The coronation of Charles III overshadowed the data of a poll about his popularity

British monarch lags behind son and sister

Not too pleasant news for himself, Charles III found out exactly before his own coronation. According to a recent opinion poll, the sovereign is not even among the top three most popular members of the British royal family. And this makes us seriously think about the future fate of the monarchy in the UK.

A public opinion poll from Sky News/Ipsos revealed sometimes paradoxical trends. On the one hand, the popularity of King Charles III on the eve of his coronation grew. But at the same time, support for the rejection of the republic is also growing, although about two-thirds of Britons still support the monarchy. It also turned out that subjects are increasingly skeptical about how much money the royal family receives.

And, of course, the current head of the United Kingdom did not manage to break through to the top of the rating of people’s love. According to the poll, he came in fourth place. The top three who were favorably viewed by respondents were Prince William (61%), Princess Anne Royal (59%) and Kate Middleton, Princess of Wales (59%). Charles the Third has to be content with 52%. But the good news is that his approval rate is higher than that of the royal family as a whole (49%).

In general, not everything is so sad for the monarch. After all, as recently as 2018, the then Prince of Wales, Charles, was one of the least popular members of the royal family. But since then, support for the eldest son of Elizabeth II has grown steadily.

Royal historian and author of The Family Firm, Dr. Ed Owens, commented to Sky News on the trend: “It is no surprise that King Charles’ ratings in the opinion polls have risen steadily over the past few years. He became more visible. He defends the interests of the people. And he has such a cute grandfather look.

Obviously, in the case of Charles III, there is nothing like the level of enthusiasm or optimism that Elizabeth II had at the beginning of her reign. It is very important. But, nevertheless, he seems to be all right. It doesn’t mean the job is done. Nothing like this”.

Who should be sad is the royal brother, Prince Andrew: he got only 11 percent of public approval. Which is understandable: he was forced to step down from official posts in 2020 after a TV interview about his friendship with convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein (not to mention the fact that Andrew himself was accused of abusive sexual relations with an American minor). In general, other notorious members of the royal family are also perceived negatively – Prince Harry (27 percent of approval) and Meghan Markle (25 percent). The trio are the only members of the royal family to see their overall approval ratings drop.

In recent years, the British monarchy has experienced a turbulent period of change, a series of disagreements and public scandals, the death of the queen and the first change of monarch in 70 years. And there is no escape from the feeling that the institution of royal power, which is one of the symbols of “good old Britain”, is in crisis. This probably explains the results of the latest poll, which showed a new historical high: a quarter of the inhabitants of the United Kingdom are in favor of Britain becoming a republic.

And yet support for the monarchy is surprisingly stable. In a series of polls conducted by the sociological service Ipsos between 1993 and 2016, sentiment generally fluctuated between about two-thirds and three-quarters in favor of supporters of royal power. In 2012, support for the monarchy reached its highest level at 80%, and later that year at 79%. It was around the time of events that attracted huge public attention – the wedding of William and Kate, the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II and the London Olympics. But after a break between polls from 2016 to 2021, support for the monarchy fell from 76% to a low of 60%. The latest poll shows a slight increase to 65%, so that almost two-thirds still represent strong majority support in favor of maintaining the monarchy.

Another weak point of the monarchy has been public opinion about whether this institution provides “value for money”, especially during the cost of living crisis that has gripped the country. More than half (54%) of people think the royal family gets too much money. And it is possible that the spectacle of a magnificent coronation could become an irritant for even more Britons, especially those who are barely making ends meet.