Charles III
Date of birth: 11.14.1948
Charles III, also known as Charles III (English: Charles III, King of the United Kingdom), full name – Charles Philip Arthur George (English: Charles Philip Arthur George) – king of Great Britain and the Commonwealth realms of the House of Windsor, supreme commander of the armed forces of the United Kingdom, supreme governor of the Church of England, head of the Commonwealth of Nations. The reigning monarch in fourteen independent states: Australia, Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Belize, Grenada, Canada, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Jamaica.
Son of Queen Elizabeth II, he was the longest-serving Prince of Wales and heir to the throne in British history, hence was known for much of his life as Prince Charles.
Place of birth. Education. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace in London during the reign of his maternal grandfather George VI on November 14, 1948, at 21:14 (GMT), the first child of Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
All related materials
- The British royal family showed a family Christmas cardLife
- King Charles III of the United Kingdom: We are unshakably confident that Ukraine will prevailNews
- King Charles met Biden at Windsor Castle: photos, videosNews
On December 15, 1948, in the music room of Buckingham Palace, the prince's christening took place (he was baptized by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher). His godmother was Princess Margaret – sister of Elizabeth. At the age of three years and three months (February 1952), he became heir to the British throne after the death of George VI and the accession of Elizabeth II. Prince Charles – elder brother of Princess Anne (born 1950), Prince Andrew (born 1960), and Prince Edward (born 1964).
Charles attended his mother's coronation at Westminster Abbey on June 2, 1953, where he sat next to his grandmother and aunt. As was customary for upper-class children at that time, governess Catherine Peebles was appointed to begin the prince's education at the age of five to eight.
In 1955, Buckingham Palace announced that Charles would attend school rather than have a private tutor, which made him the first heir to receive an education in this way. On November 7, 1956, Charles began his studies at Hill House School, in west London.
Then Charles attended two of his father's former schools – the preparatory school in Berkshire, England, from 1958, and then Gordonstoun in northeast Scotland, began classes there in April 1962.
He spent two semesters in 1966 at the Timbertrop campus at Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, Australia, during which time he visited Papua New Guinea on a school trip with his history teacher Michael Collins Persse.
Charles broke royal tradition for the second time when he entered directly into university after A-levels rather than joining the UK Armed Forces. In October 1967, he was accepted into Trinity College, Cambridge, where he studied anthropology, archaeology, and history. During his second year, Charles attended University College Wales in Aberystwyth, studying history and the Welsh language for one semester.
On June 23, 1970, he graduated from Cambridge, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree 2:2, thus becoming the first heir to obtain a university degree. On August 2, 1975, he was awarded a Master of Arts degree at Cambridge (at Cambridge a Master of Arts is an academic title, not a postgraduate).
On July 26, 1958, Charles was given the title Prince of Wales, but the formal investiture ceremony, during which Elizabeth II placed the Prince of Wales crown on her son's head, took place only on July 1, 1969, at Caernarfon Castle in Wales.
After the investiture, the prince became actively involved in public life in the UK. In the 1970s he participated in meetings of the House of Lords and also became the first royal family member in three hundred years to attend a Cabinet meeting. According to some reports, Charles was interested in the position of Governor-General of Australia, but in light of the constitutional crisis in that country in 1975, he had to abandon these plans.
At the same time, from 1971-1976, Charles was in military service: passed a fighter pilot and military helicopter training course, and also served in the navy.
Is the absolute record holder in British history for the length of time spent as heir to the throne, the previous record (59 years) belonged to his great-great-grandfather Edward VII, as well as the oldest of all Princes of Wales.
On September 8, 2022, following the death of his mother Elizabeth II, he became King of the United Kingdom. On May 6, 2023, the coronation of Charles III.
Residences. In London, the official residence of the Prince of Wales is Clarence House.
The prince also owns estates Highgrove in Gloucestershire, Birkhall in Scotland, and Llwynywermod in Wales.
Military ranks: On November 14, 2006 – General (British Armed Forces), On November 14, 2006 – Admiral (British Armed Forces), On November 14, 2006 – Marshal of the Royal Air Force (British Armed Forces), On June 16, 2012 – Field Marshal (British Armed Forces), On June 16, 2012 – Admiral of the Fleet (Royal Navy), On June 16, 2012 – Marshal of the Royal Air Force (British Armed Forces).
Titles: 1948-1952: His Royal Highness Prince Charles of Edinburgh.
Since 1952: His Royal Highness Duke of Cornwall.
In Scotland: since 1952: His Royal Highness Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron Renfrew, Lord of the Isles, and Great Steward of Scotland. 2000-2001: His Grace Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.
In 1958, Charles was granted the title Prince of Wales along with the additional title Earl of Chester. The full official title became 'His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall, Earl of Chester' – 'His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall, Earl of Chester'.
After the death of his father Prince Philip in 2021, Charles inherited his titles and became respectively the 2nd Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth and Baron Greenwich.
Public activities and personal interests. Charles is actively involved in charity, being a patron of approximately 400 organizations. He is the founder of 'The Prince's Trust' and 15 other charitable organizations. His particular areas of interest include environmental protection and the improvement of urban environments.
Charles' London Foundation for Building Community promotes architectural ideas of neo-historicism. Under his auspices, the experimental new town of Poundbury was built. He is the author of several books on architecture, painting, and gardening, and a scriptwriter of documentaries on ecology.
Charles has been an active polo player, enjoyed fox hunting (until this form of recreation was banned in 2005), and fishing. It is known that he paints in watercolor and is fond of gardening.
Position on Ukraine. On March 1, 2022, Charles condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine and expressed his support for Ukrainians resisting the aggressor. "We stand in solidarity with all those resisting this brutal aggression", - he stated. According to Charles, this is 'an attack on democracy, on an open society, on freedom itself'. Members of the British royal family rarely express their views on political issues, maintaining neutrality. Also, in April of the same year, Charles met with a family that fled from the war in Ukraine.
Personal life and family. In 1979, Charles proposed to his cousin Amanda Knatchbull – granddaughter of the legendary commander, the last Viceroy of India Louis Mountbatten, but Amanda did not give her consent to marriage.
In 1980, he dated Lady Sarah Spencer, daughter of John Spencer, the 8th Earl Spencer, and met heryounger sister Diana, whom he married on July 29, 1981.
Princess Diana gained immense popularity in the UK and abroad. However, the marriage was unsuccessful. Relations between the spouses soon soured, and from 1992 they officially lived separately, and in 1996 – divorced. The scandal attracted significant public attention, which adversely affected the reputation of the Prince of Wales. Diana died in a car accident in Paris in 1997.
Charles and Diana had two sons: Prince William, Duke of Cornwall and Cambridge (born June 21, 1982), Prince Harry (Henry), Duke of Sussex (born September 15, 1984).
On April 9, 2005, Charles married for the second time to Camilla Parker Bowles, née Shand. The wedding ceremony was conducted in civil, not church, form – the first time in the history of the British royal family. From September 8, 2022, Camilla is the Queen Consort of the United Kingdom.
09.20.2023