Brisbane, Australia – On Monday, October 21, 2024, Aboriginal Australian lawmaker Lidia Thorpe spoke out against King Charles III during his visit to the Australian parliament explaining, “You are not our king.” But, this isn’t the first time King Charles has faced backlash.
King Charles is still the King of Australia and appoints a Governor-General who serves as the King’s representative. The King does not serve any purpose besides being a figurehead for Australia.
Many people living in England have expressed their dislike for the new King. According to Ipsos, almost half of British people believe that King Charles should have given the crown to his son, Prince William. So why isn’t King Charles as liked as other British monarchs such as his mother Queen Elizabeth II?
King Charles’ messy past and his mistreatment of Princess Diana during his marriage has made him extremely disliked, and now that he has become the King of England he has come under fire not just because of his personal life, but also because many people in England believe he will not be a good monarch.
Time reported that in 2013, relatives of Osama Bin Laden had donated $1.2 million to King Charles’ charity: The Prince of Wales’ Charitable Fund. King Charles’ office denies that the King knew about this donation.
Now that King Charles is in power, he is slimming down his monarchy. Charles intends to strip his extended family from their royal obligations, which may cause backlash from some people who support them. Charles’ siblings, Andrew, Edward, and Anne, would not be obligated to complete their royal duties either.
The monarch of England is supposed to be a role model and a face for England and the English people. According to Tina Brown a former editor, who spoke to Newsweek, “You’ve basically got Charles who’s got cancer, you’ve got Kate whose been through this terrible cancer bout herself and had to leave the stage for nearly a year and William who’s so curtailed by all the sort of anxiety on his shoulder.” Brown believes that the British monarchy is not ready to be slimmed down and needs more people helping to fulfill its obligations in order to still be successful.
Though Senator Lidia Thorpe’s protest was not just against the King himself, it brings the question to mind of why many people dislike King Charles and whether Prince William should have taken the crown instead.