“Destiny’s Shadow: The Unlucky Legacy of King Charles and the Burden of His Name”

King Charles has definitely not been the luckiest Monarch and Heir Apparent to the throne.

Keen and eager to ascend the throne for ages, it took a patient watch of close to seven decades to finally get to wearing that coveted Crown.

Not only the Crown, his personal life too has been a chequered waiting game, watched by the world, be it his marriage and the end of it, his love hate relationship with the British Press and a blow hot blow cold relationship with his parents.

In his 1994 authorised biography by Jonathan Dimbleby, Charles’s parents were described as physically and emotionally distant and Philip was blamed for his disregard of Charles’s sensitive nature, including forcing him to attend Gordonstoun, where he was bullied.

His fairy-tale wedding to Diana on 29 July 1981, turned sour quickly! So much so that Charles and Diana’s evident discomfort in each other’s company led to them being dubbed “The Glums” by the press.

Charles had to then wait endlessly to marry his true love Camilla Parker Bowles, a wedding that his mother and the Queen did not attend.

Dame luck has not been a friend of Charles and perhaps the fault lies in his name!! How you say? Read on

King Charles ascended the British throne on 8 September 2022 following the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth II.

While he became an heir apparent, after the coronation of his mother, Queen Elizabeth, at the tender age of three, it took him almost 7 decades to become King.

Charles has the distinction of being the longest-serving British heir apparent. He was also the oldest person to succeed to the British throne, at the age of 73.

Interestingly, there has not been a king of England named Charles since the 17th century as the name Charles is not considered lucky for the British Royalty!

Charles-I

The mis-fortune associated with the name Charles for Royalty started with the reign of Charles-I.

The first King Charles came into power in 1625. His ascension heralded a reign of political strife, rebellion, the bloodiest of civil wars and embittered, deep-seated religious quarrels that rocked every corner of England, Scotland and Ireland.

By 1649, the King was on the run, but was caught by the Scots who handed him over to parliament. The 48-year-old Monarch was subsequently tried, sentenced to execution and the monarchy, was abolished.

Charles-II

Charles II also had his share of mis-fortune. He was the eldest surviving of nine children of Charles-I.

He ascended power only after the restoration of the Monarchy in 1660 and the revival of the crown.

But Bubonic plague, the Great Fire of London in 1666 marked his unfortunate reign and even though both events were hardly his fault, but they shaped England and became glum associations of failure that were hard to shake.

Bonnie Prince Charlie:

Another doomed namesake was ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’, aka Prince Charles Stuart. He claimed the throne in the 1700s through his Scottish royal lineage. The Young Pretender and agitator spent just 14 months on British soil in his lifetime and died in his birthplace, Rome, a hopeless alcoholic in 1788.

Fast forward to today and Charles Philip Arthur George could have opted for any of his names on Coronation and according to reports, it was believed that Charles may choose the name George, but he retained the name Charles.

He was crowned King on May 6, 2023, and within 6 months, tragedy has struck the Royal House hold.
Charles has been diagnosed with Cancer in early February this year. Soon after, his daughter in-law, Catherine was also diagnosed in Cancer.

With the younger son and daughter-in-law estranged, King Charles finds himself into a strange predicament!

Does the name have anything to do with it? You decide.