Can Queen Elizabeth II choose William over Charles to succeed her?
Charles, 70, first in line since 1952, cannot be ousted on the death of the Queen. But he can abdicate.
You asked us the following question: "Can Elizabeth II really replace Charles with William to succeed her to the throne?"
Queen Elizabeth II, 93, has been on the English throne since 1952. In the order of succession established by Buckingham Palace, her eldest son Charles, Prince of Wales, is the first to succeed her.
Aged 4 when his mother was crowned, he is now 70 and has broken the British record for the heir who has waited the longest.
Problem: Charles' 37-year-old son William, Duke of Cambridge, is the favorite of many Britons to take over from the Queen. According to a poll conducted by BMG Research, commissioned by The Independent and published in January, 46% of 1,508 Britons polled want Prince Charles to abdicate to make way for the Duke of Cambridge. Only 25% of respondents do not want it.
The queen cannot choose her successor
Can Elizabeth then designate a successor to the detriment of another? Impossible: According to the Bill of Rights established in 1689 and the Act of Settlement of 1701, the first born male inherits the crown. This so-called “male primogeniture” rule was amended in 2013 to give equality to daughters in royal siblings. The sovereign therefore does not have the possibility of changing the rules of succession. "On the other hand, the British Parliament has held this power since the law of 1701", specifies Philippe Chassaigne, professor of contemporary British history at the University of Bordeaux-Montaigne. In the midst of a conflict between Catholics and Protestants, Parliament granted itself the right to choose among potential successors to oust Catholics from the throne. Today, Westminster still holds this right, provided that a crisis arises at the time of the succession.
William, on the other hand, could become king upon the death of Elizabeth II if Charles abdicated. When the queen died, he would have the option of relinquishing the crown in favor of his eldest son. Hypothesis highly improbable according to specialists. "There is hardly any chance", according to Philippe Chassaigne. Penny Junor, British journalist and royal family biographer, was on a similar line on the Daily Express website: "I certainly don't think he's planning to hand over to William or abdicate." Same analysis with Stéphane Bern, writer and journalist: “If he is still alive, he will not leave his place. He was brought up to rule. And since Edward VIII, abdication has been removed from the vocabulary. ” This scenario had indeed arisen in 1936: after the death of his father, Edward VIII abdicated after less than a year of reign (without ever having been crowned), in order to marry Wallis Simpson, a divorced American. It was his younger brother, George VI, who was then crowned king.
