The Queen is dead, long live the King. But a prince yesterday morning, the new King Charles III has acceded to the throne aged 73, the oldest incoming monarch in British history. He follows in the footsteps of two 17th century King Charles – so we return to the name and title over 300 years on. But: the word on everybody’s lips, what kind of King will Charles be? We’ve grown used to his preoccupations and concerns – the climate and his vision for a more streamlined monarchy. Will he be an ‘activist king’ as various biographers have suggested? Certainly he’s got enormous respect for the job – and the way his mother commanded her post – and is very much aware that his role as Prince of Wales will be distinctly different from his new life as King.
As King Charles III is embraced as the new sovereign, it will come with a profound sense of grief. He described it as ‘a moment of great sadness for me and all members of my family’ in his statement following Queen Elizabeth II’s death. As his destiny arrives, here is his life in pictures.
