For the first time last week, Prince Charles gave the world a glimpse into what his reign will look like when Queen Elizabeth is no longer in power.
Prince Charles, both the oldest and the longest-serving heir apparent in British history, has had plenty of time to map out how he will govern when the day comes.
However, his youngest son, Prince Harry, and his daughter-in-law, Meghan Markle, may have thrown a wrench into his decade-old plans with their political opinions and wokeness.
According to Nick Timothy, a political expert, the 73-year-old Prince Charles finds himself in a predicament where he has to ensure the survival of the Monarchy without giving in to the pressure of being too political while addressing the sins of his ancestors and country.
According to sources close to Prince Charles, his objective was straightforward — slim down the Monarchy by having a handful of working royals, cut down on spending, and focus on climate change and mental health.
However, it now seems that Prince Charles is facing a different reality thanks/because of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who have become full-blown activists.
Since stepping down from their royal duties, Prince Harry and Markle have not held back — in speeches and during appearances on TV and podcasts, they have tackled racism, racial injustice, police brutality, and women’s rights head-on.
Markle voted in the 2020 presidential election and urged others to cast their ballots. She is the first member of the royal family to do both of these things.
This is different when compared to Prince William and his wife, Kate Middleton, who, like Queen Elizabeth, have kept their political views to themselves.
The Cambridge couple, who do not ruffle feathers, are focused on mental health and the nation’s overall well-being. Prince Charles has to weigh his options and decide which path is better for the Monarchy.
The decision has been made more complicated because of the many countries that are cutting ties with the Monarchy — Barbados no longer has the Queen as its leader, and Jamaica, The Bahamas, and others are planning to make the same move.
During the disastrous Caribbean tour, officials and locals from these countries made their feelings clear to Prince William and Middleton. The royals were slapped with words like slavery, apology, colonialism, and reparation.
Most recently, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall cut their trip to Canada short amid dwindling support for the British Monarchy and loud calls for an apology for its role in Canada’s treatment of Indigenous peoples.
In a lengthy piece, Timothy, who was an adviser to the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May, had a warning for Prince Charles.
Writing in the Telegraph, he said that Prince Charles is “in danger of becoming too political.”
He laid out his case: “The successful evolution of the Monarchy has depended on a clear understanding that the Royal Family must play its proper constitutional role without succumbing to political opinion, fulfilling its duty of service through quiet leadership and charitable deeds, and communicating and speaking for us all at moments of celebration and joy, uncertainty and distress.”
He continued: “As we contemplate that change, the specter of politics haunts the Monarchy. For expectations are changing. Where once members of the Royal Family could remain reserved, distant, even aloof, today they are expected to emote and opine.
Just as businesses, charities, and other institutions are pressured to comment on just about everything, and bring about social change through adherence to disputed political beliefs and theories, so will the Monarchy.”
He pointed out the difference between Prince Harry and Prince William: “At home, the political challenge is not about the viability of the Monarchy itself, outside a fringe minority at least, but about the purpose of the Royal Family. The reason the divide between Prince Harry and the rest of the family is significant is that it presents two very different visions of what the Monarchy should do. On the one hand, we have William and Kate, cautious and conventional, and on the other, we have Harry and Meghan Markle, refusing to be bound by tradition and readily giving personal opinions about everything from racial politics to American elections.”
The future king has many things to consider.
