The King is marking his first birthday since his accession today as he turns 74. Charles Philip Arthur George was born on November 14, 1948 at Buckingham Palace to the-then Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and was the first grandson of King George VI and The Queen Mother.
While no inside details have been released about how His Majesty will be celebrating his big day, it is hoped he will be able to enjoy it after a tumultuous year involving the death of the Queen, the start of his reign and ongoing family fallouts.
King Charles' birthday will be marked across the country with everything from a 41-gun salute, chimes from Westminster Abbey and Union flags will be flown from the top of all UK Government buildings.
While the day will surely be a happy occasion, it comes as King Charles continues to settle into his role as sovereign after serving for over six decades as Prince of Wales.
It also follows several months of difficult family tensions and fears of what could be stirred from Prince Harry's upcoming tell-all memoir 'Spare'.
According to the publishers, Harry's book - which was ghost written by American novelist J.R. Moehringer - contains “raw, unflinching honesty” which is "full of insight, revelation, self-examination and hard-won wisdom about the eternal power of love over grief.”
One well-placed source said: “The very title demonstrates yet another confrontational attack on the family after claiming a desire for privacy.
“Palace lawyers will undoubtedly be on standby in the New Year waiting to see what is in it. If Harry’s previous allegations across numerous TV interviews are anything to go by, this will be nuclear.
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King Charles' various attempts at family reconciliation have been seen on a handful of occasions. At the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral in April 2021, experts heralded Charles' decision to have his family walk back to Windsor Castle's private apartments as "a masterstroke".
Royal expert Richard Kay wrote in the Daily Mail at the time: "On a day of meticulous planning, it was the one and only off-the-cuff decision. And it turned out to be a masterstroke.
"This could have been a moment of risk, instead it allowed us the first glimpse of the possibility that somehow William and Harry can put their bitter split behind them and rebuild that once whisper-close bond. It is hard to read too much into this encounter, for it was all too brief, but if there is to be reconciliation between the brothers, this was surely the moment of its inception."
