- Title: Britain's Queen Elizabeth dies aged 96 - Charles becomes King
- Date: 8th September 2022
- Summary: KLOSTERS, SWITZERLAND (FILE - MARCH 31, 2005) (ORIGINALLY 4:3) (REUTERS) MEDIA GATHERED FOR PHOTO OPPORTUNITY PRINCE CHARLES, PRINCE WILLIAM AND PRINCE HARRY ARRIVING PHOTOGRAPHERS PRINCE CHARLES, PRINCE WILLIAM AND PRINCE HARRY SEATED FOR PHOTO OPPORTUNITY, PHOTOGRAPHER SAYING (English): "Act like you know each other." PRINCE CHARLES SMILING / (UPSOT) (English) PRINCE CHARLES MUTTERING: "Bloody people, I can't bear them."
- Embargoed: 22nd September 2022 19:39
- Keywords: British royalty Commonwealth Prince Charles Prince of Wales royals
- Location: VARIOUS
- City: VARIOUS
- Country: Various
- Topics: Arts/Culture/Entertainment,Royals
- Reuters ID: LVA00H811501011970RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Britain's Prince Charles was born at Buckingham Palace on November 14, 1948, in the 12th year of the reign of his grandfather, King George VI.
The first child of then Princess Elizabeth and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, he was christened 'Charles Philip Arthur George'.
When King George died in 1952, Princess Elizabeth acceded to the throne and Charles became heir apparent at the age of three.
In 1957 he began his education at Cheam Preparatory School just outside London, a boarding school that his father, now Prince Philip, had attended.
Charles's interest in the sea was nurtured from an early age, and in 1959 he accompanied the Queen on an inspection of the aircraft-carrier 'HMS Eagle' which was anchored off Weymouth.
In 1962 he continued his education at Gordonstoun school in a remote area of the Scottish Highlands, again following in Prince Philip's footsteps.
Charles hated the stern regime and in his letters complained of being bullied by his schoolmates.
In 1967 he went on to Cambridge University where he read archaeology and anthropology during his first year, later switching to history.
He graduated in 1970 with an undistinguished degree.
At the age of 20, in July 1969, he was invested as the 21st Prince of Wales at a ceremony attended by some 4,000 guests within the ancient walls of Caernarvon Castle.
The colourful and impressive ceremony was televised to a world-wide audience estimated at 5 million.
Continuing a family tradition, Charles took up military and officer training which culminated five years later with the command of 'HMS Bronington' a coastal minesweeper based in Scotland.
In December 1976 he left the military to concentrate on his royal duties.
Following years of speculation about his marriage plans, Buckingham Palace finally announced Charles's engagement to Lady Diana Spencer in February 1981.
The 32-year-old prince captured a blushing bride in the 20-year-old Diana and crowned their affair with a dazzling wedding ceremony at St Paul's Cathedral six months later.
Diana seemed the perfect choice as a royal wife; she was pretty, well-bred and apparently deferential to her husband. Their marriage appeared happy and the line of succession to the throne was assured with the birth of Prince William in June 1982. A second son, Prince Harry, was born in September 1984.
However, by the end of the 1980's media speculation about Charles and Diana's relationship had intensified as the couple led increasingly separate lives.
Diana was reported to have attempted suicide to attract her husband's attention and had tantrums over his attachment to Camilla Parker Bowles.
In the eyes of the public Charles appeared wooden and he failed to win popular affection or inspire the devotion enjoyed by his glamourous wife.
In December 1992 Prime Minister John Major announced the formal separation of the royal couple in parliament.
The statement, prepared by Buckingham Palace, said the arrangement was entirely amicable and that the line of succession to the throne would not be affected, signalling Charles could still accede to the
throne.
After the separation, reports emerged that the union had been a disaster from the start and an authorised biography of the prince published in October 1994 implied that Charles was a reluctant bridegroom who was forced into a loveless marriage with Diana by a domineering father.
Their formal divorce in August 1996 left Charles looking an unlikely sovereign and royal-watchers openly questioned whether he would ever by crowned.
A year after the divorce Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris, along with her lover Dodi Al-Fayed and their driver Henri Paul.
Charles, William and Harry were spending their summer holiday in Scotland with the Queen and Prince Philip when the news was broken to them.
A shocked nation mourned Diana's passing. Vast seas of floral tributes were left outside London's palaces and millions lined the streets to watch in silence as her funeral cortege passed by at a slow walking pace.
In March 2002 crowds again lined London's streets, this time to mourn the death of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.
A grieving Charles walked behind his grandmother's coffin as the funeral cortege made its solemn way to Westminster Abbey.
Charles' dislike of the media was accidentally revealed at a photo opportunity with his sons during a skiing holiday in March 2005.
The grumpy prince was caught on the assembled microphones muttering "Bloody people, I can't bear them" just days before his marriage to his long-time lover Camilla Parker Bowles.
After Diana's death Charles and Camilla's relationship became more public and years of astutely managed appearances gradually led to her being accepted as his partner.
The heir to the throne and the newly titled Duchess of Cornwall were married in April 2005 in a humble town hall civil ceremony which was followed by
a religious service of blessing in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, attended by the royal family and 800 guests.
Following in their father's footsteps, both Prince William and Prince Harry underwent military training after completing their education.
To prepare for his future role as head of the armed forces Prince William spent three years training with the army, airforce and navy after leaving university.
Prince Charles presented him with his pilot's "wings" in April 2008 when he completed four-month's training with the Royal Air Force.
By his 60th birthday, in November 2008, Charles' approval rating had improved as he gradually won back public sympathy and was seen as a thoughtful and caring single parent.
A portrait released to mark his birthday showed a relaxed-looking heir to the throne wearing the uniform of Regimental Colonel of the Welsh Guards, a post conferred on him in 1975.
Prince Charles made his first visit to troops on the front line in Afghanistan, in March 2010, as British troops were involved in their biggest offensive of the thirteen-year war.
His two-day visit included meetings with local leaders, held seated cross-legged on a cushion, and an introduction to mine-detecting.
The royal family's approval rating was further boosted by the marriage of Prince William to long-term girlfriend Kate Middleton in April 2011, and the arrival of their first child in July 2013.
Charles' first grandson was christened George Alexander Louis in a small private ceremony in St James' Palace attended by
close family members and seven godparents.
Prince Charles, along with other members of the royal family, began undertaking more official duties after Queen Elizabeth scaled back her workload following a bout of ill-health in early 2013. Accompanied by the Duchess of Cornwall, he took part in the State Opening of Parliament in May 2013, the first time he had attended the annual event since 1996.
He and the Duchess sat on the Queen's right during the ceremony which marks the formal start of the parliamentary year.
In November 2013 Prince Charles represented the monarch at the biennial Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Sri Lanka and in February 2014 a four-day tour of Gulf States included visits to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE and Bahrain. While in Riyadh the prince donned traditional Arabic robes and took
part in the Ardha, a sword dance celebrating Saudi Arabia's warrior tradition.
Charles was accompanied by Prince William and Prince Harry when he attended an international conference in London in February 2014, aimed at reducing the demand for illegal wildlife products and strengthening law enforcement. In advance of the conference he and Prince William released a 9-minute video plea urging people around the world to "Unite for Wildlife" and support efforts to stop the illegal wildlife trade.
In April 2014, President Michael Higgins became the first Irish head of state to make a state visit to Britain, crowning the big improvement in historically fraught relations between Dublin and its former colonial master.
The president was met on arrival by Prince Charles who escorted him to Windsor Castle where he received a ceremonial welcome from the Queen and Prince Philip.
The 70th anniversary of the World War Two D-Day landings in Normandy was marked in June.
Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall attended a remembrance service held in Bayeux cathedral and took part in the inauguration of a new cathedral bell named after St Therese Benedicte.
Born Edith Stein, she was a German-Jewish philosopher who was arrested by the Nazis and sent to Auschwitz concentration camp where she died in 1942.
Following the announcement of the death of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia on January 23, 2015, Prince Charles and British Prime Minister David Cameron flew to Riyadh to pay their respects, joining world leaders and royalty in the reception hall of the royal court as they waited to offer their condolences to the new monarch, King Salman.
In May 2018, Prince Harry married U.S. actress Meghan Markle, a star of the TV drama "Suits". Prince Charles walked her down the aisle at the wedding in Windsor after her own father had to pull out because of ill health.
U.S. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump had tea with the Prince of Wales and The Duchess Cornwall at Clarence House in June 2019.
Prince Charles and his wife Camilla welcomed the Trumps to their residence in London as part of the full royal spectacle of a British state visit.
With Queen Elizabeth almost halfway through her tenth decade, Prince Charles has assumed more senior royal duties.
His father Philip died at Windsor Castle on April 9, 2021.
The role of king no longer remains a distant prospect for the oldest Prince of Wales and longest serving heir to the throne in British history. - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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