What will the British monarchy look like under Prince William‘s leadership, once he becomes King? This question has concerned many royal watchers and commentators, who believe that the heir apparent will “modernize” certain aspects of The Firm. A recent wave of social media speculation analyzed the same. Here’s what netizens believe about William’s future rule over the British crown.
As the eldest son of King Charles III and the late Princess Diana, Prince William is first in line of succession upon his father’s passing. The popular consensus appears to be that the Prince of Wales will modernize the British monarchy while distancing himself from the more strict, traditional royal protocol. Many people believe that he will be much more involved, proactive, and approachable in his social and public interactions than past monarchs.
However, several netizens seem to disagree with the assumption. Earlier this year, Reddit users responded to a question posted on the “Royalty Tea” account. “If William actually becomes king, will he really ‘modernize the monarchy?'” the question read.
The original user who posed the question argued that once King, Prince William will be much more “reactionary” before he ultimately tries to “get more power, not less.”
“My bet is he will be more reactionary and try to get back to more power, not less. He’s got to make all this misery seem worthwhile to himself,” the user wrote, adding, “He’s lost his mother and brother to it.” According to the person, Prince William, 43, is suffering from “self-perception bias.”
“…you observe yourself suffering for something so much, that you convince yourself it must really mean a lot to you. Similar to fraternity hazing. So he will double down on making SURE everything is in place so his son becomes king George (shudder),” the user wrote.
Many users seemed to agree with the analysis. One person commented that King Charles, too, said that he would modernize the monarchy before realizing that his hands were tied. The user argued that Prince William would follow his father’s footsteps, albeit with some “performative cruelty.”
“Charles said he would modernise the monarchy only to realise that once he was king all the bureaucracy, the men in grey, the government actually prevent him from doing much except enriching himself,” the user’s comment read.
“William’s reign will be more of the same but with less work and some performative cruelty like removing titles from every royal except his kids and the handful of ‘working royals’. Anyone expecting anything more is extremely naive,” they said.
One user put it bluntly, calling the phrase “modernizing the monarchy” an “oxymoron.”
“The concept of handing someone money, power, influence, fame, leadership, privilege, and social responsibility not because they’ve merited it but because they were born into the right bloodline in the right order with the right g*nitals goes against everything that most modern values stand for,” they said, before adding, “The only way to modernize the monarchy is to either get rid of it, or transform it into an electable position.”
Another user echoed the same thought, writing, “The monarchy is inherently an out-of-date institution. The only way to ‘modernize’ it would be to get rid of it entirely.”
Meanwhile, royal watchers and commentators believe that Prince William is evidently preparing to take on his role as the next British monarch. Experts believe that his increasing public appearances, royal duties, and firm stances point to the same.
Many observers believe Prince William has already stepped in as the unofficial King. Last October, Maureen Callahan wrote in the Daily Mail that “William’s coronation will be a mere formality. This is his monarchy now.”
