The number of potential successors to the Presidency is actually quite small. It’s seventeen people* and that’s it. There is no 18th place on the list - if those seventeen people die then nobody is next in line.
That’s fewer than two people?
So, Where’s Kevin Bacon?
The first thing that would happen would be that a ‘State of Emergency’ would be declared.
The next in line surviving monarch would then be able to invite the most suitable person to be prime minister, which is going to be a politician this might take some time, but in the interim, with so many of the leaders killed, there would most likely be a declaration of martial law to restore order.
Given that the monarch may be so far down the line that they don’t understand the machinery of government, its very highly likely that senior civil servants would effectively become rulers because they would be advising, however such a person would be bound by rules limiting their authority until power was transferred.
How many people do you have to kill before you get to John Goodman?
Actually, that was stealthy test to see who was really paying attention to my post. You have passed, good sir, while I have quite clearly failed.
Technically the monarch ‘invites’ a leader of a party to form a government.
Under your scenario there would be no (crowned) monarch, but as others have pointed out, the British constitution is flexible enough to make things up as they go along.
I would not be at all surprized if a multi-party coalition were formed, and even less surprized if the leader came from the House of Lords
Also, I would not be at all surprized if there were contingency plans for such an event, I would envisage William requesting a Regency and the whole thing sorted out within 12 hours.
there would be many older ex-Commons men in the House of Lords with governmental experience who would be quite capable of forming an interim administration. There’s no constitutional reason why the PM shouldn’t lead the government from the Lords, though it hasn’t happened since Lord Salisbury’s day.
If the Queen and the Prince of Wales are offed, William doesn’t need to request a Regency - he’s automatically King, and since he’s over 18 years old, he can exercise the full powers of the Crown without a Regent.
All hail Queen Zara! (from the original “V for Vendetta,” of course).
For a rather more plausible work of fiction in which King Charles III selects the next Prime Minister after an exceedingly close national election, see Jeffrey Archer’s excellent political novel “First Among Equals.” Be warned: a different PM is named in the American and British editions of the book.
Aye. I believe it’s a basic principle of British law that “the throne is never vacant.”
Indeed. The king is dead - long live the king!
That’s right - the coronation is a formality, but is not required for the monarch to exercise the powers of the Crown. Edward VIII, for example, was never crowned king, but exercised the powers. Queen Elizabeth became Queen upon the death of her father in 1952, but wasn’t crowned until 1953.
There’s a story that Edward VII, a few days after his mother’s death, got on a boat that had the Union flag flying at half-mast. He asked why, and was told, “Sire, the Queen is dead.” His response: “And the King reigns.” So it was hoisted up to the full mast.
!!! I thought it was customary for a deceased sovereign to be mourned for a full year! Which is why the new sovereign’s coronation is never held any sooner than that.
The version I’ve read is slightly different and involves the monarch’s personal flag flying over Buckingham Palace. George V noted that this was flying at half-mast after the death of his father Edward VII and immediately ordered that the error be corrected, since the monarch was not dead, quoting the phrase that I mentioned earlier.
There may be an “official” mourning period of a year, but I suspect that it’s the logistical complexities of arranging the coronation ceremony that lie behind the delay between the old sovereign’s death and the new one’s coronation.
And if a minor ascends the throne the next adult in the line of succesion is automatically regent. So if the thone devolved to say Lady Louise Windsor then Princess Anne would become the Princess Regent.
True - but there is a good chance that he would not want to.
It is not that pleasant a job, putting it off for a few years would probably suit all concerned.
My understanding is that Liz puts in quite a bit of effort on the paperwork.
A period of apprenticeship would make sense.
IMO in the event of such a catastrophe, the British public may decide that it’s time to do away with the monarchy altogether and elect a president.
Especially if we got far enough down the line of succession for a german to be king / queen.