Following the passing of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, at the age of 96 on Thursday at her castle in Balmoral, Scotland, King Charles has now officially assumed the throne of the United Kingdom and 14 other nations, ending a wait of more than 70 years.
Elizabeth took the throne in 1952 and surpassed Queen Victoria, who had ruled the UK from 1837 to 1901, in 2015 to become its longest-reigning queen. King Charles’ long wait to become king, which lasted the majority of his life even though he gradually assumed more of Elizabeth’s duties and responsibilities as she became older, has come to an end with Elizabeth’s passing.
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King Charles: The First Royal With A University Degree
Charles attended Buckingham Palace as well as schools in London, Hampshire, and Scotland for his fundamental education. When King Charles decided not to join the British military after completing his A-levels in favor of enrolling in university right away, he broke royal protocol a second time. In October 1967, he received admission to Trinity College in Cambridge, where he initially majored in anthropology and archaeology before switching to history for the remainder of his Tripos. During his second year, Charles spent a term at the University College of Wales in Aberystwyth learning Welsh history and language. On June 23, 1970, he received a 2:2 Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree from the University of Cambridge, making him the first British heir apparent to hold a university degree. On August 2, 1975, he obtained his Master of Arts (MA Cantab) from Cambridge.
Later, he studied at Dartmouth’s Royal Naval College and the Royal Air Force College, where he improved his flying abilities. He did a tour of duty with the Royal Navy from 1971 to 1976. Charles served on two frigates and the guided missile destroyer HMS Norfolk during his time there. Charles, who oversaw the coastal minehunter HMS Bronington before departing the Royal Naval, used his £7,400 navy severance money to found The Prince’s Trust charity.
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The New Monarch Confessed He Didn’t Enjoy School
The newly crowned King referred to his school’s demanding curriculum as “Colditz in kilts” and praised it for helping him learn “a great deal about himself and his own abilities and disabilities, which taught him to accept challenges and take the initiative.”
Charles’ parents, Elizabeth and Philip, were depicted in Jonathan Dimbleby’s 1994 authorized biography of him as being emotionally and physically distant. Charles was sent to Gordonstoun, where he supposedly experienced bullying, despite Philip being aware of his sensitivity. For this reason, he couldn’t fully enjoy school the way children are supposed to as his royal status came in the way.
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