Can King Charles and Prince William change the monarchy to ensure its survival?

Can King Charles and Prince William change the monarchy to ensure its survival? The Royal Family gathered en masse for one of their biggest events of the year - and the Mirror's Royal Editor Russell Myers says it has come at a time of the biggest upheaval for King Charles As the royals gathered en masse this weekend to celebrate the King’s official birthday, one may wonder what will be on the monarch’s wish list this year. The last 12 months have seen perhaps the biggest upheaval of King Charles’ reign and involved a range of experiences not seen in the late Queen’s 70 years on the throne. Charles’ continued cancer battle, not to mention the brave face he has put on throughout, the drawn out estrangement from his youngest son and grandchildren and culminating in the shocking arrest of his disgraced brother, Andrew, it's been one hell of a ride. This week I was fortunate to attend and speak at an event to mark the launch of a fantastic new publication Monarchy and Democracy: A History of Leadership . During a Q&A session with two esteemed royal journalist colleagues, I was asked two key questions which I believe are a perfect demonstration of the challenges faced by the current sovereign and the ways in which the King, along with Prince William - are best placed to take the institution into the future. Firstly, how has the role of the monarch changed over time in terms of wielding influence, both politically and socially, and whether the monarchy has survived because it resists change, or because it embraces it at exactly the right moment? Both are important points in considering whether the current institution is not only fit for purpose, but indeed whether it can succeed in the long term. Over the past century, the British monarchy has shifted from exercising occasional direct political influence to wielding what is often called "soft power"—influence through symbolism, relationships, continuity, and public visibility rather than formal authority. I personally witnessed this recently when I travelled to the United States to cover the State Visit of the King and Queen at the invitation of President Donald Trump. The visit had been fraught with controversy many weeks before we touched down in Washington, with many detractors on all sides of the political divide calling for King Charles to either pull out of the visit, or at the very least, questions being asked as to why he was being put in such a position in the first place. A hundred years ago, the sovereign still possessed significant constitutional influence, even though Britain was already a parliamentary democracy. During the reign of Elizabeth II, constitutional conventions became more firmly established. The monarch's formal powers remained largely unchanged on paper, but in practice became exercised almost entirely on ministerial advice - just as this State Visit was at the request of not just the Americans, but also the British government. Much has been said and written about the successes of Charles’ speech to the Joint Session of Congress, of which I was present, and the unprecedented nature of the dozen standing ovations the King received, from both sides of the house. Anecdotally at least, it was impressed upon me just how rare this is for an invitational speaker of any note. We live in ever fractured times and the King’s visit underlined such an opportunity to speak to a nation at the very heart of many issues enveloping the world today. Arguably even more so than his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, Charles is a master diplomat and incredibly adept in such situations. But what was underscored on this visit, was his ability - and the ability of the Crown - to be a guiding light in achieving diplomacy that those in government often struggle to achieve. Over the years we have witnessed a shift in how the monarchy chooses to communicate. King George V was the first to use radio to broadcast into people’s homes, Elizabeth II brought the monarchy into millions of homes and transformed royal influence into a media phenomenon. Now the senior royals can communicate directly through social media, websites, podcasts, and video content, reaching global audiences without relying solely on traditional news organisations. This leads me onto the second point of survival. The last few years have seen infighting and scandal within the royal family played out in public like never before. Rightly these instances have led to questions over its suitability to exist in the modern age. The lazy proposition is to perhaps question “what do they actually do?” While that specific inquiry may have been dampened by the King’s stellar performance in Washington, which achieved political and social cut through like I have never seen before, these are issues for a family that seemingly can’t seem to get its own house in order and will inevitably lead to questions about its future. While the fallout between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the rest of the royal family has dominated headlines and split opinion, another mighty thorn in the side of the royal households has been the tawdry ever growing scandal involving the former Prince Andrew. Perhaps in another time such disgrace would have been covered up, shielded from public discourse to protect the institution at all costs. Yet we are fortunate to live in very different times. The royal family knows that transparency, where questions are being asked of its suitability to rule and exist in a world where many feel the acute differences between the haves and have nots and ever increasing disparity between rich and poor, will be key to its survival. After Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest in February on allegations of misconduct in a public office, the King’s “profound concern” and his statement that “the law must take its course” could not be clearer. For all perceived ills of his sibling, Charles’ intention is to rule by a moral code and leave a legacy that holds a mirror up to his beliefs. There has been evolution rather than revolution under Charles, hardly unexpected after a reign spanning seven decades before him. Yet, with his advancing years, William must stand ready to continue to offer change at the heart of the monarchy for nation to get behind him when the time comes.