Charles, turning 60, still not in charge
Prince at milestone awaiting the throne
LONDON — Talk about an apprentice. When he turns 60 today, Prince Charles will have spent a lifetime in line to become king.
That has put him in quite a bind. The longest-waiting heir in British history ascends to the throne only when his beloved mother dies or steps down.
Queen Elizabeth II held a birthday party for her son Thursday in Buckingham Palace. The Philharmonia Orchestra, of which the prince is patron, played for invited members of his extended family, European royalty and assorted society figures.
His sons, William and Harry, addressed the guests, describing Charles as an inspiration, but they also poked fun at their aging father, joking that an electric stair lift would be installed at his country home in Gloucestershire, in southwest England, to mark his birthday.
Charles’ wife, Camilla, will throw a more private bash Saturday at the prince’s rural estate, complete with a performance by sexagenarian rocker Rod Stewart.
But the queen won’t be giving Charles the present many believe he craves most — the crown. The queen has indicated informally that she plans to keep the job for life, and some people think the 82-year-old monarch intends to live forever, or at least as long as her mother, who died at 101.
“It can’t be easy,” said historian Andrew Roberts. “Most of us can look forward to our new jobs, but the circumstances under which her reign comes to an end means that he can’t, emotionally and psychologically.”
If the queen remains in good health, Charles may be nearing 80 — or past it — when he fulfills the unique destiny that was his at birth.
Britain’s next-longest monarch- in-waiting was Queen Victoria’s eldest son, who became King Edward VII in 1901 at age 59 years and two months.
Experts, associates and friends say Charles realized decades ago that he would make his mark as Prince of Wales rather than king, and so he decided to expand that undefined role and use it to pursue his favorite causes.
Roberts said Charles has transformed the traditionally weak role of prince by using it as a bully pulpit.
“He’s made a real job of it,” Roberts said. “He’s spoken out on what matters most to him, championing organic food over genetically modified crops, backing architecture that is human in scale, pursuing better relations between the Islamic world and other faiths, and starting the Prince’s Trust, which has helped many young people in trouble.”
The princely role offers a few advantages over being monarch. Some say the money is better, because the Prince of Wales controls the lucrative Duchy of Cornwall, the 136,000- acre estate established in 1337 by King Edward II to provide income for his heir. Official accounts show the prince’s property and investments brought in $24 million last year.
There is no doubt that Charles is less popular than the queen, who commands wide respect throughout Britain for her devotion to duty for more than half a century. She became queen on the death of her father George VI in February 1952. Charles, the eldest of her four children, was not yet 4 years old.
Charles’ many detractors see him as an eccentric who talks to his plants and is so committed to environmental causes that he converted his vintage Aston Martin to run on surplus wine.
Some still fault him for the spectacular flameout of his marriage to Princess Diana and his not-too-concealed extramarital affair with Camilla Parker Bowles, now his second wife.
The Daily Mirror newspaper summed up many Britons’ feelings Thursday in an editorial. “Happy birthday, Charles,” it said, “but long may the queen reign over us.”
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