Queen Elizabeth II’s eldest son Charles became king immediately upon her death Thursday:
Born on the royal estate at Sandringham on Nov. 14, 1948, the first child of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip was formally invested as Prince of Wales and successor to throne on July 1, 1969.
“Prince Charles is the longest-serving heir we’ve ever had,” Robert Hardman, author of “Queen of Our Times: The Life of Elizabeth II” said. He was on standby to do whatever the queen could not, Hardman said. His admitted infidelity with Camilla ended his relationship with Diana, the glamorous young mother of Prince William and Prince Harry who died in a Paris car crash in 1997, five years after the couple split. Many in Britain took years to forgive him for his treatment of Diana, “the People’s Princess,” admired for the way in which she could connect with the public as he could not.
Earlier this year, the queen expressed her “sincere wish” that Camilla be known as “Queen Consort” when Charles ascends to king, her words transforming Camilla from home-wrecker. During a trip to Canada, he acknowledged the “pain and suffering” suffered by Indigenous communities that had children taken away and abused at state-sponsored residential schools.Emily Nash, the royal editor of HELLO! magazine, said Charles is engaged with people all over the world, particularly on the issue of climate change.