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Charles III
King of the United Kingdom since
"Charles, Prince of Wales" and "Prince Charles" redirect here. For other uses, see Charles, Prince of Wales (disambiguation); Prince Charles (disambiguation); and Charles III (disambiguation).
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November ) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms since 8 September [b]
Charles was born in Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and became heir apparent when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, acceded to the throne in He was created Prince of Wales in and his investiture was held in He was educated at Cheam School and Gordonstoun, and later spent six months at the Timbertop campus of Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, Australia.
After completing a history degree from the University of Cambridge, Charles served in the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy from to In , he marriedLady Diana Spencer.
Royal Family tree: King Charles IIIs closest family and line ... While still known as "Prince Charles", he created "The Prince's Trust" in , which is a charity dedicated to supporting young people between the ages of eleven to thirty. Princess Charlotte of Wales b. In , then-Prince Charles took his seat in the House of Lords and spoke in and Maria Clementina Sobieska —They had two sons, William and Harry. Charles and Diana divorced in , after they had each engaged in well-publicised extramarital affairs. Diana died as a result of injuries sustained in a car crash the following year. In , Charles married his long-term partner, Camilla Parker Bowles.
As heir apparent, Charles undertook official duties and engagements on behalf of his mother and represented the United Kingdom on visits abroad.
He founded The Prince's Trust[e] in , sponsored the Prince's Charities, and became patron or president of more than other charities and organisations. He advocated for the conservation of historic buildings and the importance of traditional architecture in society. In that vein, he generated the experimental new town of Poundbury.
An environmentalist, Charles supported organic farming and action to prevent climate change during his time as the manager of the Duchy of Cornwall estates, earning him awards and recognition as well as criticism; he is also a prominent critic of the adoption of genetically modified food, while his support for alternative medicine has been criticised.
He has authored or co-authored 17 books.
Charles became king upon his mother's death in At the age of 73, he was the oldest person to accede to the British throne, after having been the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales in British history. Significant events in his reign have included his coronation in and his cancer diagnosis the following year, the latter of which temporarily suspended planned public engagements.
Early life, family, and education
Charles was born at (GMT) on 14 November ,[3] during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George&#;VI, as the first child of Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh (later Queen Elizabeth II), and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.[4] He was delivered by Caesarean section at Buckingham Palace.[5] His parents had three more children, Anne (born ), Andrew (born ) and Edward (born ).
He was christened Charles Philip Arthur George on 15 December in the Music Room of Buckingham Palace by the archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher.[f][g][9][10]
George VI died on 6 February and Charles's mother acceded to the throne as Elizabeth&#;II; Charles immediately became the heir apparent.
Under a charter of Edward III in , and as the monarch's eldest son, he automatically assumed the traditional titles of Duke of Cornwall and, in the Scottish peerage, the titles Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles, and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland.[11] The following year, Charles attended his mother's coronation at Westminster Abbey.[12]
When Charles turned five, Catherine Peebles was appointed as governess to oversee his education at Buckingham Palace.[13] He then commenced classes at Hill House School in west London in November [14] Charles was the first heir apparent to attend school, rather than be educated by a private tutor.[15] He did not receive preferential treatment from the school's founder and headmaster, Stuart Townend, who advised the Queen to have Charles train in football, because the boys were never deferential to anyone on the football field.[16] Charles subsequently attended two of his father's former schools: Cheam School in Hampshire,[17] from ,[18] followed by Gordonstoun, in the north-east of Scotland, beginning classes there in April [18][19] He later became patron of Gordonstoun in May [20]
In his authorised biography by Jonathan Dimbleby, Charles's parents were described as physically and emotionally distant and Philip was blamed for his disregard of Charles's sensitive nature, including forcing him to attend Gordonstoun, where he was bullied.[21] Though Charles reportedly described Gordonstoun, noted for its especially rigorous curriculum, as "Colditz in kilts",[17] he later praised the school, stating it had taught him "a great deal about myself and my own abilities and disabilities".
He said in a interview he was "glad" he had attended Gordonstoun and that the "toughness of the place" was "much exaggerated".[22] In , Charles spent two terms at the Timbertop campus of Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, Australia, during which time he visited Papua New Guinea on a school trip with his history tutor, Michael Collins Persse.[23][24] In , Charles described his time at Timbertop as the most enjoyable part of his whole education.[25] Upon his return to Gordonstoun, he emulated his father in becoming head boy, and left in with six GCE O-levels and two A-levels in history and French, at grades B and C respectively.[23][26] On his education, Charles later remarked, "I didn't enjoy school as much as I might have; but, that was only because I'm happier at home than anywhere else".[22]
Charles broke royal tradition when he proceeded straight to university after his A-levels, rather than joining the British Armed Forces.[17] In October , he was admitted to Trinity College, Cambridge, where he studied archaeology and anthropology for the first part of the Tripos and then switched to history for the second part.[9][23][27] During his second year, he attended the University College of Wales in Aberystwyth, studying Welsh history and the Welsh language for one term.[23] Charles became the first British heir apparent to earn a university degree, graduating in June from the University of Cambridge with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree.[23][28] Following standard practice, in August , his Bachelor of Arts was promoted to a Master of Arts (MA Cantab) degree.[23]
Prince of Wales
Charles was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 26 July ,[29] though his investiture was not held until 1 July , when he was crowned by his mother in a televised ceremony held at Caernarfon Castle;[30] the investiture was controversial in Wales owing to growing Welsh nationalist sentiment.[31] He took his seat in the House of Lords the following year[32] and he delivered his maiden speech on 13 June ,[33] the first royal to speak from the floor since the future Edward VII in [34] He spoke again in [35]
Charles began to take on more public duties, founding the Prince's Trust in [36] and travelling to the United States in [37] In the mids, he expressed an interest in serving as governor-general of Australia, at the suggestion of Australian prime minister Malcolm Fraser; however, because of a lack of public enthusiasm, nothing came of the proposal.[38] In reaction, Charles commented, "so, what are you supposed to think when you are prepared to do something to help and you are just told you're not wanted?"[39]
Military training and career
Charles served in the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Royal Navy.
During his second year at Cambridge, he received Royal Air Force training, learning to fly the Chipmunk aircraft with the Cambridge University Air Squadron,[40][41] and was presented with his RAF wings in August [42]
After the passing-out parade that September, Charles embarked on a naval career and enrolled in a six-week course at the Royal Naval College Dartmouth.
King charles iii of england family tree Princess Elizabeth of Clarence — Prince Octavius of Great Britain — Getting Started. Spouses: Mark Phillips and Timothy Laurence.He then served from to on the guided-missile destroyer HMS&#;Norfolk and the frigates HMS&#;Minerva, from to , and HMS&#;Jupiter in That same year, he also qualified as a helicopter pilot at RNAS Yeovilton and subsequently joined Naval Air Squadron, operating from HMS&#;Hermes.[43] Charles spent his last 10 months of active service in the Navy commanding the coastal minehunter HMS&#;Bronington, beginning on 9 February [43] He took part in a parachute training course at RAF Brize Norton two years later, after being appointed colonel-in-chief of the Parachute Regiment in [44] Charles gave up flying after crash-landing a BAe in Islay in , as a passenger who was invited to fly the aircraft; the crew was found negligent by a board of inquiry.[45]
Relationships and marriages
Bachelorhood
In his youth, Charles was amorously linked to a number of women.
His girlfriends included Georgiana Russell, the daughter of Sir John Russell, who was the British ambassador to Spain;[46]Lady Jane Wellesley, the daughter of the 8th Duke of Wellington;[47] Davina Sheffield;[48]Lady Sarah Spencer;[49] and Camilla Shand, who later became his second wife.[50]
Charles's great-uncle Lord Mountbatten advised him to "sow his wild oats and have as many affairs as he can before settling down", but, for a wife, he "should choose a suitable, attractive, and sweet-charactered girl before she has met anyone else she might fall for&#; It is disturbing for women to have experiences if they have to remain on a pedestal after marriage".
Early in , Mountbatten began corresponding with year-old Charles about a potential marriage to Amanda Knatchbull, Mountbatten's granddaughter.[52] Charles wrote to Amanda's mother, Lady Brabourne, who was also his godmother, expressing interest in her daughter. Lady Brabourne replied approvingly, but suggested that a courtship with a year-old was premature.
Four years later, Mountbatten arranged for Amanda and himself to accompany Charles on his visit to India. Both fathers, however, objected; Prince Philip feared that his famous uncle[h] would eclipse Charles, while Lord Brabourne warned that a joint visit would concentrate media attention on the cousins before they could decide on becoming a couple.
In August , before Charles would depart alone for India, Mountbatten was assassinated by the Irish Republican Army.
When Charles returned, he proposed to Amanda. But in addition to her grandfather, she had lost her paternal grandmother and younger brother in the bomb attack and was now reluctant to join the royal family.
Lady Diana Spencer
Further information: Wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer
Charles first met Lady Diana Spencer in , while he was visiting her home, Althorp.
How old is king charles iii of england family tree Anne of Denmark — Queen of England and Ireland. Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester — Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester b. Prince Edward Duke of Kent and Strathearn —He was then the companion of her elder sister Sarah and did not consider Diana romantically until mid While Charles and Diana were sitting together on a bale of hay at a friend's barbecue in July, she mentioned that he had looked forlorn and in need of care at the funeral of his great-uncle Lord Mountbatten. Soon, according to Dimbleby, "without any apparent surge in feeling, he began to think seriously of her as a potential bride" and she accompanied him on visits to Balmoral Castle and Sandringham House.
Charles's cousin Norton Knatchbull and his wife told Charles that Diana appeared awestruck by his position and that he did not seem to be in love with her.
Meanwhile, the couple's continuing courtship attracted intense attention from the press and paparazzi. When Charles's father told him that the media speculation would injure Diana's reputation if Charles did not come to a decision about marrying her soon, and realising that she was a suitable royal bride (according to Mountbatten's criteria), Charles construed his father's advice as a warning to proceed without further delay.
He proposed to Diana in February , with their engagement becoming official on 24 February; the wedding took place in St Paul's Cathedral on 29 July. Upon his marriage, Charles reduced his voluntary tax contribution from the profits of the Duchy of Cornwall from 50 per cent to 25 per cent.[58] The couple lived at Kensington Palace and Highgrove House, near Tetbury, and had two children: William, in , and Harry, in [15]
Within five years, the marriage was in trouble due to the couple's incompatibility and near year age difference.
In , Charles had fully resumed his affair with Camilla Parker Bowles.[61] In a videotape recorded by Peter Settelen in , Diana admitted that, from to , she had been "deeply in love with someone who worked in this environment."[62][63] It was assumed that she was referring to Barry Mannakee,[64] who had been transferred to the Diplomatic Protection Squad in , after his managers determined his relationship with Diana had been inappropriate.[63][65] Diana later commenced a relationship with Major James Hewitt, the family's former riding instructor.[66]
Charles and Diana's evident discomfort in each other's company led to them being dubbed "The Glums" by the press.[67] Diana exposed Charles's affair with Parker Bowles in a book by Andrew Morton, Diana: Her True Story.
Audio tapes of her own extramarital flirtations also surfaced,[67] as did persistent suggestions that Hewitt is Prince Harry's father, based on a physical similarity between Hewitt and Harry. However, Harry had already been born by the time Diana's affair with Hewitt began.[68]
In December , John Major announced the couple's legal separation in the House of Commons.
Early the following year, the British press published transcripts of a passionate, bugged telephone conversation between Charles and Parker Bowles that had taken place in , which was dubbed "Camillagate" and "Tampongate".[69] Charles subsequently sought public understanding in a television film with Dimbleby, Charles: The Private Man, the Public Role, broadcast in June In an interview in the film, Charles confirmed his own extramarital affair with Parker Bowles, saying that he had rekindled their association in , only after his marriage to Diana had "irretrievably broken down".[70] This was followed by Diana's own admission of marital troubles in an interview on the BBC current affairs show Panorama, broadcast in November [72] Referring to Charles's relationship with Parker Bowles, she said, "well, there were three of us in this marriage.
Charles iii Princess Caroline Elizabeth — of Great Britain. Mother: Henrietta Mildred Hodgson. Queen Camilla b. Princess Louisa Anne — of Great Britain.So, it was a bit crowded." She also expressed doubt about her husband's suitability for kingship.[73] Charles and Diana divorced on 28 August ,[74] after being advised by the Queen in December to end the marriage.[75] The couple shared custody of their children.[76]
Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris on 31 August Charles flew to Paris with Diana's sisters to accompany her body back to Britain.[77] In , Diana's butler Paul Burrell published a note that he claimed had been written by Diana in , in which there were allegations that Charles was "planning 'an accident' in [Diana's] car, brake failure and serious head injury", so that he could remarry.[78] When questioned by the Metropolitan Police inquiry team as a part of Operation Paget, Charles told the authorities that he did not know about his former wife's note from and could not understand why she had those feelings.[79]
Camilla Parker Bowles
Main article: Wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles
In , Charles and Parker Bowles made their first public appearance as a couple at the Ritz London Hotel, and she moved into Charles's official residence, Clarence House, in [80][81] Their engagement was announced on 10 February [82] The Queen's consent to the marriage&#;&#; as required by the Royal Marriages Act &#;&#; was recorded in a Privy Council meeting on 2 March.[83] In Canada, the Department of Justice determined the consent of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada was not required, as the union would not produce any heirs to the Canadian throne.[84]
Charles was the only member of the royal family to have a civil, rather than a church, wedding in England.
British government documents from the s and s, published by the BBC, stated that such a marriage was illegal; these claims were dismissed by Charles's spokesman[85] and explained by the sitting government to have been repealed by the Registration Service Act [86]
The union was scheduled to take place in a civil ceremony at Windsor Castle, with a subsequent religious blessing at the castle's St George's Chapel.
The wedding venue was changed to Windsor Guildhall after it was realised a civil marriage at Windsor Castle would oblige the venue to be available to anyone who wished to be married there. Four days before the event, it was postponed from the originally scheduled date of 8&#;April until the following day in order to allow Charles and some of the invited dignitaries to attend the funeral of Pope John Paul II.[87]
Charles's parents did not attend the marriage ceremony; the Queen's reluctance to attend possibly arose from her position as Supreme Governor of the Church of England.[88] However, his parents did attend the service of blessing and held a reception for the newlyweds at Windsor Castle.[89] The blessing by Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams was televised.[90]
Official duties
See also: List of official overseas trips made by Charles III
In , Charles undertook his first public engagement by attending a student garden party at the Palace of Holyroodhouse.[91] During his time as Prince of Wales, he undertook official duties on behalf of the Queen,[92] completing 10, engagements between and [93] He officiated at investitures and attended the funerals of foreign dignitaries.[94] Charles made regular tours of Wales, fulfilling a week of engagements each summer, and attending important national occasions, such as opening the Senedd.[95] The six trustees of the Royal Collection Trust met three times a year under his chairmanship.[96] Charles also represented his mother at the independence celebrations in Fiji in ,[97] The Bahamas in ,[98] Papua New Guinea in ,[99] Zimbabwe in ,[] and Brunei in []
In , Christopher John Lewis, who had fired a shot with a rifle at the Queen in , attempted to escape a psychiatric hospital in order to assassinate Charles, who was visiting New Zealand with Diana and William.[] While Charles was visiting Australia on Australia Day in January , David Kang fired two shots at him from a starting pistol in protest of the treatment of several hundred Cambodian asylum seekers held in detention camps.[] In , Charles became the first member of the royal family to visit the Republic of Ireland in an official capacity.[] In he represented the Queen at the Hong Kong handover ceremony.
At the funeral of Pope John Paul II in , Charles caused controversy when he shook hands with the president of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, who had been seated next to him.
Charles's office subsequently released a statement saying that he could not avoid shaking Mugabe's hand and that he "finds the current Zimbabwean regime abhorrent".[]
Charles represented the Queen at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India.[] In November , he and Camilla were indirectly involved in student protests when their car was attacked by protesters.[] In November , he represented the Queen for the first time at a Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, in Colombo, Sri Lanka.[]
Charles and Camilla made their first joint trip to the Republic of Ireland in May The British Embassy called the trip an important step in "promoting peace and reconciliation".[] During the trip, he shook hands in Galway with Gerry Adams, leader of Sinn Féin and widely believed to be the leader of the IRA, the militant group that had assassinated Lord Mountbatten in The event was described by the media as a "historic handshake" and a "significant moment for Anglo-Irish relations".[]
Commonwealth heads of government decided at their meeting that Charles would be the next Head of the Commonwealth after the Queen.[] The head is chosen and therefore not hereditary.[] In March , at the request of the British government, Charles and Camilla went on an official tour of Cuba, making them the first British royals to visit the country.
British royal family tree: References [ edit ]. Categories : Monarchy of the United Kingdom Family trees of royalty. Father: Francis, Duke of Teck. Spouse: Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge.
The tour was seen as an effort to form a closer relationship between Cuba and the United Kingdom.[]
Charles contracted COVID during the pandemic in March [][] Several newspapers were critical that Charles and Camilla were tested promptly at a time when many NHS doctors, nurses and patients had been unable to be tested expeditiously.[] He tested positive for COVID for a second time in February [] He and Camilla, who also tested positive, had received doses of a COVID vaccine in February []
Charles attended the November ceremonies to mark Barbados's transition into a parliamentary republic, abolishing the position of monarch of Barbados.[] He was invited by Prime Minister Mia Mottley as the future Head of the Commonwealth;[] it was the first time that a member of the royal family attended the transition of a realm to a republic.[] In May of the following year, Charles attended the State Opening of the British Parliament, delivering the Queen's Speech on behalf of his mother, as a counsellor of state.[]
Reign
Further information: Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II and Proclamation of accession of Charles III
Charles acceded to the British throne on his mother's death on 8 September He was the longest-serving British heir apparent, having surpassed Edward VII's record of 59 years on 20 April [] Charles was the oldest person to succeed to the British throne, at the age of The previous record holder, William IV, was 64 when he became king in []
Charles gave his first speech to the nation at 6 pm on 9 September, in which he paid tribute to his mother and announced the appointment of his elder son, William, as Prince of Wales.[] The following day, the Accession Council publicly proclaimed Charles as king, the ceremony being televised for the first time.[][] Attendees included Queen Camilla, Prince William, and the British prime minister, Liz Truss, along with her six living predecessors.[] The proclamation was also read out by local authorities around the United Kingdom.
Other realms signed and read their own proclamations, as did Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the British Overseas Territories, the Crown Dependencies, Canadian provinces, and Australian states.[]
Charles and Camilla's coronation took place at Westminster Abbey on 6 May [] Plans had been made for many years, under the code name Operation Golden Orb.[] Reports before his accession suggested that Charles's coronation would be simpler than his mother's in ,[] with the ceremony expected to be "shorter, smaller, less expensive, and more representative of different faiths and community groups&#;&#; falling in line with the King's wish to reflect the ethnic diversity of modern Britain".[] Nonetheless, the coronation was a Church of England rite, including the coronation oath, the anointment, delivery of the orb, and enthronement.[] In July that year, the royal couple attended a national service of thanksgiving where Charles was presented with the Honours of Scotland in St Giles' Cathedral.[]
In July , Charles asked for the profits from Britain's growing fleet of offshore windfarms to be used for the "wider public good" rather than as extra funding for the monarchy.
It was announced that the funding of the monarchy would be reduced to 12 per&#;cent of the Crown Estate's net profits.[][]
In November , the King and Queen hosted the South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa, during the first official state visit to Britain of Charles III’s reign.[] In March the following year, the King and Queen embarked on a state visit to Germany; Charles became the first British monarch to address the Bundestag.[] Similarly, in September, he became the first British monarch to give a speech from France's Senate chamber during his state visit to the country.[] The following month, Charles visited Kenya where he faced pressure to apologise for British colonial actions.
In a speech at the state banquet, he acknowledged "abhorrent and unjustifiable acts of violence", but did not formally apologise.[]