Let’s say it’s 2040. King Charles III (or whatever name he takes) has died, and King William V (or whatever name he takes) has been on the throne for a few years. Prince George, now 27, has been living quietly as a bachelor on some island in the Mediterranean, and the British public, with a wink and a nod, knows he’s gay but treats it as an open secret.
Then William V dies of [insert horrible disease here]. George is first in line to the throne, and centuries of tradition and law say the job of King is now his. But, he will never produce children.
So my questions are: would the fact that George will never produce children essentially force him to abdicate in favor of Queen Charlotte? Or would he assume the throne, reign, and die without heirs, giving the job to Charlotte? OR, would the Mountbatten-Windsors cover the whole thing up and basically force him to marry a woman and then tell him to put a bag over her head and force himself to perform for a few minutes in order to impregnate her and produce an heir?*
Your thoughts on this are appreciated.
*A fictional version of this scenario takes place in a certain popular book series that I shan’t name here, because spoilers. Basically a monarch is gay and it’s an open secret. His handlers force him to take a wife and tell him to bend her over and get the job done, whether he likes it or not.
I think the most likely scenarios are either (a) he marries a woman, and produces an heir, or (b) he rules, dies without issue, and the throne passes to Charlotte’s bloodline.
It strikes me as very unlikely that an adult George, as heir apparent to the throne, would be “living quietly as a bachelor on some island in the Mediterranean.” It’d be different if he were way down in the succession line, but as that heir, he’d be under intense pressure to live a public life and represent the family through public appearances, as well as his choice of career.
Plus, even if it became clear to him and his parents, from a young age, that he was gay, they would have been spending years preparing for all of these questions. None of this would be something that they would suddenly be worrying about how to deal with when he’s in his mid 20s.
Why would he have to abdicate? If he has no children, Charlotte would be his heir, and her children would be next in line. There’s no rule that says the monarch has to have kids.
The way things are going, by the time George is ready for the throne, gayness isn’t going to be a big deal, but a sham marriage to a partner of a gender one is not sexually attracted to would be. There will always be plenty of heirs, and its not like this is going to cause a replay of the war of the roses. And this is even assuming that the monarchy still exists at that point.
Royals didn’t used to divorce or marry a divorced woman. Things have changed. Being LGBTQ is not really gonna be a issue in the near future. It shouldn’t matter at all.IMO
A Song of Ice And Fire by George RR Martin. In the first couple of books, Renley Baratheon, who is gay and doesn’t care who knows, is pressured into marrying because alliances. He doesn’t give a rat’s ass and, though he loves his wife and treats her kindly, he has no interest in having sex with her. But his handlers want him to produce an heir.
Edward VI, Mary Tudor, Elizabeth I, Charles II, William & Mary, George IV and William IV all reigned, but left no direct heirs, and in several cases by the time they ascended to the throne it was clear that they would leave no direct heirs. It wasn’t a problem, for the most part. They reigned, and the throne then passed to collateral descendants. It’s pretty routine. I don’t see why it would be any different if the reason no direct heir was expected was sexual orientation.
Also William II Rufus just to throw yet another example out there. Probably at least bisexual, a bit of a party animal and apple of his father’s eye. Came to the throne at the age of 31, died 13 years later in a hunting accident( more likely than not despite non-contemporary suspicions ). Never married, never showed much interest in getting married and produced no bastards unlike his brothers. Pretty solid king, all in all. Died leaving his older and younger brothers to squabble over the throne.
They are experts already at keeping the appearance separate from the reality. Maybe Charles is gay, and got married under pressure or from a sense of duty.
Back in the 1970s, before Charles married Diana, his continued bachelorhood was, as I remember it, a topic of conversation. I was too young to really be aware of such things, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there were rumors and speculation at the time that he might be gay (though, apparently, he did date a number of women back then).
But, if he were gay, I don’t think that he would have gone to the lengths that he has to marry Camilla, and have her accepted.
By the time George is King (if we still have a monarchy), unless the world has reverted to The HandMaid’s Tale, then I don’t think anyone will care if the Monarch is gay. And the idea that the Monarch exists just to reproduce seems a little strange too.