After Over 70 years As Heir Apparent, Charles Philip Arthur George (Charles III) has been crowned King of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth Nations.
The Coronation which took place Saturday, May 6, 2023 in London was witnessed by some notable world leaders who were physically present and millions across the world through their television sets.
Charles was born in Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, George VI, and was three years old when his mother, Elizabeth II, acceded to the throne in 1952, making him the heir apparent. He was made Prince of Wales in 1958 and his investiture was held in 1969.
He was educated at Cheam and Gordonstoun schools and later spent six months at the Timbertop campus of Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, Australia. After earning a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Cambridge, Charles served in the Royal Air Force and Navy for five years, from 1971 to 1976. In 1981, he married Lady Diana Spencer, with whom he has two sons: William, Prince of Wales, and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex. The couple divorced in 1996, 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 2005, Charles married his long-term partner, Camilla Parker Bowles.
As heir apparent, Charles undertook official duties and engagements on behalf of his mother. He founded The Prince’s Trust in 1976, sponsors The Prince’s Charities, and is a patron, president, or member of over 800 other charities and organisations. He has advocated for the conservation of historic buildings and the importance of 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 both praise and criticism over his opposition towards genetically modified food. He also supports homeopathy and other alternative medicines. He has authored or co-authored 17 books.
Charles became king upon his mother’s death on 8 September 2022. At the age of 73, he became the oldest person to accede to the British throne, after having been the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales in British history. His coronation is took place at Westminster Abbey, where he was crowned, on 6 May 2023.
