Can The Queen Bypass Prince Charles And Name Prince William As Successor?

Queen Elizabeth II is currently the world’s longest-reigning living monarch around. While she has become the symbol of stability for the British monarchy for decades now, she has to pass on the reins of power to someone else one of these days, which then spawned a popular hypothetical question among royal family fans – can Her Majesty bypass Prince Charles and make Prince William the next king if she chooses to?

Sir Max Hastings, the former editor of the Daily Telegraph newspaper, put a further twist to this question. “If time passes, and Prince William is more and more at the center of the stage, one question I think’s bound to be asked: would it be in everybody’s best interests, including those of the Prince of Wales, for a new, young, next generation, Prince William, to succeed to the throne?” Hastings once told BBC. “I think an enormous amount will depend on what seems to be the will of the British people.”

This is actually a very relevant question for the monarchy these days. Compared to his father, Prince William is gaining in popularity among their British subjects. A recent poll revealed that 46 percent want Prince Charles to give way to his son, while 47 percent still support him. It’s not hard to imagine that a few years down the line, public sentiment might totally tip in William’s favor.

However, the British monarchy is not a popularity contest, so there’s little chance of Prince Charles being skipped and Prince William directly ascending the thrown. In fact, that’s the reason why there’s a line of succession in place. Given this system in place, it’s evident that the current monarch can’t choose who his or her successor should be.

But based on some answers given in Quora, it is theoretically possible — though highly unlikely — for Prince Charles to be bypassed. “Unlike an absolute monarchy in some Arab countries, UK has a constitutional and hereditary monarchy,” user Dick Hughes explained. “This means that the monarch cannot change the order of succession on a personal whim; it would require an Act of Parliament.”

And it won’t just be the British parliament at that. Apparently, all the 16 commonwealth nations have to agree to bypass Prince Charles in favor of Prince William. But even if the Queen can somehow convince everyone with her clout, why would she ever do it in the first place?