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When Queen Elizabeth II died Thursday afternoon, the crown was immediately passed on to her eldest son and heir, Charles, as part of the United Kingdom’s constitutional monarchy system.

Charles is now king, Buckingham Palace said in a statement announcing Elizabeth’s death, though a coronation—traditionally held at Westminster Abbey—will be planned later to officially crown the new king (Charles’ wife, Camilla, is now the queen consort, according to the palace).

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First in line to the throne is now Charles’ eldest son Prince William, who regularly makes public appearances on behalf of the crown along with his wife Kate.

Second in line is William’s 9-year-old son Prince George, who is an elementary school student beginning to take part in more engagements with his parents, having made his debut at the Wimbledon finals this year, a royal tradition (after George, next in the line of succession are his two young siblings, Princess Charlotte, age 7, and Prince Louis, age 4.)

Prince William’s 37-year-old younger brother Prince Harry—Charles and Princess Diana’s second son—is now fifth in line after William’s children.

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Next in line are Harry’s son and daughter with his American wife Meghan Markle, Archie and Lillibet Mountbatten-Windsor, who all reside in California after Harry and Meghan stepped down as senior working royals in 2020.

After Charles’ children and grandchildren, the next in line for the throne is Elizabeth’s second son, Prince Andrew, who stepped back from royal duties in 2019 amid public outrage over his friendship with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein (in February, he settled a sex abuse lawsuit with one of Epstein’s accusers for an undisclosed sum).

While the sovereign of the United Kingdom is the official head of state, they no longer play a political or executive role in the British government. Instead, kings and queens undertake constitutional and representational duties year-round with support from their immediate family, according to Buckingham Palace. Charles has stepped up to take over some of his mother’s royal duties over the past few years. Earlier this year, Elizabeth indicated she would like Charles’ second wife, Camilla, to become queen consort rather than princess consort—a move widely seen as Elizabeth’s endorsement of the couple after their many rocky years in the public eye.

(Forbes)

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