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By Max Foster, CNN
8 minute read
Updated 7:27 AM EDT, Fri September 9, 2022
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CNN reporter predicts what we'll see from King Charles
05:17 - Source: CNN
CNN —
God save the Queen, long live the King. The second Elizabethan age has come to an end and the royal family will now regroup around a new monarch for the next era in British history.
What will change for each of the royals?
Charles
Britain's King Charles III poses for a portrait in Buckingham Palace's Throne Room after his official coronation in May 2023.
Charles was born at Buckingham Palace on November 14, 1948. His mother was Princess Elizabeth at the time.
Princess Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, sit on a lawn with their children Prince Charles and Princess Anne in August 1951.
Charles attends his mother's coronation in 1953 with his grandmother, left, and his aunt Margaret.
Charles, right, shakes hands with Sir Gerald Creasy, the governor of Malta, as he and the rest of the royal family visit Malta in May 1954.
Charles rides with his mother and grandmother as they travel to Westminster Abbey for the wedding of Princess Margaret in May 1960.
Charles prepares for takeoff during a flying lesson in 1968. In 1971, he earned his wings as a jet pilot and joined the Royal Navy.
Queen Elizabeth II presents Charles to the people of Wales after his investiture as the Prince of Wales in July 1969.
Charles walks at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1970. He was the first royal heir to earn a university degree.
Charles, left, rides go-carts with his brother Prince Edward and his sister, Princess Anne, circa 1969.
Charles meets US President Richard Nixon during a private visit to Washington in July 1970.
Charles attends a conference with his father in November 1970.
Charles goes on a safari in Kenya in February 1971.
Charles prepares to fire a bazooka while visiting military barracks in West Berlin in October 1972.
Charles fishes with a wooden spear circa 1975.
Charles poses for sculptor David McFall in December 1975.
Charles smokes a peace pipe during a visit to Canada in July 1977.
Charles rides a horse during an equestrian event in Cirencester, England, in April 1978.
Charles, as colonel-in-chief, visits the Cheshire Regiment in Canterbury, England, in November 1978. He served in the Royal Navy from 1971 to 1976, and in 2012 his mother appointed him honorary five-star ranks in the navy, army and air force.
Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles are seen together circa 1979. They dated in the 70s and would eventually marry in 2005. It was the second marriage for both. Their first marriages ended in divorce.
Charles poses outside the Taj Mahal in India in 1980.
Charles kisses his first wife, Lady Diana Spencer, on the balcony of Buckingham Palace in July 1981. Their wedding ceremony was televised.
Charles and Princess Diana leave a London hospital with their first child, William, in July 1982.
Charles and Diana dance together at a formal event.
Charles shares a playful pie in the face while visiting a community center in Manchester, England, in December 1983.
Charles walks with people in traditional dress on a visit to Papua New Guinea in 1984.
Charles and Diana sit together in Toronto during a royal tour in October 1991. A year later, they were separated. Charles' affair with Camilla Parker Bowles became public in 1993.
Charles, Diana and their two sons, William and Harry, gather for V-J Day commemorations in London in August 1995. The couple divorced one year later.
Charles visits a mosque in London in March 1996.
South African President Nelson Mandela talks with Prince Charles in London in July 1996.
Charles poses with the Spice Girls in 1997.
Charles and his sons spend time together at the Balmoral Castle estate in Balmoral, Scotland, in August 1997.
Charles, second from right, and Princess Diana's two sisters meet in Paris after Diana was killed in a car crash there in August 1997. She was 36 years old.
Charles and his sons follow Diana's hearse in London in September 1997.
Charles stands beside his grandmother's coffin while it lies in state at Westminster Hall in London in April 2002.
Charles carries a specially painted football through the streets of Ashbourne, England, in March 2003.
Charles watches a parachute regiment during a D-Day re-enactment in Ranville, France, in June 2004.
Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles in April 2005.
Charles, the Prince of Wales, poses for an official portrait in November 2008. He became King after the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
Queen Elizabeth II presents Charles with the Royal Horticultural Society's Victoria Medal of Honor during a visit to the Chelsea Flower Show in London in May 2009.
Charles and Camilla were on their way to a performance at the London Palladium when their car was attacked by angry student protesters in December 2010. The students were protesting a hike in tuition fees.
Charles and Queen Elizabeth II were among those on the Buckingham Palace balcony after Prince William wed Kate Middleton in April 2011.
Charles reads the weather while touring BBC Scotland's headquarters in May 2012.
Charles meets with US President Barack Obama in the White House Oval Office in March 2015.
Charles and Camilla react as Zephyr, the bald-eagle mascot of the Army Air Corps, flaps his wings at the Sandringham Flower Show in July 2015.
Members of the royal family pose for a photo at Buckingham Palace in December 2016. From left are Camilla, duch*ess of Cornwall; Prince Charles; Queen Elizabeth II; Prince Philip; Prince William; and Catherine, duch*ess of Cambridge.
Charles visits the Italian town of Amatrice in April 2017, after an earthquake had hit.
Charles and Camilla ride on a raft while visiting the island of Borneo in November 2017.
Charles leads three cheers for his mother as the Queen celebrated her 92nd birthday at a London concert in April 2018.
From left, Prince Charles, Prince Andrew, duch*ess Camilla and Queen Elizabeth II watch a Royal Air Force flyover in July 2018.
Charles accompanies his future daughter-in-law, Meghan Markle, as she is married to Prince Harry in May 2018.
Charles lays a wreath at the Cenotaph in London to commemorate Remembrance Day in November 2018. It was also the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I.
Charles poses with family members for an official portrait to mark his 70th birthday. He's holding his grandson Prince George as Camilla sits next to his granddaughter, Princess Charlotte. In the back row, from left, are his grandson Prince Louis; his daughter-in-law Catherine; his son Prince William; his son Prince Harry; and his daughter-in-law Meghan.
Charles speaks at an event in London in March 2020. Later that month, it was announced that he had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
Charles and Camilla attend the funeral of Charles' father, Prince Philip, in April 2021.
Camilla looks on as Charles reacts to a bad pour of beer he made at a brewery in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, in May 2022. They were on a three-day Canadian tour.
Charles sits by the Imperial State Crown at the opening of Parliament in May 2022. His mother, the Queen, missed the occasion for the first time since 1963. The 96-year-old monarch had to withdraw due to a recurrence of mobility issues.
Charles is shown skulls of victims during a visit to the Nyamata Church Genocide Memorial in Nyamata, Rwanda, in June 2022. In 1994, Hutu extremists targeted minority ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus in a three-month killing spree that left an estimated 800,000 people dead, though local estimates are higher.
Prince Louis, the Queen's great-grandson, holds his hands over his ears as jets roar over Buckingham Palace during the Trooping the Colour parade in London on in June 2022. From left are Prince Charles; the Queen; Prince Louis; Catherine, the duch*ess of Cambridge; and Princess Charlotte.
Charles has his first audience with Prime Minister Liz Truss after becoming King in September 2022.
The King speaks in the Throne Room at St James's Palace during the Accession Council in London in September 2022. He was formally proclaimed as King. Joining him were his son Prince William and his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort.
Charles delivers his first address as King from Buckingham Palace. "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," he said.
Charles records his first Christmas speech in December 2022. The speech would be broadcast on Christmas Day throughout the United Kingdom.
The King meets Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who was visiting Buckingham Palace in February 2023. Zelensky made a surprise visit to the UK and gave a speech to the joint houses of Parliament.
The King greets the band Lords of The Lost during a reception in Hamburg, Germany, in March 2023. The King spent three days in Germany for what was his first overseas state visit as monarch.
The King sits in Buckingham Palace's Blue Drawing Room in March 2023.
The King attends the 200th Sovereign's Parade at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in April 2023.
Charles receives the St. Edward's Crown during his coronation ceremony at Westminster Abbey in May 2023.
Charles and Camilla travel to Buckingham Palace after the coronation ceremony.
The King and Queen stand on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the coronation. They are joined here by pages of honor who attended them throughout the day. One of the pages was the King's eldest grandson, Prince George, who can be seen second from left.
Charles and Camilla are pictured with members of the working royal family in May 2023.
Charles is presented with the Crown of Scotland during a service of thanksgiving that was held at the St. Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh, Scotland, in July 2023. Scotland was celebrating the King's recent coronation with a day of festivities.
The King shares a toast with French President Emmanuel Macron during a state dinner at the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France, in September 2023. It was the first day of Charles' state visit to France.
The King waves as he leaves the London Clinic with Queen Camilla in January 2024. The King underwent a corrective procedure for an enlarged prostate, CNN understands. In early February, Buckingham Palace announced that the King has been diagnosed with a form of cancer.
In pictures: Britain's King Charles III
The moment Elizabeth II died, her eldest child, Charles, automatically became monarch. As sovereign, he has chosen to take the name King Charles III.
All rights and responsibilities of the Crown now rest with King Charles III.
He becomes head of state not just in the UK but in 14 other Commonwealth realms including Australia and Canada. He will become head of the 56-member Commonwealth, although that is not a hereditary position, after his succession to the role was agreed by Commonwealth leaders at a meeting in London in 2018.
He has become head of the British Armed Forces, the judiciary and the civil service, and he is the Supreme Governor of the Church of England. He is the Fount of Honour, which means all honors, such as knighthoods, will now be given in his name.
The United Kingdom does not have a codified constitution, so the role of monarchy is defined by convention rather than law. He has a duty to remain politically impartial, which means he will come under greater scrutiny if he continues to express the views he is known for.
He has championed alternative medicines and organic farming techniques. In 1984, he hit out at the “glass stumps and concrete towers” of modern architecture. He has spent decades warning of the dangers of climate change. In the so-called “black spider” memos, he raised the issues he was concerned about directly with ministers.
In a BBC documentary to mark his 70th birthday, Charles acknowledged having ruffled feathers with his past interventions. But he promised not to meddle in controversial affairs once sovereign, saying he would operate within “the constitutional parameters.”
Elizabeth stayed “above politics” and never expressed herself in any way on any issue and as a result she rarely divided opinion. She managed to retain popular support and cross-party support in parliament, which was the one body with the power to dethrone her.
We will never know what she discussed in her regular audiences with her prime ministers, beginning with Churchill, but Charles is a more outspoken character. Will he go quiet on policy matters in public but continue to lobby in private? Will the prime minister act on it?
The prime ministerial audiences are one of several constitutional duties to which King Charles III will be expected to step up and they will bring him in regular contact with policymakers. He appoints the prime minister, opens parliamentary sessions, approves legislation and official appointments, receives the credentials of foreign ambassadors and hosts world leaders on state visits.
Charles has also adopted the symbolic position as Head of Nation, meaning he becomes the symbol of national identity, unity, and pride. He represents continuity and celebrates excellence on behalf of the country. That’s why we see the monarch opening national events and leading commemorations.
People would look to Elizabeth in times of crisis, but will they rally around King Charles III in the same way? He is more divisive not just because of his honest views but also because of the bad taste still left from his acrimonious divorce from his immensely popular first wife, Diana.
All the official royal residences including Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle will now be under his control. There are also other residences such as Balmoral in Scotland and Sandringham in Norfolk which the Queen owned privately – and the nation will have to see to whom she leaves them in her will.
Either way, Charles’ wealth has ballooned. By far the biggest slice of the family’s fortune, the £16.5 billion ($19 billion) Crown Estate, now belongs to him as reigning monarch. But under an arrangement dating back to 1760, the monarch hands over all profits from the estate to the government in return for a slice, called the Sovereign Grant.
The estate includes vast swathes of central London property and the seabed around England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It has the status of a corporation and is managed by a chief executive and commissioners — or non-executive directors — appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister.
The grant, which covers the cost of his official duties and amounted to £86.3 million ($99.2 million) for the 2021/2022 financial year. He will take charge of the Royal Collection, which includes one of the most valuable art collections in the world. He also picks up the Duchy of Lancaster, a private estate dating back to 1265, which was valued at about £653 million ($764 million) according to its most recent accounts. Income from its investments cover official costs not met by the Sovereign Grant, and helps support other Royal family members.
King Charles III has become one of the richest men in England overnight.
Camilla
Charles and Camilla attend the Order of the Garter Service at St George's Chapel on June 13, 2022 in Windsor, England.
For years, the big question around Charles’ wife surrounded her title. At the time their wedding was announced in February 2005, the official statement said: “It is intended that Mrs Parker Bowles should use the title HRH The Princess Consort when The Prince of Wales accedes to The Throne.” That was a very clear signal that Camilla would not use the title of Queen. Her office at Clarence House distanced itself from that statement in the intervening years, however, saying it was a matter for the reigning monarch.
Then, in February 2022, the Queen expressed her desire for her daughter-in-law to be known as Queen Consort when Charles became King in a message marking the start of her platinum jubilee year – a statement that appeared to resolve the issue for good.
The Queen’s wishes were welcomed by the couple themselves. That same weekend, a statement released by a spokesperson said they had been “touched and honoured by Her Majesty’s words.”
Where will the couple live? Well, traditionally the new monarch would move into Buckingham Palace but in 2011, the BBC reported that Charles was considering moving his entire court to Windsor and turning Buckingham Palace into an events center. That would be a dramatic and controversial shift but might also assert King Charles III as the new boss.
William and Catherine
William and Catherine are pictured with their children, George, Charlotte and Louis, and the Queen, Charles and Camilla at Buckingham Palace during platinum jubilee celebrations on June 5, 2022.
Up until now, Charles has been responsible for covering the costs of his heir, Prince William.
William has now inherited his father’s titles of The Duke of Cornwall, which comes with an estate which last year delivered an income of £23 million ($26 million). That money now goes straight to William and he becomes independently wealthy.
His new title is HRH The Duke of Cornwall and Cambridge and tradition dictates that, as first in line to the throne, he also becomes Prince of Wales. And Catherine becomes Her Royal Highness, The Princess of Wales and duch*ess of Cornwall and Cambridge.
William and Catherine will be able to solidify their own independent court, which is currently based at Kensington Palace in west London, in an apartment that was refurbished shortly after their marriage. It seems unlikely that William would want to move, so the King’s former residences, including Clarence House and Birkhall in the Scottish Highlands, will likely remain vacant until Charles offers them to other members of the family, or finds an alternative use. The family resides at Adelaide Cottage in Windsor during school term time.
Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis will follow their parents’ titling. They are now Their Royal Highnesses Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis of Cornwall and Cambridge. Colloquially they are likely to be known as George, Charlotte and Louis Wales.
Harry and Meghan
Meghan, duch*ess of Sussex and Prince Harry react as they attend the annual One Young World Summit in Manchester, north-west England on September 5, 2022.
It’s unlikely that Charles’ second son, Harry, will be offered a royal office unless he and wife Meghan return to their royal duties, and the King would also need to confirm that they can continue to use Frogmore Cottage on the Windsor estate, which is part of the royal estate. They currently live with son Archie and daughter Lilibet in California but were allowed to continue using Frogmore as their official residence during the Queen’s reign.
When Harry and Meghan announced in early 2020 that they were stepping back from royal duties, they said they would “work to become financially independent.” The terms of the split stipulated that while the pair would always remain part of the family, they would no longer use their HRH titles.
As grandchildren of the monarch, Archie now automatically becomes Prince Archie of Sussex while Lilibet will be Princess Lilibet of Sussex. Whether they use those titles will only become known the first time their parents refer to them publicly.
Prince Andrew and other family members
King Charles III also becomes responsible for distributing roles, responsibilities and resources to other members of the royal family.
Charles has never been close to his brother Andrew, who stepped back from royal duties over his links to the late disgraced financier, Jeffrey Epstein. In January 2022 he was stripped of his HRH title, as well as others associated with the military and charity roles. That raises the question of whether the new King continues to allow Andrew to use his Buckingham Palace apartment and offers financial support.
Then there are his other siblings, Princess Anne and Prince Edward, and more distant relatives such as the Gloucesters and Kents who retain royal residences at Kensington.
Princess Anne attends a service at St Giles' Cathedral on June 30, 2022 in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Charles will need to decide how much family support he needs to carry out his duties and who he wants to offer it. Then he can reveal what support he offers in return. Many of these decisions would already have been taken and the first telling signs of where his loyalties lie will be seen in who gets to keep which residences and especially who gets an upgrade.
Anne and Edward, and his wife Sophie, The Countess of Wessex, are expected to continue with their public duties following decades of dedicated service but the new King needs to balance that against pressure for a slimmed down monarchy in austere times.
To get updates on the British Royal Family sent to your inbox, sign up for CNN’s Royal News newsletter.
CNN’s Anna Cooban contributed to this report.
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