Charles combines ‘doing’ role with figurehead stance of Elizabeth II

The King has combined the late Queen’s approach to her reign with his own to become a monarch who is both figurehead and engages with issues, a senior palace aide had said.

Queen Elizabeth II’s 70-year reign was characterised by her silence on the big topics of the day, and simply “being” came to define her role as head of state.

Charles spent decades as the Prince of Wales “doing” and campaigning on a range of topics, from the environment to architecture, and now an established King can be seen to have married the two approaches, which historians may see as a “big step change”.

A senior palace aide said: “As Prince of Wales he clearly took the view that if (his mother’s) job was to be, then his job was to do until such time as he became King.

“And one thing I spent a lot of time thinking about before accession was: would the ‘doing’ role just be a ‘being’ role, when the crown came to him, or would there be a way to blend the two?

“And I hope what we found is a way to blend the two. In a completely constitutionally compliant way, and with full support of the Government. The King does still engage in issues – not anything which is party political, certainly, but where there is consensus, there is an agreement now that it is perfectly reasonable for the sovereign to do that.

“Now, the late Queen didn’t do that, which isn’t to say one way is right, one is wrong. They’re just different ways of doing it well.

“But for me, when the King’s time is done, whenever that may be, God willing (in) many decades, thoughtful commentators will spot that that was a big step change.”

One important topic the King has engaged with this year is AI, hosting a summit for leaders from the artificial intelligence sector, Government ministers, and civil society to discuss the future deployment and development of AI technologies.

Charles spent many decades as heir to the throne but soon after becoming King, following Elizabeth’s death on September 8 2022, the aide noticed a change.

“I was with him as his mother died, and I remember within five minutes seeing a bit of a transformation in him.

“Not a huge transformation, because all of those years as Prince of Wales, he had done the most amazing job…”

The aide commented on one significant difference for Charles in becoming King: “And the thing I think that’s changed more than anything is the fact that when you’re in the top job, the other people who are in the top job in their country treat you a little bit differently.”

Among the important world players not visited by a British head of state for some time is China.

The late Queen made a state visit to China in 1986 and almost 30 years later Charles met president Xi Jinping during his 2015 state visit to the UK.

Charles’s thoughts on China’s past leadership are well known after he described them as “appalling old waxworks” in an extract from his journal written in 1997 after attending the handover ceremony of Hong Kong to China.

The aide said: “If the Government said: ‘Will the King go to China?’ I think we (would) think about it very carefully.

“China is a hugely important country. It’s a very complex country. It would pose you know a lot of complexity in putting a programme together.”