Charles, Prince of Wales, the eldest child of Queen Elizabeth II, is now the monarch of Great Britain. But because he is 73, the main topics of discussion during his reign will be his age and the waning power of the British monarchy internationally.
Even though Charles begins a new profession at an age when most people have retired, he has spent the majority of his life as the heir apparent and has established himself as a well-known figure in his own right.
He has, however, occasionally courted controversy with strongly held beliefs that have made him a more outspoken, polarizing character, in stark contrast to the neutrality his mother maintained.
While Princess Elizabeth became queen at the age of 25 with a lot of public support in a post-World War II Britain, the public has had decades to to form its opinion — good or bad — of Charles.
![[FILE] The coffin of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II is carried out of the Westminster Abbey in London on September 19, 2022, during the State Funeral Service. (Photo by Ian Vogler / POOL / AFP)](https://www.afriupdate.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/32JP334-Preview_W-e1663588371734-1062x535-1-120x86.jpg "Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral cost UK $200 million 2")
He scored a 56 percent approval rating in a May 2022 YouGov poll, far behind the queen (81 percent), his oldest son Prince William (77 percent), and William’s wife Catherine (76 percent).
Charles’ second wife Camilla lagged behind him with 48% of the vote.
With Camilla, his younger brother Edward, William, and Kate forming a close-knit inner group around him, Charles has been notably more public since the passing of his father, Prince Philip, in April 2021 and his mother’s deteriorating health.
According to royal biographer Phil Dampier, “Whatever happens, he’s not going to have a long reign and that’s going to be tough for him.”
But he’s known this for a while, and I believe people will start to pay attention to William now.
Queen Camilla
Charles, who was born on November 14, 1948, ascended to the throne at the tender age of three years, three months.
As the heir, his mother has served as the “focal point for national pride, solidarity, and fealty” from his first formal engagements in the 1970s.
He has welcomed dignitaries on her behalf, attended states dinners, flown as her foreign ambassador to more than 100 countries, and bestowed honours in her honor.
He is best known to the world not just for his idyllic union with Lady Diana Spencer in 1981, but also for their highly publicized separation and divorce in the 1990s.
However, Charles has been largely rehabilitated since marrying Camilla, and he has proven right about his early warnings on the environment that led to him being initially labeled as a crank. While this has solidified public opinion against him for some, Charles has been largely rehabilitated.
Charles has published his own carbon footprint since 2007 and is a proponent of alternative medicine, gardening, and sustainability – to the point where he once acknowledged communicating with his plants.
He oversees or is engaged with more than 420 charities, including the Prince’s Trust, which since its founding in 1976 has assisted more than a million young, disadvantaged people.
However, in recent months, some of his former top aides have become involved in controversies involving donations, which has led to a police probe.
In 2022, the queen put an end to years of rumors about Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Charles’ second wife.
She would always succeed to the title of queen consort, in theory.
However, given its connotations with Diana, who passed away in 1997, Camilla, who wed Charles in a civil ceremony in 2005, decided against adopting the title of princess of Wales.
Instead, she said that she wanted to become the first “princess consort” in British history.
However, the queen expressed her “sincere wish” that Camilla be known as queen consort when Charles becomes king in a message to commemorate her 70th year on the throne, thus endorsing Camilla.
King Charles III?
There is no interregnum and the ascension is immediate in accordance with the Latin proverb “Rex nunquam moritur,” which means that the king never dies.
Charles Philip Arthur George has four names to choose from, and over the years there has been much conjecture about which one he will use.
And even though he is not required to, he will probably take the throne as Charles III, becoming the first monarch by that name to rule the United Kingdom since 1685.
Although it’s unlikely, Royal novelist Bob Morris suggested he could yet surprise the reader.
He told AFP that “we anticipate that he would likely stick with Charles and that he will prefer a speedier and smaller coronation.”
When the Accession Council, a ceremonial group that convenes following a monarch’s demise, crowns him king at St. James’s Palace in the heart of London, the query will be resolved.
After the initial shock of the queen’s passing has subsided, the coronation, a special ceremony steeped in centuries of tradition, should take place.
Approximately 16 months after being declared queen upon the demise of her father, monarch George VI, the queen herself was crowned in June 1953.
When 8,250 people jammed into Westminster Abbey to attend her coronation and millions more watched it on television, Morris dubbed the occasion “the last imperial hurrah.”
Follow our socials Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Google News.
