Not quite 24 hours after announcing the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the United Kingdom’s longest reigning sovereign, King Charles III addressed the world. Although the somewhat temperamental and opinionated Charles often differed from his more stoic, service-minded mother, Charles made clear in two crucial ways how he would emulate her unprecedented 70-year tenure.
For starters, contrary to a quarter-century of fantasizing from fans of his first wife, the late Diana, Princess of Wales, Charles will not abdicate. Charles paid homage to the queen’s 21st birthday address in South Africa, in which Elizabeth proclaimed that she would “devote her life, whether it be short or long, to the service of her peoples.”
“As the queen herself did with such unswerving devotion, I too now solemnly pledge myself, throughout the remaining time God grants me, to uphold the constitutional principles at the heart of our nation,” Charles declared, strongly implying that he too will never willingly abdicate in favor of his heir.
And what about his family? Charles also elucidated that he wouldn’t make any in his most inner circle work for their upgraded titles — and he offered an olive branch to his second son.
Camilla, as already proclaimed by Clarence House, is now queen consort. Per the queen’s explicated wishes, she will be crowned alongside her second husband. William and his wife Catherine are now the prince and princess of Wales and the inheritors of the lucrative Duchy of Cornwall.
“I want also to express my love for Harry and Meghan as they continue to build their lives overseas,” Charles also said.
Left unsaid here is if Charles will follow the convention established under George V and recognize his grandchildren by Harry, Archie Harrison and Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, as prince and princess. Of course, Harry could eschew those titles, as the princess royal did for her two children, but given Meghan’s very public fulmination over Archie’s title, or lack thereof, that seems unlikely.
Beyond the interpersonal bickering that Charles seemed to lay to rest, the most important piece of his address may very well be how conventional it was. He was heartfelt in his homage to his darling “mummy,” humble in recognizing the gravity of his role as head of the Church of England, and honest in his implication that he would have to stand back from his more polarizing advocacy, notably in the realm of climate change.
The queen left behind a throne remarkable in its resilience, given the republican fervor it survived, surpassed, and rose above to thrive. If the king’s first speech sets the precedence for his reign, it may very well live to see its second millennium through.
