# The reign of King Charles III of the United Kingdom **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [September 8, 2022, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232 "2022-09-08T18:05:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 107
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2026, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2124 "2026-04-23T20:47:35Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Said another way, for UK royals, you _are_ your job. You are the current personification of an immortal entity called the Duke of Elderberryshire or whatever. It’s sort of like a corporation. It lives forever; its shareholders and managers come and go. It’s also a _place_. The Prince of Wales is, on some formal level, the feudal lord of the Principality of Wales. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2026, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2125 "2026-04-23T21:03:07Z")
In medieval and renaissance literature royals and nobles are often referred to by their fiefs. “York and Scotland played cards in the kitchen, while France got drunk and passed out in the corner, and Sweden made a pass at Poland’s wife.” ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2026, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2126 "2026-04-23T21:23:42Z")
This is contentious. The last _native_ Prince of Wales was killed in the 13th century; the title was re-created, but none of the post-conquest princes of Wales have had any real role as a feudal lord over the whole principality. They do have property there, and earn income from it, so there is a sense in which they are Welsh feudal lords (and the last few have been positive presences in Wales), but feudal lords of Wales is more difficult to argue. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2026, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2127 "2026-04-23T21:28:01Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > In medieval and renaissance literature royals and nobles are often referred to by their fiefs. And early modern fiction. In the original _Dracula_, novel, after Arthur Holmwood’s father dies, he inherits his father’s peerage and Stoker switches to referring to him as Lord Godalming. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2026, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2128 "2026-04-23T21:59:55Z")
You see this in Shakespeare, as well. In _Hamlet_, they talk about “old Norway,” which means the elderly King of Norway. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2026, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2129 "2026-04-23T22:39:58Z")
Sorta akin to referring to the US government as “Washington” or the UK government as “London”. E.g. London today issued an urgent plea to halt the fighting in Slobovistan. “Metonym” is the term of art. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2026, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2130 "2026-04-23T23:52:57Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > It’s also a _place_. Yeah, sorta. But it’s a highly qualified sorta in England. The further you go forward in history the less tied titles are to property and rights in said place. Sometimes this happened very early - when [Aubrey de Vere](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aubrey_de_Vere,_1st_Earl_of_Oxford) was granted the title of Earl of Oxford in 12th century England he owned not a single acre of land in the county and had zero real rights there other than the one small administrative boon. The right to the ‘third penny’ was supposed to be one third of the judicial revenue of the shire, which in practice didn’t amount to much. Rather than bother to calculate it out to the penny, instead it was soon just converted into a set payment from the exchequer each year - usually standardized at the the munificent sum of £15/yr (£20 for a huge county like Lincolnshire). The title was the goal as a token of prestige. Otherwise it was pretty meaningless in of itself unless you held a palatinate like Cheshire or later Lancashire. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2026, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2131 "2026-04-24T00:23:30Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > Which BTW is one aspect of Brit and some other royalty that always struck me as silly. That your “name” is really a “style” of whatever is at any given time your highest rated title or your father’s/husband’s if you don’t have your own. Less silly when the whole English tradition is using “last name” as the identifier. Even at my declasse Australian lower-middle class high school, all of my friends, and many of the others, used our ‘last name’. So if your current name is “Fred, Duke of Kalamazoo”, then of course your friends are just going to call you “Kalamazoo” (And it’s not an immortal personification any more than any other family name is. It’s just a name.) ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2026, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2132 "2026-04-24T20:22:39Z")
Trump is apparently planning to tell HRH that he shouldn’t have control of the Falklands. > **[Leaked memo reveals Trump's plan to embarrass visiting King Charles](https://www.rawstory.com/strait-of-hormuz-2676811823/)** > > President Donald Trump wants to bring up a sore subject during a visit from an allied foreign leader, a leaked Pentagon memo reveals. The Daily Beast reported on Thursday that Trump wants to question where King Charles should control the Falkland... ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2026, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2133 "2026-04-24T21:30:40Z")
I’m sure HRH and the UK government have something appropriate prepared to deliver with their patented withering contempt. And rightly so. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2026, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2134 "2026-04-24T22:09:24Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Trump is apparently planning to tell HRH that he shouldn’t have control of the Falklands. Trump really doesn’t know what the King does, does he? Here’s a hint, Mr. Trump: the King does not govern, much less “have control” of any of his realms and territories. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2026, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2135 "2026-04-24T22:10:33Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > Trump really doesn’t know what the King does, does he. Probably not. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2026, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2136 "2026-04-25T04:30:15Z")
Nitpick: HM (His Majesty), not HRH (His Royal Highness). ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2026, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2137 "2026-04-25T04:56:58Z")
So you’re telling me Homer Simpson was wrong, then? [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/blA7cVlRpi0/hqdefault.jpg "the simpsons - Henrietta r hippo") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blA7cVlRpi0) ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2026, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2138 "2026-04-26T03:08:45Z")
Hard to believe, I know! ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2026, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2139 "2026-04-29T00:20:05Z")
> > **[Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com)](https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3mkldahjbqz2y)** > > standing ovation after King Charles sings the praises of NATO and says "that same unyielding resolve is needed for the defense of Ukraine" Wasn’t expecting HM to take a shot at Trump in front of Congress like that. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2026, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2140 "2026-04-29T03:18:09Z")
Here’s a full transcript. Kudos for his evocations of Washington, Lincoln, TR and JFK: > **[King Charles addresses Congress. Read full speech on unity, climate](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2026/04/28/king-charles-speech-congress-transcript/89844483007/)** > > In a rare address to lawmakers during his first visit as king, Charles kept his speech largely apolitical and focused on the U.S. and U.K.'s alliance. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2026, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2141 "2026-04-29T04:53:53Z")
> > Ok, Brits, I need clarification here; it’s _very unusual_ for the monarch to be this outspoken in firmly-but-politely criticizing a foreign leader, right? I mean, I can’t imagine his mother reading a line like that. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2026, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2142 "2026-04-29T05:11:51Z")
It’s fascinating to watch Charles treading a fine line between essential diplomacy and the fact that he obviously loathes Trump as much as the rest of us! The two reciprocal state visits were obviously at the behest of Starmer and if Charles had been able to have anything to do with it neither would have happened. It’s fortunate for all that Trump is far too stupid to understand the nuances and his minions are too intimidated to explain them to him. Kudos to Charles for doing what he could. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2026, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232/2143 "2026-04-29T05:39:47Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > It’s fortunate for all that Trump is far too stupid to understand the nuances and his minions are too intimidated to explain them to him. I’m pretty sure Trump will realize he’s being dissed. We’ll see in the next few days whether he cares, or whether he wants to lay low when it comes to antagonizing the brother of another Epstein beneficiary. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232.md?page=106) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-reign-of-king-charles-iii-of-the-united-kingdom/971232.md?page=108)