Prince William is very much still next in line for the throne, but that hasn’t stopped him from making plans for when he does inherit the crown. According to Richard Eden, royal expert and reporter for The Daily Mail, he’s planning some “radical changes,” including “slimming down the monarchy.” And it seems he has multiple motivations for this—honoring his father’s wishes, wanting the best for his children, and protecting them from the fate that he and his younger brother, Harry met: a basically non-existent relationship. Keep reading for more details.
Prince William In Favor Of 'Slimmed Down Monarchy'
So what does a "slimmed down monarchy" mean? Well, according to Eden, who spoke to a friend of Williams's, "When the older members of the family retire, His Royal Highness won't be inviting anyone else to become working royals."
This isn't something he's come up with himself, either. According to that same friend, he and his father, King Charles, are in "full agreement" over the need for a "slimmed down monarchy." Currently, there are 11 working royals—King Charles, Queen Camilla, Prince William, Princess Catherine, Princess Anne, he Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, the Duke of Kent and Princess Alexandra. But that list could be much smaller in the coming years. The question is, why?
Princess Charlotte & Prince Louis To Choose Their Own Destiny
Prince William is so in favor of shrinking the royal family that according to a friend of his, "it remains to be seen if he will even want his two younger children to be working royals." While Prince George is locked in as the heir to the throne, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis would technically be in the same position as Prince Harry.
Prince William and Princess Catherine said in 2016 that they want to raise their children "as good people with the idea of service and duty to others as very important." With this still ringing true, it seems that Prince William wants them to be able to "choose their destiny," according to one of Tom Skyes, royal expert and writer for The Daily Beast.
A former Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace staffer confirmed this, saying that Charlotte and Louis "will be encouraged to not become working royals," and that "the working assumption is that the working assumption that the younger two children will get on and do their own thing."
Prince William Attempts To Avoid Spare vs. Heir Mistake
Prince William even has a reason behind this decision, and a good one as well. It's no secret that he and his brother, Prince Harry, are basically estranged, and he doesn't want that to happen to his children. Prince Harry devoted an entire memoir to describing what it was like to grow up the "spare" to Prince William's "heir."
Sykes wrote that William and Kate "want to find a practical solution to the 'spare' problem," and that "they don't want history to repeat itself." Learning from the past and getting ahead of future problems—that's our future King!
