King Charles unveils statue of Queen Elizabeth

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King Charles III’s reign will not be defined by the same type of “family monarchy” that was the norm under the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, a royal expert has said.

The Queen, who died in September this year, was married to the Duke of Edinburgh for more than 70 years.

The then-Princess Elizabeth tied the knot with Philip Mountbatten in November 1947 at Westminster Abbey.

They were married for 73 years before the Duke of Edinburgh died, aged 99, in April 2021.

But royal expert Dr Tessa Dunlop has suggested the longevity of the Queen and Prince Philip’s marriage promoted an idea of a family-orientated monarchy which the current monarch cannot emulate.

The sovereign, 73, was previously married to the late Princess Diana from 1981 until their divorce was finalised 15 years later, in 1996, after a four-year separation.

King Charles then married the now-Queen Consort, Camilla, in 2005.

Dr Dunlop told The Mirror: “Seventy-five years ago Princess Elizabeth walked down the aisle with her war-hero husband, Philip.

“The stunning pair were instant trend-setters; 200 million listened to the wedding of the decade in a record-breaking year for tying the knot.

“Britain’s pin-up family, the House of Windsor, had reached dizzy new heights.

“Within a year Prince Charles was born; the original baby boomer, his arrival sealed the deal for family monarchy.”

However, with his parents as the “perfect couple in a fast-changing society”, the image of stability they projected would be a “tough act to follow” for the future King.

Dr Dunlop described the then-heir to the throne as under “huge pressure” by 1980, the year before his first wedding to Diana.

She said: “On the surface, his marriage looked like the perfect second act – another blushing bride with her sailor-prince.”

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But Dr Dunlop pointed to evolving society in the UK, compounding the marital issues encountered by the then-Prince and Princess of Wales.

She added: “”But times had changed: divorce was prevalent, celebrity culture distorting, infidelity unacceptable.

“Charles and Diana’s giant wedding ended in giant failure.

“Family monarchy fell apart.”

The 1990s, often described as one of the most turbulent years for the monarchy underneath Queen Elizabeth II, has been the subject of the latest series of the hit Netflix drama, The Crown.

The fifth installment, released earlier this month, chartered the downfall of Charles and Diana’s marriage and her death in Paris in 1997.

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