Over the past six or seven years, Prince Charles has really begun to take over more of his mother’s duties. Queen Elizabeth II relies on the Prince of Wales heavily at this point, even though she’s still very active and still doing so much. But several things came together all within a few years: the Queen’s health issues, the Duke of Edinburgh’s retirement, and Charles’ eagerness to begin the transition to power quietly. A few years years ago, the Queen had a very heavy cold over the Christmas holiday, and people began to realize that one bad flu or bad cold really could be the end of the Queen’s reign. That was when all of those “What Happens When the Queen Dies” articles began to be published and the British government started war-gaming what the Queen’s death would do to the country. Anyway, it sounds like the Queen is obviously quite prepared too, and there might be a plan in place in case she does survive another few years:
The Queen will hand over the majority of her duties to Prince Charles when she turns 95, a royal expert has claimed. The royal, who turned 93 in April, is reportedly discussing bringing in the 1937 Regency Act in two years, which allows the reigning monarch to hand over power if it is felt they are unable to perform their duties to the fullest. The Act will mean Prince Philip, a Houses of Parliament spokesperson and a third senior person will have to declare evidence supporting the Queen’s request to relinquish the majority of her duties.
The Queen will still retain her title, but Charles, 70, would take on the majority of the duties performed by the sovereign, while The Duke of Edinburgh, now 98, would become Guardian of the Queen.
Speaking to Yahoo’s The Royal Box, Mr Dampier said: ‘There is talk that when she reaches 95 in a couple of years she may slow down and possibly the Regency Act will be brought in. She will still be Queen but Prince Charles will, in fact, take over most of the duties. He is starting to do that already, being at the state opening in Parliament and the Commonwealth conference. He is starting to take over a lot of the duties and doing the investitures.’
Palace sources have previously indicated that the Queen has told her inner circle that, if she is still on the throne at the age of 95, she will ask for the piece of legislation – granting her eldest son full power to reign even while she still lives. One senior former member of the Royal Household previously told the Mail: ‘Out of the profound respect the Queen holds for the institution of monarchy and its stewardship, Her Majesty would want to make sure that she has done everything she can for her country and her people before she hands over. She is dutiful to her core.
I don’t think the Queen would ever abdicate or abdicate-lite, which is what the invocation of the Regency Act would mean. I think over the next two years, the Queen will continue to pass along more and more to Charles, but there won’t be anyone going to Parliament and invoking the Regency Act or whatever. The whole “Charles is taking over” thing has been happening for years, and I sort of think it’s fine – it’s clear that the Queen can’t do everything she used to, and it’s probably a comfort for her to know that Charles is happy to take those burdens off her shoulders.
What bugs me is that Charles continues to take over more of the Queen’s duties while retaining his own Prince of Wales work. There’s no one on the other side – like his two sons – willing to step up and take some things off of Charles’ plate. For all we’ve been hearing about how William and Kate Are the Future King and Queen, they certainly don’t act like it when it comes to stepping up and taking over the Prince of Wales/Princess of Wales workload.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Avalon Red.
No, she won’t.
English monarchs die at the job.
Exactly. I don’t believe this at all. She will distribute the workload but will most definitely remain Queen.
British monarchs, you mean.
She would still be Queen in a Regency. It happened for 9 years with George III.
That’s because he had a severe mental illness and literally couldn’t rule. I think the way they are doing it now is better in her mind.
No, she probably won’t, but if she asked me (and of course TQ would ask me, LOL), she needs to retire. I don’t know about legally, but emotionally, in the minds of the people, there would be a difference between abdicating and retiring. Let her keep her title, and crown Charles as King. A 100 year old still on the throne could look self-centered.
Harry doesn’t need to take on his father’s work that’s future king work let the guy behind Charles take that on.
Technically he should too, however with Will doing the larger share.
Remember the Queen is supported by a handful of Kents, the Gloucesters, Charles, Andy, Anne, Edward, Will and Harry and their spouses. When Charles is made king he’s ditching everyone but his sons. As he prepares for his role, they should for theirs too. They have to pick up the slack for a lot more than just Charles’ previous works, but an entire roster.
I do not think Chucky will ditch his sister Anne.
I can see him keeling Anne. Isn’t she very popular with the Brits? But I can see him throwing out everyone else. I wonder if it makes Kate sad to see it because it will happen with her kids too. I know it’s how it’s done but it’s sad none the less.
I think many of the people will “retire” gradually so it wont be seen as “ditching,” they just wont get replaced. Like the Gloucesters will retire from public life, but their children wont start working in public life. I don’t think Charles is going to ditch his siblings, especially considering how many of the foreign tours they do, but we will probably see them less. I mean, Anne is what, 68? If she scales back her schedule even 50% she’ll still prob have higher numbers than the younger royals, lol.
It’s not future King work, thats just silly. It’s the work of this particular future king because he’s made it that way. Harry could just as easily take the work on as William but they’re both too lazy. They both are more interested in looking busy and like they’re being charitable than… well actually working.
No.
That this is even being floated is weird.
This. +1,000.
I honestly don’t know what to think. I’m sure she never imagined reigning in her 90’s and how difficult that would be. I truly wish for her sake to have some retirement like Philip. I would be happy for her if she did tbh.
I agree.
It’s obvious that the Queen takes being queen very seriously. Her coronation was a religious ceremony and she told God she would be queen for the rest of her life. And she’s a very religious woman, so she meant it.
But! She’s in her 90s, and I can’t believe she really thought she’d still be alive and have her wits. Yeah, her mother lived to over 100, but that was no guarantee. Plus, Phillip’s been on retirement, and I’m sure that’s looking sensible.
She’ll never abdicate, but I think I can see where she decides that there will (soon) come a time where there’s no real way of doing even the basic duties she needs to do, that her sense of duty will allow her to agree to a regency. And the Queen would only come out for the big stuff, like Trooping the Color.
“There’s no one on the other side – like his two sons – willing to step up and take some things off of Charles’ plate. ”
I read somewhere, maybe here, that David Linley would eventually take over The Prince’s Trust. It is very sad to me that Bill Cambridge is not interested in taking over his father’s legacy.
But that is Charles’ pet project. The Prince’s Trust is not The Prince of Wales Trust nor is it legacy. Whether or not William should want to take it over is another story but nothing says he has to. It seems the best way to get the younger royals to do anything is to let them choose their projects.
They shouldn’t have to be convinced to do their duty. There may not be a monarchy for William to take over if they don’t.
I don’t know if she will announce anything publicly, but the reports are already out there about how Charles is taking over more of the Queen’s duties. She and Phillip have relinquished several of their patronages to the younger royals. I think she’s quietly preparing and getting people used to seeing Charles and Camilla in charge so that it won’t be such a shock when she is gone. Didn’t you all notice how Charles and Camilla were at the forefront of the Trump visit? Camilla stole the show and won over a lot of people with that wink.
Do we know yet who she was winking at?
I feel like she was winking at all of us, LOL.
I loved her wink, like we in general were in on the joke with her.
I don’t see that happening while she’s still relatively healthy and of sound mind. I’m sure the Regency Act has long been discussed as an option if/when that changes, but I can’t see her going down that route just because she wants to slow down more.
William and Harry really do need to step up. There’s absolutely no reason why they couldn’t both be doing hundreds more engagements a year. Charles was doing 500-600 at their age. Anne still does that many. Up until his retirement Prince Philip was managing double what they did whilst nearing 100! At this point, with both of them closer to middle age than their youth, it’s shameful that they’re both still such work-shy layabouts. There’s absolutely zero excuses left for them.
I agree with all of this. But one question I have is if Charles even wants his sons to help him. As a casual observer of the royals, he doesn’t seem like someone who hands over responsibilities or duties unless forced. I understand he wants to downsize the number of working royals to just his immediate family, but I always assumed he would toss his sons the patronages he wrestled away from the “lesser” royals. Of course that could all be outrageous assumptions on my part 🙂
It was reported a few years ago that Charles tried to hand over the Prince’s Trust charity first to William, then to Harry. They weren’t interested.
It seems like the younger royals enjoy doing big projects and engagements (visits to other countries, Heads Together, Invictus, cookbook, gardens, etc.). The older royals have a better understanding of how much the smaller engagements mean to traditional royal followers. I really don’t know how much longer the monarchy will last after the Queen is gone.
I agree and think that the younger royals really need to start doing more of the “bread and butter” royal events, factory/hospital openings, country fairs, etc.. where the “common” folk well get a chance to see the family that they pay for. While highlighting important causes and charities is great and they should keep doing that, it’s important to highlight sectors and sections of British society that don’t necessarily fall in line with their pet causes and therefore don’t get any acknowledgement.
William is so lazy and self-centered he will never volunteer to do anything. Harry is the one who really seems to care about people.
And yet he still has consistently lower numbers than Will 🤔
Your point? That doesn’t negate the fact that he is indeed lazy and self-centred.
those numbers don’t include his work with invictus or sentebale, the former of which has been extensive over recent years.
A few years ago Harry had done more engagements than William and otherwise he is about 10 engagements lower than William in the official count. And since a lot of his Invictus and Sentebale stuff doesn’t get counted they are on par. You trot this false argument out all the time and it remains as inaccurate as ever.
I don’t think the Regency Act will be invoked. I do see her handing off more duties to Charles, as we have seen these past few years, and her taking more time “off” – longer stays at Sandringham or Balmoral, etc.
Agree that its sad that Charles is taking on more duties, but no one is taking on HIS duties.
No, I don’t see that happening.
Yes, of course I believe it 😊, because of a variety of reasons, and in two years time Philip will likely be deceased. And HM has often stated she wishes to move full time to Balmoral after Philip’s death.
No chance.
What intense “workload” does Charles have, exactly?
He shows up places and smiles sometimes.
Charles makes hundreds of public engagements a year, and is now the primary representative of the Crown on foreign visits. He manages the Duchy of Cornwall — think of him as the CEO (there’s some evidence that William has also taken to meeting with the Duchy’s managers a bit in the last few years, but at a very minimal level) and he’s likely to have assumed all of Phillip’s responsibilities for the various privately held royal properties (Balmoral, Sandringham). Charles also oversees the staff at St James Palace and probably has a strong hand in the operations at Buckingham Palace now, too. And while the Duchy of Lancaster largely operates independently, they report regularly to both Parliament and the Crown, and my guess is that Charles has taken an increased role in those meetings, as well.
I appreciate that the Queen has chosen not to step back or step down, but the work of the Sovereign is physically and intellectually demanding. Charles is stepping up at a time in life when many people are stepping back, and if he follows his mother’s lead (no abdication, quite long lived), the same will be true for William and George. I’m not sure how beneficial that is to the monarchy as a symbol, really, and it certainly creates a weird inversion of life’s stages for all of them: leisure when young, work when old. I don’t really see how that’s going to foster good habits (William, cough cough) or public good will.
Even if Charles did nothing else, the Duchy of Cornwall is a 3/4 billion pound concern and, while its daily operations are handled by a professional team, Charles is the ultimate executive of it all. That should be considered job enough for anyone.
https://duchyofcornwall.org/frequently-asked-questions.html#question_1
It should also be said that, under Charles’s leadership, the Duchy has become extremely successful financially.
And let’s not even start on the Prince’s Trust, which began with a £7400 personal bequest and is now one of the largest charities in the UK.
https://www.princes-trust.org.uk/about-the-trust/history
I’ll take over PC’s duties GLADLY. and I only ask for 1/2 the posh lifestyle afforded to the heirs. I think that’s quite a bargain!
You can sign me up too! I will happily put on beautiful clothes and make some of these appearances if it means no longer being a busy lawyer and having full time help for my kids!
Heck, I’d just do it for a nap a few days a week. I am so overly tired.
She was anointed. Not going to happen. She’s neither incompetent or ill.
LOL @ Phillip being “Guardian of the Queen” like she’s mad King George or something.
LOL that was my favorite part too. Also I think the queen may be in better health than Phillip so she may end up being his guardian instead haha
and lol at the queen needing a guardian due to being 95 and the guardian being 99.
At 98, Phil might need the guardian!
I could see Meghan stepping up and taking some ofbthe POW things over. Meghan is smart and I think she would see that as a real opportunity.
Charles seems pretty healthy now, but he isn’t young. If he were to predecease his mother, that’d put William in a position he probably isn’t ready to take on. Will would probably need & want the participation of the lesser royals.
Very likely, there wouldn’t be so much talk about a regency otherwise, the public is being inoculated with the idea in a slow drip, so that when does come it ‘was expected’. The Queen however would never abdicate, she made a solem vow to that effect on her coronation day.
I can’t imagine doing the Queen duties at the age of 93. No retirement for the Queen? Lol. If I were her, I would be ready to live a semi normal life at 93. Do you guys have any program similar to our Social security and Medicare?