King Charles Was Never The Same After Queen Elizabeth's Death

2022 was the year everything changed for the royal family. When Queen Elizabeth II died on September 8 that year, then-Prince Charles wasn't far from her. In fact, he'd rushed to Balmoral after his private secretary, Sir Clive Alderton, told him that the queen's condition was declining rapidly. At his side was Camilla Parker Bowles, now the new queen. The couple spent time at her majesty's bedside, and Charles proceeded to go pick mushrooms afterward at his own Balmoral home. He was interrupted by a phone call from his sister, Princess Anne, who told him their mother was slipping away. Charles didn't make it back to the queen's bedside in time. He was on his way there when he received the devastating phone call.

The monarchy hasn't quite been the same since. Queen Elizabeth has ruled for seven decades, and the world has grown more wary of monarchies since she first ascended the throne. The queen was beloved, but despite that, some Commonwealth countries have voiced opposition to The Firm. Some royal pundits remained optimistic that the public would grow fond of Charles, however. "I think King Charles showed us today that there is a silver lining here and he does certainly seem like he is up for the job steering the country in the right direction and towards a place of healing," royal expert Sharon Carpenter told E! News in the wake of the royal's first address to the nation.

Others have been more skeptical. "The question of how the buffeted institution can maintain its mythical stature after the queen's death has yet to be answered," royal watcher and author Tina Brown penned in an updated version of her book, "The Palace Papers" Charles' life changed irrevocably after the queen's death, and the palace has faced plenty of challenges since.

Losing a parent is devastating, but the heartbreaking death of Queen Elizabeth II was arguably all the more difficult for King Charles III because he had to weather the aftermath in the public eye. Every media outlet and royal pundit had their eyes on the new king as he returned from Balmoral after September 8, 2025. The New York Post noted that the new monarch appeared emotional as he left his mother's Scottish holiday home. Charles announced a period of Royal Mourning after his mother's death, which commenced immediately and lasted until seven days after her funeral.

Naturally, the queen's death not only brought the new king immense grief, but it also came with plenty of stressors. Charles might have been preparing to ascend to the throne his whole life, but suddenly finding yourself in the position of head of state can't exactly be a walk in the park. The new king's distress was front and center when he had a run-in with a fountain pen a few days after the queen's death.

Charles was attending a book-signing ceremony in Northern Ireland when the pen he was using decided to malfunction. "I can't bear this bloody thing," the king said irritably (via NBC News). "Every stinking time," he added, indicating that this wasn't the first pen to evoke his ire. Comedian Trevor Noah later roasted Charles for his perpetual pen problems, but one could arguably forgive the monarch for losing his patience during that difficult time.

After the world came to grips with Queen Elizabeth II's death, attention turned to her will and what she left behind for her various family members. As it turns out, royal wills are a lot more complex than many realize, but some of the queen's final wishes were made public, including the particulars of what she left behind for King Charles III.

Balmoral Castle and Sandringham House both became Charles' property after his mother's death, but the real jackpot was his inheritance of the Duchy of Lancaster, which is an expanse of farmland, quarries, homes, commercial buildings, London properties, golf courses, and a whopping 10 castles. What one does with this much property is anyone's guess. Aside from this grand inheritance, Charles also became the new keeper of the Crown Estate, which includes the crown jewels, the royal collection, and both Buckingham Castle and Windsor Castle.

It's interesting to note that Charles was under no obligation to pay tax on the inheritance from his mother. However, the king agreed to pay income tax after the queen decided to do so in the wake of the 1992 Windsor Castle fire, which left the public questioning who was liable to pay for the damages.

As many royal pundits and experts feared, King Charles III wasn't received with open arms by some members of the public after he stepped into Queen Elizabeth II's shoes. Two months after his mother's death, King Charles and Queen Camilla became the victims of an angry egg thrower. The couple was walking the streets of York in Northern England and shaking hands with officials as angry protestors booed, one of whom threw eggs at the king and his wife. Some held up signs that read "Not my king." This could hardly have been a pleasant experience for Charles. Fortunately, there were some friendly folk among the angry protestors who tried to drown out the jeers by chanting "God save the king."

Charles evoked some criticism after ascending the throne, mostly because he seemed keen to do things a little differently from his mother, and some of his past comments and opinions came back to bite him. Queen Elizabeth II only ever granted the media one interview throughout her reign; she remained silent about her political views and never uttered a controversial statement. Charles, however, has faced criticism for breaking with this tradition even before he became king. For instance, he voiced his support for using public funding to add homeopathy to the National Health Service's list of services, even though the organization previously stopped providing homeopathic treatments because much of it is not evidence-based and therefore efficacy in patients isn't guaranteed.

The king has also been outspoken about environmental issues, was caught trying to exert influence over former British Prime Minister Tony Blair's government in an attempt to further his own agenda, and has been more politically expressive. Once he became king, his former public views didn't simply disappear. They followed him to the throne.

King Charles III didn't really have time to take a breather after Queen Elizabeth II's death. Instead, Charles was hard at work despite mourning the queen. The king's official engagements as the new monarch started a day after his mother's death. Charles had meetings with then-British Prime Minister Liz Truss and her cabinet members, the archbishop of Canterbury, and the first minister of Scotland. This was followed by a visit from Northern Ireland's secretary of state and a meeting with the first minister of Wales. Charles' schedule was clearly packed, leaving little time to come to terms with the loss of the queen.

Of course, Charles' new duties also included weekly meetings with the British prime minister, delivering a speech during the State Opening of Parliament, and signing bills. Additionally, the famous Red Box also became the new king's responsibility. On September 23, 2022, the palace released a photograph of the new monarch opening the Red Box, accessing important documents relating to matters of the government, the Commonwealth, and any other urgent business that needs the monarch's attention.

Aside from taking over all of the queen's duties, Charles also became the new face of his country, so to speak. British coins and banknotes went from bearing the queen's face to Charles' (even though this takes a few years to fully take effect), and the country's national anthem changed to honor Charles instead of the queen.

Queen Elizabeth II had to deal with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's abrupt exit from the U.K., but King Charles III has had to contend with his youngest son's damaging Netflix docuseries and bombshell memoir. In this instance, at least, the king has leaned on his mother's example of how to conduct oneself when mud is slung at the castle walls: He's remained entirely silent on the matter. Sources, however, have provided a glimpse of the king's state of mind since Harry's damaging claims about his family became public fodder.

"The hope is that once the dust has settled the family will be able to move on and put the past behind them," a palace source told Express in December 2022 after the Netflix documentary was released. "[Charles] loves both his sons and hope springs eternal for a happier future all round. If some can stop fixating on the past." Meanwhile, royal author Christopher Wilson told the outlet that he suspected Charles was heartbroken over Harry's conduct. "Imagine the hurt feelings of the king today. He has lost a son twice over — as a beloved member of his family, and as a valuable member of Team Windsor." He added that, despite Harry casting his father and the royal family in an unfavorable light, the king cares deeply about the prince and therefore won't exile him from the family completely and might even mend fences should Harry ever regret his actions.

Charles barely had time to come to terms with what Harry said in the Netflix documentary when the prince's memoir hit shelves in January 2023. As the world gawked at the most startling revelations from "Spare," the king once again remained silent when reporters asked him whether he was hurt by its contents.

Long before Queen Elizabeth II's death, King Charles III reportedly had plans to reduce the number of working royals after he took the reins. The streamlined monarchy ended up taking care of itself, mostly. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left, and Prince Andrew's ties to Jeffrey Epstein got him stripped of his royal titles. Charles' desire to see a smaller group of working royals running The Firm didn't come without opposition, especially from members of his own family. In May 2023, as the king's coronation loomed, Princess Anne told The Times that she thought her brother was being unrealistic. "It doesn't sound like a good idea from where I'm standing," the princess royal said.

Charles' slimmed-down monarchy came back to haunt him when both he and Princess Catherine were diagnosed with cancer in early 2024, leaving them both down for the count. Prince William took time off to care for his wife, and suddenly, the monarchy was very slim indeed. Charles returned to his royal duties as soon as possible, but it might be safe to say that not having that many family members around to pick up the slack put extra stress on the monarch, who was probably supposed to be taking it slow to aid his recovery.

Even with Charles continuing his work and William having returned to his royal duties full time, it appears the king is still swamped, thanks to the lack of extra hands. According to reporting by the Daily Mail in September 2025, Charles had clocked 175 days of royal engagements over 12 months. Needless to say, Charles is working harder than ever, and he's not getting any younger.

No public figure wants to find themselves in a situation where they've become irrelevant. Unfortunately, the monarchy's declining popularity among younger generations has put King Charles III at risk of exactly that. Newsweek's "The Royal Report" podcast looked into the monarchy's popularity ratings over the years, and things aren't exactly looking up. The problem seems to be that Charles, given his age, doesn't really resonate with the new generation. William, while younger, also doesn't fall into the ideal age bracket, and it appears that young Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis remain the monarchy's last hope to gain back some favor with the youth of their nation.

Then there's also the fact that Charles isn't nearly as popular among current royal fans as Queen Elizabeth II was. That must sting, and weigh heavily on the man who now wears the crown and is the face of The Firm. His coronation was met with protests and some people calling for the monarchy to be abolished. One protestor, Matt Turnbull, told CBS News that he believes the public should have some input into who gets to call Buckingham Palace home.

Other members of the public sympathized with the position the king found himself in. In September 2023, one citizen, Janis Baker, told CBS that Charles hasn't been faring too badly as the new monarch in her opinion. "I think it's a very difficult role to play after the queen, and a difficult job in the first place, so I think he's done a good job," she argued. One thing's for sure, Charles finds himself in uncharted waters, and there's no telling what the future might hold.