In the wake of his mother’s passing, Prince Charles may initiate a major reform of the monarchy, leaving Princes Harry and Andrew out in the cold for good.
The soon-to-be-ambition King’s to reduce the size of the front-line Royal Family has been well-documented, and experts believe he aims to transform the monarchy into a “leaner machine” with “nothing to gossip about.”
Observers of the royal family say that the Prince of Wales wants to guarantee that there are no “hangers-on” in the Firm, with each member expected to contribute to a new and more streamlined monarchy.
During the June Platinum Jubilee, the Queen restricted people appearing on the Buckingham Palace balcony to working members of the Royal Family, exemplifying the concept of the “slimmed-down monarch.”
A succession of external circumstances, however, have cast doubt on Prince Charles’ original plan, which apparently encompassed a core group of seven individuals, including himself.
Prior to the Queen’s passing, the plan initially included the long-reigning queen, Prince Philip, Prince Charles and Camilla, Prince William and Kate, and Prince Harry.
Philip died at the age of 99 in 2021, while Harry’s future in the restructured monarchy is extremely uncertain due to his decision to abandon front-line royal duties and travel to the United States with his bride Meghan Markle.
Prince Andrew, who would have certainly been included in a streamlined monarchy as the Queen’s son and Prince Charles’ brother, has been shunned since his sexual assault case with Virginia Giuffre.
According to royal observers, this has thrust Princess Anne, the Princess Royal, and Prince Edward and his wife Sophie, Countess of Wessex, into contention as ‘essential’ members of Prince Charles’ future monarchy.
Meanwhile, analysts caution that a streamlined monarchy could result in a reduction in the number of engagements the royal family attends annually.
Others warn that the number of patroganages could be lowered to let royals to focus more intently on a smaller number of vital subjects, with some experts speculating that Prince Charles’ ambitions for his reign could prioritize the environment.
Dr. Craig Prescott stated on the UCL Political Science Events podcast in March 2022, “I believe there are potentially significant hazards associated with reducing the number of the Royal Family, because as Bob [Dr. Robert Morris] argues, the question is: What is the monarchy designed to do?”
But I believe the other question is: “What will it cease doing?”
And, as a result, you may cause some dissatisfaction with the omissions.’
Despite this and the loss of potential crucial members, royal observers believe Charles will likely continue with his intentions to reduce the size of the monarchy.
Angela Levin, a royal biographer, told TalkRadio in May 2021 that the heir presumptive has intended to reduce the core of the working royals “for a very long time” in order to “save costs and make people be worth the government money that they receive.”
So exactly how could Prince Charles’s new monarchy proceed? Here, MailOnline examines the candidates for the soon-to-be king’s front bench, as well as those who are likely to be overlooked.
Prince Charles – The future monarch who will reside at Buckingham Palace
As the new monarch, Prince Charles will be at the forefront of the revamped monarchy. Alongside his claimed desire to reduce the size of the family, his residence will undergo the greatest immediate adjustment.
Since 2003, the official house of the Prince of Wales has been Clarence House, located on The Mall in the City of Westminster.
The Queen’s formal house has been Buckingham Palace, although she has spent the most of her time in Windsor Castle since the passing of her beloved Prince Philip.
Prince Charles will lead the new kingdom as king. He’ll move. Prince Charles visits Dumfries House, Scotland
In October 2021, the Queen and Prince Charles are seen walking in Balmoral. It was one of the final photographs of the mother and boy together.
According to royal biographer Penny Junor’s book The Firm, the Queen wished to continue living at Clarence House after the death of her father, but Winston Churchill persuaded her to transfer to Buckingham Palace because of the palace’s significance as the royal residence.
It is anticipated that Prince Charles will move into Buckingham Palace as king, following in his mother’s footsteps.
In February 2022, a royal source informed the Mail on Sunday, “There is no doubt about it.” HRH’s view is that you need a monarch at monarchy HQ. This was never in question.
The Prince of Wales will not reside in Buckingham Palace until he becomes king. When he is, however, he absolutely will.
Similar to the Queen, it will be located in the “flat above the shop.” He agrees with the Queen that it is appropriate to work from Buckingham Palace.
‘The Palace will still be a working and entertaining hub and will also still be open to visitors. It is an extremely popular tourist destination.
“However, the prince can continue to reside there as he does at Highgrove, which is also open to the public.”
It is anticipated that Prince Charles will move into Buckingham Palace as king, following in his mother’s footsteps. In February, a royal source told the Mail on Sunday, “There is no doubt about it.” The view of HRH is that monarchy headquarters need a king. This was never in question.
His title of Duke of Cornwall will pass to William, as is customary for the eldest son of the monarch to receive the title.
It is now unclear who will receive the title of Prince of Wales. The title was bestowed upon Prince Charles by the Queen in 1958, and it is ultimately up to Prince Charles to bestow it.
If he were to give the title to someone, his son would be the obvious choice. However, some predict that Prince Charles would surrender his Prince of Wales title to his brother, Prince Edward, while others feel that he will receive the Duke of Edinburgh title, which his father previously held.
Meanwhile, Prince Charles is likely to continue championing issues he has already been passionate about – one of the most prominent being climate change.
This issue appears to be at the top of his priority list as monarch.
Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall, the Queen Consort, will accompany Prince Charles to Buckingham Palace.
Alongside Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall will play a prominent role in the new monarchy. Upon Charles’ coronation as king, the 74-year-old will be crowned Queen Consort.
In a historic Platinum Jubilee declaration released at the end of February 2022, the Queen affirmed the Duchess of Cornwall’s future position, putting an end to years of doubt.
She stated that it is her “sincere desire” that her daughter-in-law be fully recognized when Charles succeeds her.
Alongside Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall will play a prominent role in the new monarchy. The 74-year-old woman will be titled Queen Consort when Charles ascends to the throne.
In her message to the nation, signed “Your Servant, Elizabeth R.,” the Queen stated: “When, in due time, my son Charles becomes King, I know you will give him and his wife Camilla the same support that you have given me; and it is my sincere hope that, when that time comes, Camilla will be known as Queen Consort as she continues her own loyal service.”
Clarence House stated at the time that Charles and Camilla, who married in 2005, were “moved and honored” by the Queen’s gift.
As the wife of the Prince of Wales for the past seventeen years, Camilla has already performed the duties of a Queen Consort.
She is a royal patron of numerous organizations and good causes, she accompanies her husband on royal tours, and she meets tens of thousands of people annually, all of which are expected to continue.
William and Catherine, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, may inherit Windsor Castle as the future Duke and Duchess of Cornwall.
William, as the eldest child of Prince Charles, will become the heir apparent. Additionally, he will become the Duke of Cornwall.
Tradition dictates that the eldest son of the monarch should carry the title, hence Prince William will inherit the position. His father will also bestow upon him the title of Duke of Rothesay. Kate will become the Duchess of Cornwall and Rothesay as his wife.
William, as the eldest child of Prince Charles, will become the heir apparent. Additionally, he will become the Duke of Cornwall. Tradition dictates that the eldest son of the monarch should carry the title, hence Prince William will inherit the position. His father will also bestow upon him the title of Duke of Rothesay. Kate will become the Duchess of Cornwall and Rothesay as his wife.
Iain MacMarthanne, a royal expert, stated in September 2021, “When Charles succeeds to the throne, the Duke of Cambridge will automatically assume the titles of Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay, among others.”
Catherine will become the Duchess of Cornwall and Rothesay as his wife.
However, it is still unclear if he would receive the title of Duke of Wales from his father. In 1958, the Queen bestowed Prince Charles the title.
And while the title is typically bestowed to the eldest son of the king, it is up to Prince Charles to determine if and to whom he wishes to grant it. Some have speculated that it will be bestowed upon Prince Charles’s brother, Prince Edward, rather than Prince William.
Mr. MacMarthann continues, ‘The title of Prince of Wales is not automatically bestowed upon the heir to the throne; it remains in the monarch’s discretion. In 1958, Charles’ mother, the Queen, bestowed upon him the title of Prince of Wales.
William and Kate could also be moving, albeit for a very brief distance. It is believed that the couple could eventually inherit Windsor Castle.
Other stories indicate the couple could relocate into Clarence House, which Prince Charles will relinquish when he ascends to the throne. Nonetheless, given their recent relocation to Windsor, it seems doubtful.
William and Kate could inherit Windsor Castle in the end (pictured). They relocated from Kensington Palace to Adelaide Cottage in order to provide their children with the most normal upbringing imaginable.
The pair recently relocated to the Windsor Estate and now resides in Adelaide Cottage, a 10-minute walk from Windsor Castle, where the Queen spent the majority of her time during her final years.
Their three children, George, Charlotte, and Louis, attend Lambrook School, a private coeducational institution close to Ascot, Berkshire.
Despite relocating to Windsor, the couple has maintained their office and press staff in Kensington Palace. Since 2017, they had lived in Apartment 1A.
The Queen also gifted the couple with Anmer Hall on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk.
Princess Anne, The Princess Royal – The beloved second child of the Queen, who could play a pivotal role in Charles’ streamlined monarchy.
Princess Anne, the second child of the Queen, has always been one of the most adored royals.
According to YouGov, the equestrian, who in 1976 became the first British royal to compete at the Olympics, is the sixth most popular royal.
According to royal analysts, she will play a pivotal role in Prince Charles’s streamlined monarchy.
Princess Anne, the second child of the Queen, has always been one of the most adored royals. According to royal analysts, she will play a pivotal role in Prince Charles’s streamlined monarchy.
Ian Lloyd, royal analyst and author of The Duke: A Life in 100 Chapters, told Express.co.uk in January 2022, ‘She has an excellent relationship with Charles.’ I believe that she will be an integral member of the Royal Family during the future reign.
It is unclear whether she will inherit any titles, but she will continue to have the title of Princess Royal. The title is conferred for life by the monarch. Their aunt, Princess Mary, held the title until her death in 1965, thus neither Queen Elizabeth II nor Princess Margaret ever held it.
Before receiving the title, Princess Anne waited more than two decades. As the future monarch, it is also unclear if Princess Anne will have to reduce her enormous list of patronages.
Currently, the Princess Royal is patron of almost 300 different organizations.
Edward and Sophie, Earl and Countess of Wessex, are the Queen’s youngest son and daughter-in-law, who could play a significant role in the new, streamlined monarchy.
As a result of recent royal scandals involving other members of the royal family, Prince Edward and his wife Sophie have assumed an increasingly prominent position in recent years.
In the wake of his US sex assault case with Virginia Giuffre, which he agreed to settle in early 2022 shortly after being stripped of his patronages and military titles, Prince Andrew has been largely sidelined and eliminated as a significant working royal.
As a result of Harry and Meghan’s withdrawal from front-line royal duties, the couple, who dwell at Bagshot Park in Surrey, have taken up a substantial portion of their work.
In the days preceding Prince Philip’s burial in 2021, the Earl and Countess of Wessex were more conspicuous than almost any other member of the Royal family, having filled the void left by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s migration to the United States.
Following recent royal scandals involving other members of the royal family, Prince Edward and his wife Sophie have assumed an increasingly prominent position in recent years.
Prior to Covid, they had assumed a substantial number of royal responsibilities: 544 in the final full year preceding the pandemic.
As for titles, it is believed that Prince Edward will receive the Duke of Edinburgh title, which his father Prince Philip formerly held. Since his death in 2021, the title has not been relinquished.
Dickie Arbiter, a former press secretary to the Queen, told The Sun last year: ‘It was his father’s and his mother’s wish that Prince Edward become the Duke of Edinburgh in the next reign, and Prince Charles will not go against those wishes.
‘It won’t occur immediately, but it will by 2029, when Edward turns 65. It is time to stop speculating without basis.
Who will be left out…
Royal Andrew
Since 2019, Prince Andrew has been largely absent from the forefront of royal life. Following his disastrous Newsnight interview on his relationship with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein and victim Virginia Roberts, he was relieved of his frontline duties in November.
Prince Andrew was then sued in the United States by Ms. Roberts, who is now known by her married surname, Guiffre.
Duke of York’s royal patronages were revoked in January 2021 so that he could defend himself as a ‘private person’ in the New York civil sex assault lawsuit, as pressure and negative publicity continued to mount against him.
Since 2019, Prince Andrew has been largely absent from the forefront of royal life. In November, he was relieved of his frontline duties following a disastrous Newsnight interview in which he discussed his association with paedophile millionaire Jeffrey Epstein and victim Virginia Roberts.
Andrew opted to pay £12 million to settle the case before it reached a jury, after pledging to defend the claims made against him by Ms. Roberts in the New York civil action and consistently protesting his innocence.
Andrew stated that he would make a “significant donation” to her foundation supporting victims’ rights and commended her “courage,” adding that he had “never intended” to harm her reputation.
Even after the Queen’s passing, there appears to be little room for his return to frontline royal duties.
Prof. MacLaren, of the Royal Holloway, University of London, told The I in February 2022, “Prince Andrew will be irrevocably tarnished by this entire affair, therefore he will be kept out of the public eye and is unlikely to resume formal activities.”
But there was surprise in March when Andrew was given a prominent role in the Duke of Edinburgh’s memorial ceremony at Westminster Abbey.
In addition to accompanying the Queen from Windsor, he assisted her as she used a cane to reach her seat. At the conclusion of the service, he assisted her back out of the church and into the royal vehicle.
There was surprise in March when Andrew was given a prominent role in the Duke of Edinburgh’s memorial service at Westminster Abbey.
In addition to accompanying the Queen from Windsor, he assisted her as she used a cane to reach her seat. At the conclusion of the ceremony, he assisted her back out of the church and into the royal vehicle.
Later, it was claimed that Prince William and Prince Charles had raised reservations “on multiple occasions” about the optics of permitting the duke to accompany the 96-year-old monarch to her seat at such a highly publicized event.
The future monarchs were “totally unified” that he did not need the high-profile position, according to The Mirror.
However, their objections were overturned by the Queen, who made it her “last wish” for Andrew to play a prominent role at the event.
However, the humiliated duke was subsequently barred from the Buckingham Palace balcony during Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee festivities, an act that royal experts argued demonstrated the duke had “no path back.”
The balcony appearance during the RAF flypast is a traditional element of Trooping the Colour, but this year’s commemoration of the Queen’s 70 years on the reign gave it added significance.
A spokesperson for the palace stated that the Queen took the decision to limit balcony access to working royals.
Andrew was scheduled to attend the Thanksgiving Service at St. Paul’s Cathedral, but he canceled his attendance after testing positive for coronavirus.
Even though he was placed on the order of service for the yearly Order of the Garter liturgy at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor, he did not attend.
Prince Charles and Prince William reportedly persuaded the Queen to prevent him from making a public appearance.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
Despite the fact that Prince Harry’s father is king and his brother is heir to the throne, it seems likely that Prince Harry will continue to avoid frontline royal duties, having emphasized his family’s contentment in the United States.
In January 2020, it was announced that he and his wife Meghan Markle would “no longer be working members of Britain’s royal family” and would cease using their HRH titles. Later, the couple relocated to a California property valued at £12 million.
Initially, Prince Charles agreed to assist the couple financially using his own cash. In March 2021, however, the couple’s previously amicable divorce from the firm turned sour, culminating in a stunning interview with Oprah Winfrey in which they criticized the institution of monarchy.
Despite the fact that Prince Harry’s father is king and his brother is the heir apparent, it appears likely that Prince Harry will continue to avoid frontline royal tasks.
Prince Harry claimed he felt ‘stuck’ as a member of the royal family.
Camilla Tominey of the Telegraph wrote in March 2022 that although Prince Charles reportedly maintains “frequent touch” with his son, their relationship has not “recovered” since the interview.
She wrote: “While Prince Charles is believed to be in frequent communication with his youngest son, Harry’s relationship with Prince William has yet to heal from his comments to Oprah, in which he implied that both his father and brother felt “stuck” in the Royal family.
As the Queen has consistently stated, [Prince Harry and Meghan] remain much-loved family members, but it has not been easy.
“It’s difficult enough for any family to get along, but when such private information is broadcast on prime-time television? This genie is difficult to put back into the bottle.
Harry and Meghan were not invited due to Her Majesty’s decision to limit the Buckingham Palace balcony appearance during her Platinum Jubilee festivities to working members of the Royal Family. Above: Harry and Meghan on the balcony in 2019, with the Queen and Prince Andrew in the background.
Archie, the seventh-in-line to the British throne, is already three years old, and prior reports suggested that the Queen regrets not having more time to spend with him.
In June, during the celebrations for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, she was reunited with Harry and Meghan when they visited the United Kingdom.
The visit was Her Majesty’s first meeting with Harry and Meghan’s daughter Lilibet, who turned one over the weekend. It was also supposed to be the first time in over two years that she had seen Archie.
Due to Her Majesty’s decision to limit balcony appearances at Buckingham Palace for Trooping the Colour and the Jubilee weekend to only working royals, the public only caught brief views of Harry and Meghan.
They were observed conversing with the children of Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips while watching Trooping the Colour from a balcony on Horse Guards Parade.
Due to ‘discomfort’ caused by her exertions on June 2, the Queen was absent from the Service of Thanksgiving at St. Paul’s Cathedral, which Harry and Meghan did attend.
It was their sole formal engagement of the weekend, and there was no evidence of reconciliation with Prince Charles and Prince William as the pair sat apart from senior royals.
Prior to the balcony snub, senior royals were reportedly concerned about Harry’s decision to write a tell-all memoir later in 2022. In 2018, Harry and Meghan attended Ascot with the Queen.
Harry and Meghan were not seen in public again, although they apparently watched the Platinum Party at the Palace with the Queen in Windsor when they were not in public.
The pair is said to have returned to the United States before the conclusion of Her Majesty’s Jubilee celebrations.
They returned to Britain this week, staying at Frogmore Cottage while attending the One Young World meeting in Manchester and the Invictus Games countdown event in Dusseldorf.
Previously, senior royals were said to be concerned about Harry’s plan to publish a tell-all memoir later in 2022 that could reveal his true feelings towards his stepmother Camilla.
Harry was collaborating with the Pulitzer-winning ghostwriter JR Moehringer on what was described as ‘the definitive account of the experiences, adventures, losses, and life lessons that have helped shape him’.
Earlier in March, the couple missed Prince Phillip’s memorial ceremony at Westminster Abbey due to a dispute about the removal of their state-funded protection.