Prince William and the future of the British throne

Prince William became heir apparent to the British throne on September 8, 2022, when his father became King Charles III. Charles III let it be known that he aimed to streamline and modernize the monarchy, which already looked different in 2023 than it had in 1953, when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, was crowned. In 2023, including Charles, there were only 11 working royals—that is, those who represent the monarchy at official engagements. Many of them were in their 70s. At the time of Queen Elizabeth’s death in 2022, she was the longest-serving monarch in British history. After seven decades as heir apparent, King Charles became the oldest monarch to be crowned. One of his first acts as king was to pass the title of prince of Wales to his elder son, Prince William. As prince, William is known for his advocacy work, which often focuses on alleviating homelessness and battling climate change, and his private family life, with his wife, Catherine, and their three children. Like his father, Prince William attended college and served in the British military as a pilot. Both have also championed environmental causes. Born in 1982, William Arthur Philip Louis is the elder son of Charles III and Diana, princess of Wales. Diana was known for her charitable work, down-to-earth attitude, and furious battles with the media, which contributed to her death in 1997. Both Prince William and his younger brother, Prince Harry, appeared often in the media during their adolescence. Their personal relationships in particular were the subject of much coverage, and both their weddings attracted huge television audiences. William and Catherine—then known as Kate Middleton—met at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, when both were studying art history. The couple married in 2011. Prince William and Catherine, then duke and duchess of Cambridge, proved to be popular at home and abroad. In 2020 Prince Harry and his wife, American actress Meghan Markle, the duke and duchess of Sussex, ceded their formal titles and became financially independent. The couple moved to California to seek a more private life with their children, after enduring years of sometimes racist and often crude coverage of their relationship in the media. Prince Harry’s relationship with his brother has also become strained. In early 2024 Buckingham Palace announced that the 75-year-old king had been diagnosed with cancer. Prince William subsequently assumed greater public-facing responsibilities.