Who is the man who would be King? Recent concerns over the health of Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning British monarch in history, have caused many to ask who will assume the crown following her passing. Will it go to her son, Charles, the Prince of Wales, or should it pass on to her grandson Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, who has in recent years assumed more and more of his grandmother’s ceremonial duties as her health and mobility issues have reduced her public appearances?
Strictly speaking, there is no question. As the Prince of Wales and Elizabeth’s oldest issue, Charles is by rights and heredity the official heir apparent and first in line for the crown. William, son of Charles and his first wife Diana, became second in line on the day he was born, June 21, 1982. The line of succession to the throne is currently held to the 24th place. William has been in second place for the entirety of his 40 years.
In the event of Elizabeth’s death, his father would become the presumptive monarch, prior to coronation, and William would immediately become the heir apparent, though he would not automatically assume his father’s title as Prince of Wales, as the title is not hereditary but dynastic and must be granted by the monarch. Were Charles to ascend the throne, William would likely be invested with the title as his father was at age 20 in 1969. The investiture might even precede Charles’ own coronation, allowing William to attend under his new title. William’s wife, Catherine, would assume the title Princess of Wales, the first to do so since William’s mother, Diana.
William would ascend the throne following his father’s death as King William V ⏤ if, that is, all goes strictly by the current line of succession. Some theorize that Charles could choose to abdicate in favor of his son, an act that would require legislation, as the succession is regulated by Parliament. The last time such action occurred was in 1936 when Edward VIII abdicated in favor of his brother, Charles’ grandfather, George VI.
According to Marie Claire, experts at University College London’s Constitution Unit have stated that, “Having waited over 60 years as heir apparent, it would be natural for Prince Charles to want to assume the throne and perform the royal duties for which he has spent so long preparing. But it would be equally natural if, after reigning for a few years as an increasingly elderly monarch, he chose to invite parliament to hand on the throne to Prince William.”