The 'Idea' Of King William Won't Live Up to the Reality
I'm not counting down the days till King Charles's reign ends
I knew from various sources on Friday, April 26th that news was dropping about King Charles. I was certain the world was going to be hit with an update that King Charles’s cancer diagnosis would require him to step away from his duties—indefinitely.
I felt the gravitas of the situation. It felt terrible.
Obviously one’s health taking a turn for the worse is horrific, I’m not a total monster. But my reaction was, in part, because of the sentence repeating ad infinitum in my head:
The reality of King William will never live up to the idea of King William.
Ultimately the announcement from Buckingham Palace was positive. King Charles was responding well to treatment and returning to public-facing royal duties. But ‘William as King’ is a topic I’ve wanted to discuss for a long time.
I Just Can Wait…For William to Be King
Note: In order to have this conversation, I have to remove questions like, “What’s the point of a monarchy?” and, “Does one even need a ‘good’ monarch?”, from my brain.
Why the Rush For Wills?
Simple: He’s Diana’s son. Most importantly, he is not Charles, who tends to be discussed as a transitional monarch between Queen Elizabeth II and a King William.
In an effort to kick off the ‘Wills 4 King’ campaign early, the palace + media have created an impossible platform for Will to deliver on: As King he will be a modern, change-maker, but also traditional in the vein of his grandmother. That’s impossible.
(The calls for Charles to abdicate have circulated since William was a teen. The above Sept. 1997, published right after Diana died, states that people are “praying” for King William sooner rather than later, in part because, “he is the most potent reminder of the People’s Princess.”)
Why King Charles’s reign might “reign supreme” to William’s
1. Buckingham Palace Comms. vs. Kensington Palace Comms.
It cannot be overstated how deeply the public loathed Charles once it was revealed that he cheated on the People’s Princess, Diana, Princess of Wales, with Camilla Parker Bowles. Just as Charles & Camilla were trying to create public buy-in as a legitimate couple—Princess Diana was tragically killed in a car crash.
The fact that the pair were able to rehab their reputations is thanks to a ruthless Comms. Team. Was it monstrous to use his sons in this scheme? Yes. Was Operation PB, launched by Mark Bolland and seen through by successive Private Secretaries, a success? Arguably, yes. Camilla didn’t win over public, but she did win over the media with a currency valued above all else: access.
When Charles became King, a different Comms. Team was poised to usurp the old guard: Kensington Palace. Kate & Will were,"heralded as the savvy digital future”, with their cinematic social media content. Tom Sykes wrote in The Daily Beast that while Charles’s operation was, “wily, grand and formal”, Kate and Will’s was a, “leaner, call-me-by-my-first-name”, one. (Although, how anyone could be that impressed with Kensington Palace after the colonial cosplay during the 2012 and 2022 Caribbean Tours…)
The spectacular f*ck up around Catherine’s health updates, reveals that this digitally savvy future was a blip. (I wrote about BP vs. KP Comms. in detail here.) If it wasn’t for a media system that acts as a PR arm for the British Royal Family, the reporting on the future sovereign would be starkly different.
2. Charles Loves the Job (Jury’s Out on William)
Charles was the longest ever Prince of Wales, which meant he had a lot of time to…
That was a problem. Charles had a multitude of interests, but wasn’t supposed to do anything that would step on the toes of his mother—or the government. The Black Spider Memos landed him in hot water in the mid-2000s when The Guardian successfully argued in court for access to Charles’s letters to government ministers that could be perceived as putting his thumb on the scale. While some of his ventures have been incredibly short-sighted (Poundbury anyone?), to quote Simba, Prince Charles:
Despite a cancer diagnosis, Charles is clearly immersed in the job of King. Have you ever seen someone happier to go back to work?
On the other hand, it’s been reported that William doesn’t read briefing memos, which was on display at the BAFTA’s this year when he admitted to actress Mia McKenna-Bruce of How to Have Sex that he hadn’t seen the film, but it must have been fun to shoot. Mia plays a sexual assault victim.
Whatever you think the “work” entails, preparation and performing extremely well on domestic engagements and international tours seems important. They’re areas where Charles excels. I am not putting Charles on a pedestal. Charles is also the guy who gets mad at pens. Cheated on Diana. Willingly threw his grieving children under the bus for good press. Didn’t speak up on behalf of his youngest son’s wife, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, when media coverage was laced with racism and double standards. Charles shows no signs of challenging a toxic media ecosystem from which he benefits.
3. Prince William is Not Diana
It’s understandable that people focus on how the brothers look and act like Diana, but they aren’t Diana. Much of what remains of Diana is the idea of her, not the complex, passionate, messy, caring woman at her core. The hope for King William lies in the immense adoration the public has for her. I believe people are desperate to see William crowned because, in some ways, a bit of Diana will also be on the throne.
The magic of Diana is something the media would like to capitalize on during William’s reign. A popular monarch is good for business.
There’s been a push by William’s team to distinguish himself from his father with talk of the “warmth” he’ll bring to the role—just like his mother. It’s unthinkable during Queen Elizabeth II’s time that articles telegraphing the heir-apparent’s reign would run like these:
What’s the protocol on stepping on your father’s toes? This brings us to…
4. Modernity is Antithetical to an Ancient, Hierarchical System
Let me get this straight, William is going to forge a different path from his father, single-handedly modernize the monarchy AND keep staunch traditionalists happy?
One could argue it depends on the definition of modern. If this article is any indication, it’s bleak.
“When William has gone along to support one of Catherine’s causes, he consciously holds back and lets her show her authority and expertise. And vice versa with William’s causes.”
Man lets his wife…talk. Okay.
If equity and feminism are modern ideas, they are not compatible with an ancient institution that derives power from God and not the people. William cannot rule in the tradition of his grandmother, with the empathy of his mother, while being progressive enough to win over younger generations who are becoming more and more apathetic to the monarchy.
At best, I think we will see the appearance of change—like when outlets printed that the palace might hire a “diversity czar” after the Oprah interview. That never materialized.
In some ways, William has proven more agile than his predecessors, especially when it comes to Prince Andrew. In Endgame, Omid Scobie writes that multiple sources told him that William really took the Prince Andrew problem head-on, leading to the announcement that the Duke of York would be stripped of his HRH title and remaining royal patronages.
When it pertains to the media, it appears William has taken the dogeared playbook from his father. in In Harry & Meghan, the Duke of Sussex recalls witnessing how the Comms. Teams for their father and his siblings acted. The brothers vowed not to play that ‘dirty game.’ That promise didn’t last.
Prince William in Previews
Far from being in lockstep—Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace have butted heads promoting their principles. One is trying to define his legacy as King, a reign that will be considerably shorter than his time as the Prince of Wales. The other is laying the groundwork for his reign before it begins.
William had an opportunity to showcase a preview of his reign when King Charles was diagnosed with cancer. There was breathless speculation on how the Prince of Wales would step up.
The “idea”, didn’t live up to the reality.
In defense of William’s lighter workload, I’ve seen the argument that he’s taking time to care for his wife and three young children. That priority shift, where family comes first, would be modern. It’s also in direct contrast with, ‘the crown above all else.’ Which will it be and who will be put off as a result?
Much like William’s statement on Gaza, when you try to please everyone, you end up pleasing no one.
Time will tell if the promise of King William lives up to the reality.
-Meredith
Will also has the knowledge of how long his dad waited, and he is not wanting to live a similar situation. He wants to have control. And what Willy wants, Willy gets so far.
Also it’s the dumbest thing that the media lauds Will for putting his wife and kids ahead of “the crown” while vilifying Harry for doing the same thing. Hmm can’t qwite figure out why the double standard.
Watching the hope for Williams rule is kinda like watching a car crash in slow motion. All the signs are there that regardless of how good of a King William is, it can never and will never be what so many people expect. I see a dangerously insecure man grudgingky dragging his feet while being lead to a jury he cannot sway.
Maybe there is someone out there who could save the monarchy, tho parts of me doubt it. What I know for sure tho is that William won't be the one. And for all the clamoring that he's Dianas son... he's not. Not anymore. Hasn't been since she died. He is the son of the crown, he is his fathers son. Harry got all the best of his mother.