Here are some photos of Prince Charles at the rededication marking the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. Charles looks nice in his uniform, doesn’t he? According to the Daily Mail, Charles is basically “the Shadow King” at this point and in the past year, he will have undertaken 650 engagements in 2015. At the age of 66 (he’ll be 67 in November), he’s busier than he’s ever been, trying to juggle his own full-time schedule of royal appearances, appearances on behalf of the Queen, running Highgrove, the Duchy of Cornwall and, increasingly, running Sandringham, plus the constant demands of The Prince’s Trust. Now would be the time for Charles’ “streamlined monarchy” to come to the table and begin to take on some Charles’ workload. Except his oldest son still wants to play-act a middle-class charade. That’s what the Daily Mail’s Katie Nicholl has said in what seems like a bombshell royal-gossip item – you can read the full piece here. Some highlights:
Next year is the 40th birthday of The Prince’s Trust: “Enthusiastic plans to mark the occasion are well under way.” There will be a big celebration, but behind the scenes, “It is understood their task is to ‘future-proof’ the trust, devising committees and new procedures that will allow it to run with more autonomy. In fact, I understand that several of Charles’s leading charities have received letters from the Prince in recent weeks, warning them that they must manage with less of his personal attention than in the past.”
The Queen is feeling her age, letting Charles take on more: ‘She is leaning more on Charles. She won’t let on, but her knees are giving her trouble and when events are planned, the first thing her aides check is whether stairs are involved. If you watch her these days, you see her take an arm to lean on or hold on to a bannister. She is slower and she complains a little about her back or her knees playing up.’
As Charles takes on more of the workload, he wanted William to step up: Charles held discussions some months ago with Prince William about whether he would take over as head of the trust – but William indicated he would rather not. The discussions are thought to be a source of private distress to Charles, who fears his legacy may be abandoned if it is not kept within the family…Today, the trust generates an annual turnover of £72 million.
William & Kate want to focus on their own foundation: ‘William has said that he has been asked to take on the trust, but he has mixed feelings about it. He has his own charitable foundation and he wants to make his own mark. If he takes on his father’s legacy, then it means he can’t create his own. William is very definite about wanting to do his own thing. Charles to a degree has to accept that much of his increased workload is down to his own doing. He was the one behind wanting to streamline the family and he upset his siblings when he made it clear they would not be on the balcony at the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. I think he had hoped his sons would take on more and help him out, but William and Harry are pursuing their own interests.’
William fetishizes the ‘normal life’: William is thought to have told his father he wants to carry on with a ‘normal’ life for as long as possible. Now, though, Charles’s packed diary has forced the issue to the surface. Some members of the Royal Family feel the Princes have had enough freedom and now, in their 30s, should buckle down to their Royal roles. But William and Harry have been adamant about going their own way – and even went to the lengths of moving their staff from offices they shared with their father at St James’s Palace to new rooms at Kensington Palace.
William’s trust, charitable instincts: One palace insider said: ‘William wants to avoid being a “letterhead” on a page and just take on charities that he is passionate about. This is a job with no retirement date so there’s no rush to jump into things. It’s more important to the Duke that he grows a sustainable charitable foundation of his own.’
The future of the Prince’s Trust: ‘The Trust operates beautifully. It’s an amazing fundraising giant with very loyal supporters but the future is something being talked about. I think there’s an expectation that when Charles becomes King, the Trust will step up with him and could become The King’s Trust if William and Harry decide they don’t want to take it on.’
Charles’ legacy: ‘Since his childhood, Charles has known that he will succeed the Queen,’ said a member of the Royal circle. ‘But he’s in the strange position now of having two sons, but wondering who will continue his legacy.’
The Mail says that William, Harry and Kate’s trust took in £4 million, but it’s not entirely clear what they really did with that money. Harry also has his Lesotho charity, Sentebale, which he has been genuinely active in for years. But it does feel like… William is seriously running out excuses to avoid royal work. Even his father is directly asking him to take on more and William still refuses. I wonder if Charles asked Harry directly to take over The Prince’s Trust, do you think Harry would do it? I bet he would. And I bet that would piss off William even more.
Photos courtesy of WENN, PCN.
