Who will be king when the Queen dies – Prince Charles or Prince William?
KING CHARLES III imagines what might happen after the Queen dies, with a fictional Charles and William warring over the crown. But who will be our next king?
Who will be the next king?
Prince Charles is first-in-line to become king after the Queen, although many have speculated whether he might step aside to make way for Prince William.
At 68-years-old, the Prince of Wales is the longest serving heir in UK history and would become the oldest ever British monarch to take the throne on accession.
In recent years, Charles has been the subject of much controversy, with his divorce from Diana, Princess of Wales, his affair with Mrs Parker-Bowles and his “black spider memos” to government ministers all sparking outrage.
Sources have claimed that Charles plans to make “heartfelt interventions” on public affairs when he becomes king, leading to fears that he could bring down the monarchy and spark calls for a republic.
William enjoys better approval ratings than his father and is almost as popular as the Queen.
Charles has never spoken about the possibility of stepping aside to make way for William, to do so would break with royal protocol.
In recent years he has taken on many of the Queen’s responsibilities as the 90-year-old lightens her workload. He has spent most of his adult life in training to become king, and is enthusiastic about his royal duties.
Regardless of his personal feelings, if Charles were to step aside for his son he could spark a constitutional crisis.
Author Vernon Bogdanor explained: “You can't just decide to skip a generation, it's not going to happen."
A 2016 poll found that 79 per cent of Britons support William, while just 60 per cent are in favour of Charles. The Queen garners 81 per cent approval.
The Ipsos Mori survey revealed that 76 per cent are in favour of keeping the monarchy, but it is thought that support for the royals is largely linked to the Queen’s personal popularity.
Under the Act of Settlement of 1701, the eldest son of the monarch took the crown even if they have an older sister
But the Succession to the Crown Bill of 2013 changed the law so that males no longer precede their elder female siblings.
Prince William is second-in-line to the throne, with his son Prince George third and his daughter Princess Charlotte fourth.
They are followed by Prince Harry, Prince Andrew, his daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, and the Queen’s youngest son Prince Edward
