That was a lower approval rating


than in the days following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997. What’s more, it showed the high- est number yet — 25% — in favor of abolishing the monarchy. It is clear, then, that the institu-


tion is even more vulnerable to fam- ily scandals today than it was during the turmoil surrounding Princess Diana in the 1990s. That is why the new king under-


stands that he needs to take clear, firm action with his loved ones. Charles was dismayed in 2021


when Harry and Meghan made highly damaging but vague and un- substantiated suggestions of racism within the royal family. There were yet more complaints


in the couple’s six-part Netflix doc- umentary and more of the same in Harry’s book, which followed weeks later.


The central complaint was that


Charles had cut off Harry’s financial allowance while also “collaborating” with the hated press who had made the Sussexes’ lives so miserable. Prince William, so the couple ar-


gued, was part of the same conspir- acy. Nothing less than an apology, said Harry, would help heal this gap- ing wound. For an institution that is built on


loyalty to the commander in chief and that jealously guards what lit- tle privacy it still enjoys, the claims from Harry and Meghan were shocking and painful enough. That these revelations should be


trumpeted again and again through the world’s media was a breach of all accepted codes of family behavior. On the other hand, here was a


couple feeling a great deal of hurt and pain. The king’s strategy was not to


hit back. From long experience, he knew that this would only prolong the story and, thus, the agony. Rather, he opted to ignore the accusations completely and refrain


from any counter-spin. Though it must have been extreme-


ly frustrating to be publicly trashed by a loved one in the press day after day, it meant that the story had nowhere else to go. Palace aides are also mindful of the


fact that the Sussexes have now been an ex-royal couple for considerably longer than they were regular royals. The impact of the same old claims be- ing made over and over again inevita- bly diminishes with time. Charles, like Elizabeth, is essen-


tially a forgiving person. Regard- less of what Harry has done, he still hopes for some sort of rapproche- ment. On the other hand, he knows that duty to the monarchy itself is paramount. So, although Charles was still de- termined to invite Harry and Meghan


Continued on page 71 MAY 2023 | NEWSMAX 69


TAKING CHARGE Prince Andrew, the second of Elizabeth’s three sons and reportedly her favorite, made a disastrous public attempt to exculpate himself from his friendship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. When Charles assumed the throne he moved quickly to sideline Andrew, ordering his younger brother to vacate his spacious London home and move into smaller quarters outside the city.


There is likely to be a stronger cultural dimension to this reign than the last.


P.68 CONT.: CATHERINE/POOL/SAMIR HUSSEIN/WIREIMAGE / WILLIAM/MAX MUMBY/INDIGO/GETTY IMAGES / HARRY/STEVE PARSONS/WPA POOL/GETTY IMAGES / MEGHAN/MAX MUMBY/INDIGO/GETTY IMAGES GEORGE/KARWAI TANG/WIREIMAGE / CHARLOTTE AND LOUIS/MAX MUMBY/INDIGO/GETTY IMAGES / LILIBET/MISAN HARRIMAN/WIREIMAGE / THIS PAGE: QUEEN/MAX MUMBY/INDIGO/GETTY IMAGES / EPSTEIN/JAE DONNELLY/NEWS UK


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