‘The King’s Speech’ fear keeps Prince William far from acceding to throne

London, Sunday

A string of opinion polls have backed Prince William and his bride-to-be leapfrogging Prince Charles to the throne — an improbable step that would shake the monarchy to its foundations.

One survey showed a third of Britons calling for the 85-year-old Queen Elizabeth II to step aside for William within two years, as excitement builds ahead of his wedding to Kate Middleton.

Some feel putting the 28-year-old prince and his new bride on the throne — ahead of his 62-year-old father Charles — would breathe new life into the monarchy, giving it a huge popularity boost that could keep it going through the 21st Century.

However, experts say the chances of such a dramatic shake-up of the system happening are remote and would involve the dreaded word that still reviles the royal family — abdication.

The Oscar-winning film “The King’s Speech” documented the turmoil when King Edward VIII stepped down in 1936, putting his stammering younger brother on the throne as King George VI.

“The ‘A’ word is not mentioned by the royal family,” said Prof Robert Hazell, the Constitution Unit director at University College London.
“1936, for them, was a terribly painful episode which is still deeply seared on their consciousness, not least that of the present monarch because it was as a result of the abdication that her father succeeded,” he told AFP.

“The private feeling inside the royal family is that he was pretty ill-prepared for that role and some feel the strains of kingship contributed to George VI’s early death.”

For Queen Elizabeth, her coronation oath was a covenant between her and her people struck before God, making her lifelong service a sacred duty.

And it is highly unlikely that she, or indeed Charles, would want to do to William what was done to her father.

Charles has spent a lifetime preparing for the role, whereas William has only just started to undertake occasional royal duties and is immersed in his military career as a search and rescue pilot.

Impeccable monarch

However, Queen Elizabeth was only 25 when she acceded to the throne and is widely acknowledged as an impeccable monarch.

The polling could reflect lingering hostility towards Charles over his divorce from William’s mother Diana, princess of Wales, and subsequent marriage to his former mistress, Camilla.

Charles, Britain’s longest-serving heir apparent, has no alternative but to wait his turn.

He on Wednesday overtook the record of 59 years, two months and 13 days set by queen Victoria’s eldest son before becoming king Edward VII.

But Charles claimed in an interview last year that he enjoyed his current role.

“In this particular position I can do a lot more... than I can if I found myself in a different situation,” he told US television network NBC.
The prince said he did not dwell on acceding to the throne.

“It’s much better not to. This is something that if it comes to it, regrettably it comes as a result of the death of your parent, which is not so nice to say the least.

“It’s all in the providence of God, isn’t it really? I may drop dead long before then.”

But as Queen Elizabeth and her husband Prince Philip age, the younger royals are likely to take an increasing share of the strain.

Robert Jobson, a royal commentator and author of “William and Kate: The Love Story” said the young couple could become “the face of the monarchy”, free from the burdens of the throne.

That might play well in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and other overseas realms, where the octogenarian queen might become a less frequent long-haul visitor.

Republicanism is strong

A poll in January in Australia — where republicanism is strong — found that 58 per cent wanted William on the throne next, with 30 per cent favouring Charles. Fifty-six per cent thought Queen Elizabeth should stand down.

For its part, Buckingham Palace does not comment on such polls because they are simply “constitutionally incorrect”.

With William about to wed, the British government has said it is looking at changing the succession laws to allow daughters to take precedence over their younger brothers.

Those negotiations with the 15 other Commonwealth realms would not affect Charles or William’s position — though some may try to use the opportunity to force the issue.

Jobson said the system works precisely because subjects cannot choose their sovereigns — transient popularity plays no part.

“I don’t think you should start chopping and changing it. If you do you should change the system altogether,” he said. (AFP)