As the whole world tries to cope with the implications of COVID-19, the royal family is facing the possibility that Queen Elizabeth’s reign is all but over.
WATCH:Prince William speaks out in personal video message amid COVID-19
Prince William, 37, is on standby to step in as de facto king, alongside wife Kate, 38, as the Queen, 93, and her heir Prince Charles, 71, are forced from their royal commitments. This follows news that in the UK, people over the age of 70 are being ordered to self-isolate, possibly for months.
As a result of this, the Queen is expected to be pushed to step down to ensure the monarchy continues to function, and with Prince Charles also in lockdown, there will be more pressure on the younger royals than ever before.
Royal experts believe the current crisis will mean Prince William must step forward to act as prince regent within a matter of weeks.
Further cementing this rumour, William is the first senior member of the royal family to publicly address the pandemic. In the clearest sign yet that he is stepping up, with the Queen and Charles on lockdown, William made a statement on social media on behalf of the National Emergencies Trust appeal.
“I said at its launch last year that I dreaded the day when it would be needed,” he said.
“Sadly, with the outbreak of COVID-19, that day has come faster than any of us would have hoped.”
Fans have since been calling for William and Kate to step up as the king and queen.
“Will be so proud to have the Cambridges as King and Queen one day,” one Instagram user commented.
Royals expert and author Phil Dampier believes it’s only right that Her Majesty withdraws from public life.
“The Queen will want to ‘keep calm and carry on’, evoking the wartime spirit she grew up with, but reality is setting in. The royals have to set an example and they can’t carry on normally when everyone else is being told to stay at home,” he says.
“This means the only working royals are going to be William and Kate, and Edward and Sophie, because of their age,” he says. “A massive burden is going to fall on William and Kate’s shoulders.”
To add even more pressure on the young royals, Wills and Kate have had to pull their two eldest children, Prince George, 6, and Princess Charlotte, 4, out of school due to the virus.
The couple will now be homeschooling them for the foreseeable future on the advice of the London school, Thomas’s Battersea.
Despite William stepping up his duties, the Queen appears determined to carry on working despite recommendations that she should stop. She even took an audience at Buckingham Palace as recently as last week and this has her family concerned.
Prince Harry, 35, who is on lockdown in Canada with Meghan, 38, and 10-month-old Archie, is said to be feeling particularly worried about the health of his grandmother.
“Meghan said [Harry] has been in contact with both his father and grandmother,” an insider told Mail Online.
“He urged them to stay safe and to take extra precautions.”
Of course, the Queen’s safety is a top priority and she has left London for Windsor Castle where she plans to remain until well after Easter.
She also cancelled two engagements last week and it looks like the Queen’s birthday celebrations and accompanying Trooping the Colour, set for June 13, will also be cancelled.
Buckingham Palace issued an official statement explaining the decision. “As a sensible precaution and for practical reasons in the current circumstances, a number of changes are being made to The Queen’s diary.”
Phil says it’s only right that the Queen’s health is safeguarded at this time.
“If anything happened to the Queen it would be a terrible blow to the psyche of the country, so it is important she is kept safe,” he explains.
“Coronavirus doesn’t distinguish between royalty and the rest of us.”
Princess Anne, who turns 70 in August, is still set to carry out her diary commitments at this stage.
However, many of the royals have cancelled or postponed all their planned overseas trips.
Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, 72, have cancelled a nine-day tour which was set to include Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus and Jordan.
It’s likely that Kate and William’s planned trip to Australia will also be cancelled.
For more, pick up the latest issue of New Idea, on sale now.
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