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Charles III
Head of the Commonwealth[note 1]
Photograph of Charles III
Charles III in 2023
King of the United Kingdom
and other Commonwealth realms
Reign8 September 2022 – present
Coronation6 May 2023
PredecessorElizabeth II
Heir apparentWilliam, Prince of Wales
BornPrince Charles of Edinburgh
(1948-11-14) 14 November 1948 (age 76)
Buckingham Palace, London, England
Spouse
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1981; div. 1996)​
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 2005)​
Issue
Detail
Full name
Charles Philip Arthur George[note 2]
HouseWindsor
FatherPrince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
MotherElizabeth II
ReligionProtestant[note 3]
EducationGordonstoun School
Alma materTrinity College, Cambridge (MA)
Military career
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Branch
Years of active service1971–1976
RankFull list
CommandsHMS Bronington
Charles III's voice
Speech to the Scottish Parliament following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II
Recorded 12 September 2022

Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and 14 other countries. He is also the Head of the Commonwealth.[3] He was Prince of Wales between 1958 and 2022.[3]

Charles was born in 1948, when his grandfather George VI was King. He became heir apparent when his mother, Elizabeth II, became Queen in 1952.[4]

He created Prince of Wales in 1958 and his investiture happened in 1969.[5][6] He went to Cheam School and Gordonstoun, and went to the Timbertop campus of Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, Australia. He got a history degree from the University of Cambridge; and then he was in the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy from 1971 to 1976.[7][8][9] After his 1981 wedding to Lady Diana Spencer, they had two sons, William and Harry.[10][11] After years of being apart and adultery, Charles and Diana divorced in 1996.[12][13] Diana died in a car crash in 1997.[14] In 2005 Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles (now Queen Camilla).[15]

Charles became King when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died in September 2022. She had been Queen since 1952. Charles was the longest serving British heir apparent in history, between 1952 and 2022.[16]

Early life

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King Charles III was born at Buckingham Palace in London. He is the first son of Elizabeth II and Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark. He is the grandson of George VI of the United Kingdom and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. He was baptised at Buckingham Palace.

Charles went to school at Gordonstoun and to university at Trinity College, Cambridge. He became the first British royal heir to earn a university degree.[17][18]

Prince of Wales

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Portrait of Charles in 1972 when he was Prince of Wales

Charles was officially made the Prince of Wales in 1958. As Prince of Wales, Charles fulfilled many public engagements and charity work, such as creating the Prince's Trust. He has also spent time in the Royal Air Force. He has spent a lot of time advocating for the prevention of climate change.

As the heir to the throne, Charles also represented his mother on numerous occasions, such as the independence days of Fiji, the Bahamas, Papua New Guinea, Zimbabwe and Brunei, as well as the day Hong Kong was given back to China.

In 2021, Prince Charles attended the celebration of Barbados becoming a republic and removing Queen Elizabeth as their leader. It was the first time that a British royal attended the transition of a Commonwealth realm in a republic.

Accession

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Charles became king on 8 September 2022, after the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. Holding the titles Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall, and Duke of Rothesay, Charles was the longest-serving British heir apparent, passing Edward VII's record on 20 April 2011. When he became monarch at the age of 73, he was the oldest person to do so.[19]

Charles in the Scottish Parliament (September 2022)

In an announcement after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Prime Minister Liz Truss called Charles "King Charles III". This was the first time anyone had used that name officially.[20] soon after Clarence House confirmed that he would use the regnal name "Charles III".[21] When a British monarch becomes king or queen, they are allowed to change their name if they want to. For example, Charles' grandfather changed his name from "Albert" to "George", and he was "King George VI".

Coronation

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Charles' coronation took place at Westminster Abbey on 6 May 2023.[22] HM Queen consort Camilla was crowned at the same occasion. Charles' eldest son William, Prince of Wales attended and was the only noble to swear allegiance to The King.

Personal life

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He was married to his first wife, Diana, Princess of Wales, from 1981 until they divorced in 1996.[3] They had two sons, Prince William and Prince Harry. Charles and Diana's divorce attracted a lot of media coverage and attention. Charles has been married to his second wife, Camilla, Queen Consort formerly the Duchess of Cornwall, since 2005.[3]

On 25 March 2020, Charles tested positive for COVID-19.[23][24]

On 5 February 2024, it was announced by Buckingham Palace that Charles had been diagnosed with cancer.[25]

  • 14 November 1948 – 6 February 1952: His Royal Highness Prince Charles of Edinburgh
  • 6 February 1952 – 8 September 2022: His Royal Highness The Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles
  • 26 July 1958 – 8 September 2022: His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, Earl of Chester
  • 9 April 2021 – 8 September 2022: His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth, Baron of Greenwich
  • 8 September 2022: His Majesty The King
    1. ↑ Ceremonial and non-hereditary title conferred by the Commonwealth heads of government to symbolise the voluntary association of nations in the Commonwealth. Charles was chosen to succeed Elizabeth II at the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.[1]
    2. ↑ As the reigning monarch, Charles does not usually use a family name, but when one is needed, it is Mountbatten-Windsor.[2]
    3. ↑ As monarch, Charles is Supreme Governor of the Church of England. He is also a member of the Church of Scotland.

    References

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    1. ↑ "Charles 'to be next Commonwealth head'". BBC News. 20 April 2018. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
    2. ↑ "The Royal Family name". Official website of the British monarchy. Archived from the original on 15 February 2009. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
    3. 1 2 3 4 . Moreover, Charles is next in line for the British Throne, direct successor and heir of Queen Elizabeth II. Prince of Wales' biography Archived 2009-01-09 at the Wayback Machine
    4. ↑ Elston, Laura (26 April 2023). "Charles made history when he watched the Queen's coronation aged four". The Independent. Archived from the original on 26 April 2023. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
    5. ↑ "No. 41460". The London Gazette. 29 July 1958. p. 4733.; "The Prince of Wales – Previous Princes of Wales". Prince of Wales. Archived from the original on 11 October 2008. Retrieved 12 October 2008.
    6. ↑ "The Prince of Wales – Investiture". Clarence House. Archived from the original on 20 October 2008. Retrieved 12 October 2008.
    7. ↑ "HRH The Prince of Wales | Prince of Wales". Clarence House. Archived from the original on 9 April 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
    8. ↑ Brandreth 2007, pp. 169–170
    9. ↑ "Military Career of the Prince of Wales". Prince of Wales. Archived from the original on 14 May 2013. Retrieved 19 April 2013.
    10. ↑ "Royally Minted: What we give them and how they spend it". New Statesman. Vol. 138, no. 4956–4968. 13 July 2009. Archived from the original on 16 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
    11. ↑ Johnson, Bonnie; Healy, Laura Sanderson; Thorpe-Tracey, Rosemary; Nolan, Cathy (25 April 1988). "Growing Up Royal". Time. Archived from the original on 31 March 2005. Retrieved 4 June 2009.
    12. ↑ Griffiths, Eleanor Bley (1 January 2020). "The truth behind Charles and Camilla's affair storyline in The Crown". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 8 September 2022. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
    13. ↑ "'Divorce': Queen to Charles and Diana". BBC News. 20 December 1995. Archived from the original on 23 December 2010. Retrieved 12 October 2008.
    14. ↑ Elser, Daniela. "The day the world stopped: Princess Diana's death 28 years on from the Paris tragedy". news.com.au. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
    15. ↑ "Order in Council". The National Archives. 2 March 2005. Archived from the original on 3 November 2010. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
    16. ↑ "Prince Charles becomes longest-serving heir apparent". BBC News. 20 April 2011. Archived from the original on 18 July 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
    17. ↑ Prince Charles, Cambridge B.A. (With Honors)
    18. ↑ Prince Charles Fast Facts
    19. ↑ Rayner, Gordon (19 September 2013). "Prince of Wales will be oldest monarch crowned". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 20 September 2013. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
    20. ↑ "Queen Elizabeth II has died". BBC News. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
    21. ↑ "Britain's new monarch to be known as King Charles III". Reuters. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
    22. ↑ "Coronation on 6 May for King Charles and Camilla, Queen Consort". BBC News. 11 October 2022. Archived from the original on 11 October 2022. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
    23. ↑ "Prince Charles tests positive for novel coronavirus". CNN. 25 March 2020.
    24. ↑ "Coronavirus: Prince Charles tests positive but 'remains in good health'". BBC. 25 March 2020.
    25. ↑ "King Charles III diagnosed with cancer, Buckingham Palace says". BBC. 5 February 2024.

    Other websites

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