It’s A Prince!

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Elizabeth II, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of Scotland, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Prince George of Cambridge, Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, Queen Elizabeth II, Succession Crown Bill, The Duchess of Cambridge, The Duke of Cambridge, The Princess of Wales

It’s a Prince! HRH The Duchess of Cambridge has safely delivered a boy! Congratulations!

The new Prince is 5th in line to the throne. Because of the Succession to the Crown Act 2013 this new Prince will not supplant Princess Charlotte in the line of succession. This is the first occasion in the history of the British monarchy that a new Prince did not replace his sister in the order of succession.

Here is a short list of those in the line of succession as it is today.

Her Majesty, the Queen.

1. HRH The Prince of Wales
2. HRH The Duke of Cambridge
3. HRH Prince George of Cambridge
4. HRH Princess Charlotte of Cambridge
5. HRH Baby Boy of Cambridge
6. HRH Prince Henry of Wales
7. HRH The Duke of York
8. HRH Princess Beatrice of York
9. HRH Princess Eugenie of York
10. HRH The Earl of Wessex

Any guess to what the name might be? Write in the comments section.

Crown Bill debated in the House of Lords

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2012. Parliament, Buckingham Palace, Duchess of Gloucester, Duke of Gloucester, Elizabeth II, England, House of Lords, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of Scotland, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Pope Francis, Succession Crown Bill

http://www.parliament.uk/business/news/2013/march/lords-succession-to-the-crown-report-stage/

This week an inaugural Mass was held for Pope Francis (this has replaced the old Papal Coronation) and many European Monarchies either went themselves or sent representatives. For the UK The Duke and
Duchess of Gloucester represented Her Majesty the Queen. I thought this would be a good time to examine the Crown Bill that is being debated in the House of Lords this month. (see article in the link)

As stated in the Bill there are three major changes that are being voted on…

• removing the first born son preference and allowing an older daughter over a younger brother to become a monarch
• allowing anyone who marries a Roman Catholic to remain in line
• limiting the requirement that all descendants of George II must obtain the monarch’s permission to marry to the six people nearest in line to the crown. If the monarch’s approval is not given then the married couple and their descendants lose their place in the line of succession.

The focus of this blog is the abolition of the requirement in the 1701 Act of Settlement that those in line to the throne would lose their place in succession upon marrying a Catholic. While I think this is along over due change it does create a problem and that is the source of the debate in the House of Lords.

The problem is that the sovereign is also the Head of the Church of England and must be in communion with that Church. That does make sense. I don’t think the UK would be happy with a monarch that is Head of the Church of England but also a Roman Catholic. So where does one draw the line? That is the issue at hand.

I think disestablished the monarch from the Church of England is not an option…at least at this time…so there must be a point where the monarch must remain Catholic. In my opinion, the monarch should be allowed to marry a Catholic as long as they raise their children in the Anglican faith.

The Prince of Wales and the Succession Crown Bill Revisited.

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Buckingham Palace, Duke of Cornwall, Kings and Queens of England, kings and queens of the United Kingdom, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Succession Crown Bill

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/9797480/Messing-with-the-monarchy-the-proposed-reforms-reflect-politicians-arrogance.html

HRH The Prince of Wales has some concerns that the new Succession Crown Bill may have negative repercussions that he doesn’t think politicians have thought all the way through. From my reading of his complaints it doesn’t sound like he is against changing some of these laws, it seems that his major complaint is that these new Laws are being rushed through without consideration for their long term results.

In many ways I agree with him. One of the issues is the removal of the prohibition toward marrying Catholics. The problem with the Succession Bill is not that it removes the outdated prohibition toward members of the Royal Family marrying Catholics, the problem is that it does not address the situation about whether or not the monarch themselves has to remain in communion with the Church of England? In other words the prince asks, can the monarch be Catholic and still be the head of the Church of England?

England/Britain has a long and bloody history over this very question. As the article states wars and lives were lost over this issue and the throne itself has been fought over this issue. This brings up the issue does the union between the Crown and the Anglican Church needs to be dissolved? The Church of England has been linked to the monarchy ever since the days and times of Henry VIII 1509-1547.

It is this writers opinion that it is time to separate the monarchy from the Headship of the Church of England. Being an American, I do see the wisdom, especially in this day and age, of the separation between Church and State. I think religion should be a private affair even for the monarch. How many monarchs since the times of Henry VIII have actually, inwardly, supported the beliefs and tenets of the Church of England?

As the Monarchy has evolved to be above partisan politics maybe it is time for the monarchy to be above a specific religious faith. After all Britain is a realm of many faiths and the monarchy should, in my opinion, represent all of the people and not just one select group.

The other concerns the Prince of Wales has is over the Duchy of Cornwall. The Duchy of Cornwall has been associated with the heir to the Crown for many centuries. Right now it is inherited by the male heir to the throne. If the Bill passes and if a female heir can now inherit the Duchy of Cornwall, then what will this do for the rest of the peerages? This law will not effect Peerage titles (other than the Duchy of Cornwall) so it may be a short time before Peers call for changes in the inheritance of their titles. So may be for a gender neutral succession for peerage titles, others may not feel so benevolent.

The Prince…nor anyone….has said a word about the Title of Prince of Wales yet! So I agree with the Prince of Wales. While the Succession Crown Bill is a step in the right direction it does not resolve all the issues.