charlotte, will maintain her
spot in the royal line, unlike Anne. If and when her older brother, George, has children of his
own, her place will start to drop, but the shift she may experience won't be nearly as severe.
"Hello, David Attenborough! I like spiders. Do you like spiders too?"
In one of the more famous scenes from Netflix's hit series The Crown, the fictional Elizabeth
is asked what she'd like her regal name to be. She says she doesn't want to change her name.
"My name is Elizabeth."
Of course, the scene got to the heart of a topic Prince William will have to address
when he becomes king — what name he would like to be called. When we look back in time,
royal names have changed, although the shifts do cause a little bit of confusion. King George
VI — Elizabeth's father — was named Albert Frederick Arthur George at birth. Yet, when
it came time for him to assume the throne, he went by George as a nod to his father. But of course,
Queen Elizabeth II chose to maintain her birth name as ruler, as has King Charles III. The
Washington Post further noted that this came as a little bit of a surprise, given that King Charles
I was seen as a "tyrant" and King Charles II had at one point quite the "playboy" reputation.
So, when William inevitably takes the throne, he will have to decide whether
he wants to maintain his name or choose a different moniker. He was born William
Arthur Philip Louis, so he does have three other names to choose from if he wishes.
As his role as direct heir to the British throne stands,
Prince William makes his dedication to the crown known through his work as a senior
royal. He and his wife are often seen at public events that support charities, organizations,
and causes they care about. They also represent the crown and the royal family as a whole on
international trips — although their Caribbean tour in early 2022 was a bit of a disaster.
"Not quite the welcome they were hoping for."
But, when William becomes king, his duties will expand quite significantly as he
will be expected to travel to Commonwealth countries and regularly meet with leaders.
One of the first aspects of the job that King Charles III executed — even in the immediate
wake of his mother's passing — was meeting with Commonwealth representatives. The newly
named king also traveled around Great Britain, meeting with mourners and uniting the country
as it experienced the passing of a beloved monarch. William will likely be expected to
do the same — and given that he will most definitely be younger than his father when
he assumes the throne, the new king may even be expected to hit the road often.
Of course, it will be quite a bit easier for William to
travel as compared to us commonplace folks. William will no longer need
a passport when he becomes king — no pesky customs and immigration for him.
Perhaps one of the most visited sites in London is Buckingham Palace, naturally,
given its central location and prominent position as the dominant home for ruling royals. Queen
Elizabeth II — when not at Windsor or Scotland's Balmoral Castle — spent a significant amount of
time at Buckingham Palace, allowing for regular audiences with prime ministers,
official events, and more royal duties to take place. As such, it is likely that when Prince
William takes the throne, he and his family will move onto the Buckingham Palace grounds.
The subject of where Prince William and Princess Catherine will live has been in the news recently
given their departure from London's Kensington Palace in the summer of 2022. Opting for a
quieter life in the country, William and Catherine decided on Windsor as their primary residence,
allowing their children more privacy and a school life not encumbered by prying paparazzi.
"This is a royal relocation."
It should be included, however, that William and Catherine have retained their Kensington
and Norfolk mansion properties — one incredible home is simply not enough for a royal family.
Despite their current residence at Windsor,
the Wales family will likely relocate when William eventually takes the throne,
allowing him to be far more present and readily available for any and all royal duties.
The royal family, as it stands, has a number of stars. With so many moving parts — and so
much drama to keep at bay — it didn't come as a huge shock to learn that even before taking
the throne, King Charles III had plans to make the royal family considerably smaller.
A source told The Mirror,
"The king has long been an advocate of a streamlined or slimmed down monarchy."
And while we're still in the early days of his reign,
it's likely that we'll see a continuation of Charles' boundaries during William's reign.
Of course, one only has to look at William's ongoing feud with his younger brother, Harry,
to get a sense of where allegiances lie. While Harry has made it clear that he prioritizes his
wife, children, and mental health above all else, William has displayed his dedication to
the crown. It is likely this perspective will be maintained — and perhaps increased — over time.