Long live King Charles III! Since Thursday September 8 and the announcement of the death of Elizabeth II, Charles, the eldest son of the queen, has automatically become king, at 73 years old. The one who has prepared all his life for this moment occupies a special place within the royal family.
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1Four first names, but no surname
King Charles III is named Charles Philip Arthur George. Tradition dictates that the heirs to the British crown have at least three first names. When he was born on November 14, 1948, King Charles III, first child of Elizabeth and Philip, was spoiled with a fourth. Each first name is scrutinized and chosen in connection with the history of the royal family.
Why these choices of first names? Two kings have taken the name Charles during the long history of the crown, Philip may be a nod to his father, Prince Philip, who died on April 9, 2021. Arthur is also a first name found regularly in the royal family: it refers to the legendary character, which dates back to the Middle Ages. Finally, the name George is one of the names carried in particular by his grandfather, the father of Elizabeth II, George VI. If they have many first names, the royal children do not have a family name. When a surname must be used, however, it is Mountbatten-Windsor.
2He is the oldest heir to accede to the throne
Charles III ascends the throne at age 73, making him the oldest king to take office. And yet, he has been ready for many years, unlike his queen of mom. He indeed became the heir to the British crown at a very young age: the day his mother, 25, acceded to the British throne, on February 6, 1952, after the death of King George VI. Young Charles was then 3 years and three months old. A little over a year later, on June 2, 1953, he attended his mother’s coronation at Westminster Abbey.
He will have to wait a little before obtaining the title of Prince of Wales, on July 26, 1958, he is then 9 years old. He was then crowned by his mother 11 years later, on July 1, 1969, during a ceremony at Caernarfon Castle. He thus remains the Prince of Wales who will have held this title the longest.
3He got involved very early on for the climate
Charles III is also known for his commitments to the environment. He is perceived as a lover of nature and gardening. He acted from the 1980s in his country residence of Highgrove House in his Duchy of Cornwall. In particular, he created an organic farm there and cultivated without fertilizers or pesticides in 1985. Mocked at the time, he is now a visionary. Five years later, he launched the organic label Duchy Originals, which quickly became a reference.
He then regularly insists on the urgency in the face of global warming, defends alternative medicine, short circuits. It participated in the launch of COP 26 in Glasgow, in October 2021. Since 2007, it has published its carbon footprint every year (3,133 tonnes of CO2 in 2020 compared to 5,070 in 2019). In 2008, he proposed a global fund to fight against the destruction of tropical forests. He also has an electric jaguar, usually skips lunch, and only eats meat on certain days.
Despite his speeches and positions, Prince Charles and the royal family are often criticized by environmental associations for the lifestyle of the British crown. It holds 1.4% of the total land in the UK, according to the organization Wild Card. According to her, not all properties are managed in an eco-responsible way. Balmoral in Scotland, where Queen Elizabeth II died, is for example “a hunting estate, a playground for the rich“, confided to franceinfo in 2021 the biologist Dave Goulson, professor at the University of Sussex.
4He was nicknamed “Black spider”
This was called the “black spider memos” affair. Between 2004 and 2005, Charle cracked 27 handwritten letters to Tony Blair’s Labor government. These notes were so nicknamed because of the prince’s particular handwriting, in spider’s feet, full of exclamation points and erasures.
In these memos, Charles III gave his opinion on various subjects, from the equipment of the British troops in Iraq to treatments thanks to medicinal plants, or even global warming. The case has created a major controversy in the United Kingdom because these letters undermine the neutrality of the crown: the sovereigns reign but do not govern. They should not in theory influence the work of the government.
The case was revealed by the English daily Guardian, who had asked the courts to publish these letters. In 2012, the government opposed it, but after a long legal battle, the Supreme Court finally ruled in favor of the newspaper. The letters were then made public in 2015, ten years after the affair came to light. The prince said to himself “disappointed“by this decision, which he believes goes against respect for privacy.
5Target of tabloids and mockery
Big ears and style lanky: lPrince Charles has long had a tumultuous relationship with the British media and other subjects of His Majesty. So all his life he was mocked and derided. He has often been caricatured, especially on the possibility that he will never accede to the throne in the face of his mother’s longevity, as in this sketch from the Info horns British, Spitting Image.
Its place was also often on the front pages of the newspapers. And rarely in a positive way. His relationship with Diana Spencer was thus the biggest controversy of his life. Married in 1981 without love, they separated in 1992, after having two children, William and Harry. Their story and their difficulties made tabloid headlines for several years. Charles then finds his childhood sweetheart Camilla Parker Bowles while Lady Diana, ultra-popular, kills herself in 1997 in Paris. His popularity rating then collapsed to 4%.
He goes up the slope thanks to a communication line, takes up the image of the good father and a future king, and marries Camilla in 2005. Today, his popularity rating reaches 54% of favorable opinions. according to a latest YouGov poll last year.