Prince Charles desires a 'slimmed down monarchy'

Who will get the chop?

Prince Charles has been waiting a long time to be King, longer than any other Prince of Wales in history for that matter.

It's unsurprising therefore, that he's had a long time to contemplate the dynamics of his royal court and according to royal sources he is preparing to make some drastic changes.

Since the Queen's Covid-19 diagnosis in February there has been a lot of heightened attention surrounding Prince Charles' accession. Despite the Queen's full recovery, Charles and Camilla have been busier than usual, perhaps practicing for their future roles.

Despite his Kingly destiny, Charles has kept his plans for his reign secret. However, rumours have abounded for some time for his wish for a 'slimmed down' version of the monarchy. These has intensified in recent months since the controversy surrounding Prince Andrew's embroilment in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal and Prince Harry's very public denouncement of the monarchy and Oprah interview last year.

Currently the main working members of the Royal Family include: Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, Prince William and Kate and the Charles' sister Princess Anne.

Charles' youngest brother Prince Edward and his wife Sophie, Countess of Wessex also perform rotal duties on a less regular basis.

But who is likely to retain their roles within Charles' new court?

We can expect Camilla to take a leading role, as is customary from the monarch's spouse. The Duchess of Cornwall, who the Queen bestowed her desire to be named "Queen Consort" last month, has been honing her diplomatic skills in the last few weeks. Camilla hosted an International Women's Day" event this week, where she joked with The Crown actress and her on-screen counterpart Emerald Fennell about Fennell's depiction of her on the show.

Camilla and Charles have also been busy meeting with members of the British Ukrainian community and offering support to refugees fleeing the conflict this week. On Wednesday the couple met with some families who had fled the conflict at the Holy Trinity Brompton Church in South Kensington.

As for the rest of the royals, the future heir Prince William and his wife Kate, Duchess of Cambridge will almost certainly retain their current roles as senior members of the Royal Family, and will take over Charles' duties as Prince of Wales.

Princess Anne has been heralded for her dedication and stoic service to the crown for several decades and will likely retain her role within "the firm".

And of course, as we look to the future, Charles's three grandchildren, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, who are currently third, fourth and fifth in line to the throne respectively, will eventually serve their role as key members in the royal circus.

At present it seems unlikely that Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, will be working royals under Charles' reign, particularly while they continue to live in California.