By — Carolyn Durand Carolyn Durand Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/how-william-and-kates-roles-are-evolving-with-king-charles-on-the-throne Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter How William and Kate’s roles are evolving with King Charles on the throne World May 10, 2023 3:37 PM EDT Much of the fanfare around King Charles’ coronation on Saturday focused on the monarch himself. But the King’s son William and daughter-in-law Kate are also carving their own paths as Prince and Princess of Wales — one aimed at revitalizing the monarchy and making it more relatable to a multicultural United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. “While most people are concentrating on the King’s new role as head of state, there has been another significant transformation — Prince William becoming the Prince of Wales,” said Kate Mansey, assistant editor of The Mail on Sunday. “With every engagement he is stepping up, with more confidence. With age and experience he has become a much more self-assured statesman. With an aging monarch — Charles is 74 — we can expect William to be engaged with much more of the foreign diplomacy and certainly the foreign travel, which is usually expected of the head of state.” Mansey said William will take an even more pivotal role in the future to support his father. And “it’s clear to see that he is ready for it.” The Prince of Wales has “gained credibility on the world stage,” said Juliet Rieden, a royal correspondent and editor-at-large of Australia Women’s Weekly, adding she thinks “the UK government will find him to be very useful in the areas of international soft diplomacy going forward.’ WATCH: King Charles III crowned in coronation ceremony Prince William had been scheduled to address the United Nations General Assembly in September until the Queen’s unexpected demise. In December, the Prince and Princess of Wales made their first foreign trip since undertaking their new roles: to Boston to showcase William’s Earthshot Prize. The ambitious environmental award, modeled after former President John F. Kennedy’s Moonshot, is designed to find solutions to the looming existential threat of climate change. William also met with President Joe Biden to discuss the special relationship between the UK and U.S. William, the Prince of Wales, holds the hands of his father King Charles III during his coronation ceremony in Westminster Abbey, London. Photo by Gary Calton/ Pool via REUTERS In March, William traveled to the Polish Ukraine border to underscore Britain’s resolute support for troops dedicated to the preservation of democracy. A Kensington Palace spokesman told the UK’s Mail on Sunday at the time that the high-profile trip was “a continuation of the evolution of his role as a global statesman. We talk often about him using his global platform for the good of the environment via Earthshot. But this is the first opportunity for him to take a visit of this kind as Prince of Wales and given that it is one of the biggest political issues facing every country on the planet, this is a demonstration of him growing as a statesman-like figure.” Britain’s Prince George of Wales, Britain’s Prince Louis of Wales and Britain’s Catherine, Princess of Wales, toast marshmallows as they take part in the Big Help Out on May 8, 2023. Photo by Daniel Leal/Pool via REUTERS Kate is also stepping up, making her mark as an advocate for mental health and early childhood education. She is among the most well-liked members of the royal family, according to the latest polling by YouGov ahead of the coronation. “Kate is the firm’s secret weapon. She’s relatable, decent and is raising her children to be just the same,” Mansey said. READ MORE: How William and Kate are honoring climate innovators “Catherine is a huge asset for sure and no longer a secret weapon but a key player in the front line of Royal work,” Rieden added. Family day out volunteering for #TheBigHelpOut pic.twitter.com/6weexxc38C — The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) May 8, 2023 On Monday, the Royal Family participated in the Big Help Out, a community volunteering initiative based on the coronation theme of service. Prince Louis, with his parents and siblings, stole the show in his first Royal engagement. The couple and their young children have become ambassadors to the public in Britain but also abroad. George was dubbed the “Republican slayer” in Australia during his first Royal Tour as a toddler in 2014. George and Charlotte accompanied their parents to Canada in 2016 and Poland and Germany in 2017. Soon enough, George, Charlotte and Louis will embark with their parents on another Royal tour at the request of the British government. Catherine, Princess of Wales, waves from the balcony of Buckingham Palace with Prince William, Prince of Wales and Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis during the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla Photo by Leon Neal/Pool via REUTERS “The focus more than ever will be on them. The Wales family is the monarchy’s future — there is a lot on their combined shoulders,” Rieden said. READ MORE: Why Prince William just made a surprise visit to Poland “William and Catherine have worked hard to protect their children from too much exposure and to give them as ‘normal’ a childhood as they can, but this is going to be increasingly difficult with the new slimmed down monarchy. It is going to be a balancing act, but as someone who has gone through it himself William will be on high alert to ensure his children are saved from the barrage of media attention he faced growing up,” Rieden added. “So far he seems to be pulling it off.” At 21, then-Princess Elizabeth promised the country, “My whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service.” Seventy years later, William echoed that sentiment at the Coronation concert Sunday. “As my Grandmother said when she was crowned, coronations are a declaration of our hopes for the future. And I know she’s up there, fondly keeping an eye on us. She would be a proud mother. For all that celebrations are magnificent, at the heart of the pageantry is a simple message, Service.” By — Carolyn Durand Carolyn Durand Carolyn Durand is a contributor to PBS NewsHour. She coauthored the best-selling biography “Finding Freedom,” which chronicles the lives of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan. The book hit No. 1 on the UK‘s Sunday Times best-seller list, as well as in Australia, and hit No. 3 on The New York Times best-seller list. Durand has been a witness to history for more than two decades as an Emmy Award-winning producer for her contributions at ABC News based in London, New York and Washington. She has traveled the globe with network anchors organizing live programs, from Red Square to Syria to Indonesia, and has organized live coverage for Good Morning America throughout Europe, Africa, Australia, India, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Afghanistan. In 2006, she was part of the ABC team honored with a DuPont Award for their coverage in Vatican City for the death of Pope John Paul II and election of Pope Benedict. While at ABC, she organized and produced multiple interviews with members of the British Royal Family and shows inside Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace, Windsor Castle and Balmoral. She has a master’s degree from the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism. @CarolynDurand
Much of the fanfare around King Charles’ coronation on Saturday focused on the monarch himself. But the King’s son William and daughter-in-law Kate are also carving their own paths as Prince and Princess of Wales — one aimed at revitalizing the monarchy and making it more relatable to a multicultural United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. “While most people are concentrating on the King’s new role as head of state, there has been another significant transformation — Prince William becoming the Prince of Wales,” said Kate Mansey, assistant editor of The Mail on Sunday. “With every engagement he is stepping up, with more confidence. With age and experience he has become a much more self-assured statesman. With an aging monarch — Charles is 74 — we can expect William to be engaged with much more of the foreign diplomacy and certainly the foreign travel, which is usually expected of the head of state.” Mansey said William will take an even more pivotal role in the future to support his father. And “it’s clear to see that he is ready for it.” The Prince of Wales has “gained credibility on the world stage,” said Juliet Rieden, a royal correspondent and editor-at-large of Australia Women’s Weekly, adding she thinks “the UK government will find him to be very useful in the areas of international soft diplomacy going forward.’ WATCH: King Charles III crowned in coronation ceremony Prince William had been scheduled to address the United Nations General Assembly in September until the Queen’s unexpected demise. In December, the Prince and Princess of Wales made their first foreign trip since undertaking their new roles: to Boston to showcase William’s Earthshot Prize. The ambitious environmental award, modeled after former President John F. Kennedy’s Moonshot, is designed to find solutions to the looming existential threat of climate change. William also met with President Joe Biden to discuss the special relationship between the UK and U.S. William, the Prince of Wales, holds the hands of his father King Charles III during his coronation ceremony in Westminster Abbey, London. Photo by Gary Calton/ Pool via REUTERS In March, William traveled to the Polish Ukraine border to underscore Britain’s resolute support for troops dedicated to the preservation of democracy. A Kensington Palace spokesman told the UK’s Mail on Sunday at the time that the high-profile trip was “a continuation of the evolution of his role as a global statesman. We talk often about him using his global platform for the good of the environment via Earthshot. But this is the first opportunity for him to take a visit of this kind as Prince of Wales and given that it is one of the biggest political issues facing every country on the planet, this is a demonstration of him growing as a statesman-like figure.” Britain’s Prince George of Wales, Britain’s Prince Louis of Wales and Britain’s Catherine, Princess of Wales, toast marshmallows as they take part in the Big Help Out on May 8, 2023. Photo by Daniel Leal/Pool via REUTERS Kate is also stepping up, making her mark as an advocate for mental health and early childhood education. She is among the most well-liked members of the royal family, according to the latest polling by YouGov ahead of the coronation. “Kate is the firm’s secret weapon. She’s relatable, decent and is raising her children to be just the same,” Mansey said. READ MORE: How William and Kate are honoring climate innovators “Catherine is a huge asset for sure and no longer a secret weapon but a key player in the front line of Royal work,” Rieden added. Family day out volunteering for #TheBigHelpOut pic.twitter.com/6weexxc38C — The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) May 8, 2023 On Monday, the Royal Family participated in the Big Help Out, a community volunteering initiative based on the coronation theme of service. Prince Louis, with his parents and siblings, stole the show in his first Royal engagement. The couple and their young children have become ambassadors to the public in Britain but also abroad. George was dubbed the “Republican slayer” in Australia during his first Royal Tour as a toddler in 2014. George and Charlotte accompanied their parents to Canada in 2016 and Poland and Germany in 2017. Soon enough, George, Charlotte and Louis will embark with their parents on another Royal tour at the request of the British government. Catherine, Princess of Wales, waves from the balcony of Buckingham Palace with Prince William, Prince of Wales and Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis during the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla Photo by Leon Neal/Pool via REUTERS “The focus more than ever will be on them. The Wales family is the monarchy’s future — there is a lot on their combined shoulders,” Rieden said. READ MORE: Why Prince William just made a surprise visit to Poland “William and Catherine have worked hard to protect their children from too much exposure and to give them as ‘normal’ a childhood as they can, but this is going to be increasingly difficult with the new slimmed down monarchy. It is going to be a balancing act, but as someone who has gone through it himself William will be on high alert to ensure his children are saved from the barrage of media attention he faced growing up,” Rieden added. “So far he seems to be pulling it off.” At 21, then-Princess Elizabeth promised the country, “My whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service.” Seventy years later, William echoed that sentiment at the Coronation concert Sunday. “As my Grandmother said when she was crowned, coronations are a declaration of our hopes for the future. And I know she’s up there, fondly keeping an eye on us. She would be a proud mother. For all that celebrations are magnificent, at the heart of the pageantry is a simple message, Service.”