The Last Prince

On July 1^st 1969, Prince Charles was invested as Prince of Wales in a lavish ceremony at Caernarfon Castle. The BBC showed a few programmes to mark the 40^th anniversary, but celebrations were muted to say the least. It seems that the subjects of his Principality were less than enthusiastic! The investiture was controversial back in 1969, and 40 years later more and more of us are questioning the future of the role.

Before I start, I must explain that I am, in principle a republican. I don’t believe that it is right or sensible to decide on a head of state on the basis of the royal line of succession, I belive that ALL citizens should be equal and I belive that the people should be soverign. For these beliefs to be realised we would have to adopt a republican system of government. As an institution, I belive that the Royal Family is archaic and the role “Prince of Wales” is a remnant from a long gone age – thank goodness.

On a practical note, having a Queen does save the effort of choosing a president, and in other Commonwealth countries, such as Canada and new Zealand, the Queen is head of state in name only. This is an arrangement that seems to work well and is something I would be open to as a model for Wales. But what about the title “Prince of Wales” specifically?

Like a growing number of people, I’m calling for the title to be abolished as soon as possible – and certainly when Charles becomes King. Some people are concerned about the history of the title, but I’m more concerned with its effect on the present. Having a “Prince of Wales” leads people the the incorrect conclusion that Wales is a Principality. Very briefly, the Principality of Wales was a part of Wales (the rest was the March of Wales) and has had no legal status for centuries. I’ve had to explain the difference more times than I care to remember. This misapprihension in turn puts Wales on a lower status than the other countries of Britain as a mere principality of England, rather than a country like Scotland.

The title “Prince of Wales” also gives the wrong impression to the rest of the world. It creates an image of some fairytale land, where the Prince rules and protects his simple and superstitious subjects from evil wizards and marauding unicorns. I was livid after viewing an exhibition at Caernarfon Castle about the prince and his principality several years ago, which made every effort to support this image. The opinion poll at the end showed that it has worked with about 60% of visitors thinking that Charles ruled Wales.

Charles has done a great deal of good work, in a number of important areas. He’s a clever and a genuine man. But his out-dated title is hurting Wales. We need to be a modern, outward looking, welcoming and democratic country but projecting this image is going to be all the more difficult if large parts of the world think that we’re the personal property of the son of the Queen.

If Charles really wants to serve “His Principality” he should ensure that he is the last “Prince of Wales”.