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Daily Record
Daily Record
Lifestyle
Susie Beever & Jacob Rawley

King Charles' plans to slim down monarchy with just seven key members

King Charles' monarchy could be considerably slimmed down, with as little as seven members according to experts. Plans for the reshuffling of the British monarchy would take place under the title Operation Golden Orb.

This comes after the Queen died at Balmoral yesterday, aged 96, leaving the UK in a period of official mourning. The Prince of Wales is now King, having acceded to the throne immediately on the death of his mother.

The new King's plans could see a smaller number of active royals and may also see official residences including sections of Buckingham Palace - and even Balmoral - opened to the public, reports the Mirror.

King Charles is expected to be proclaimed as the new King at the Accession Council at 10am tomorrow in the State Apartments of St James's Palace. The official coronation ceremony will take place some months after that.

The King will be seen across the nation in a televised address at 6pm. His speech will be aired on all major TV channels, it is believed. Our new king could move into a new official residence at the London palace, where he will live in "little more than a flat above a shop" in an extremely downsized plan, while his permanent home at Highgrove will become a family home.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Kate, who now take on new titles including the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall, will also move a stone's throw to Windsor Castle. The move will bring about a period on immense change for the young family, having only recently moved to the Berkshire town to be closer to the Queen.

Britain's King Charles III (R) and Britain's Camilla, Queen Consort wave as they greet the crowd. (Getty)

Charles is said to be keen on revising the amount of property owned by the Royals, with his coronation also projected to be shorter, cheaper and less ostentatious - a move which will no doubt be welcomed as it comes amidst the current cost of living crisis.

The public meanwhile are likely to see fewer royals from official appearances. The Telegraph's Royal Insight has previously outlined major changes in the next chapter of the monarchy, saying Charles plans to cut down the number of "hangers-on".

"There's this sense that he wants a slimmed down monarchy to make sure that everybody is doing their bit and [there are] no so-called hangers-on," writes Camilla Tominey.

The main working royals seen out and about on visits may be downsized to the main members now Charles is Head of State. These would include the following five members: King Charles, Camilla as Queen consort, William, the Duchess of Cambridge, and Princess Anne. Prince Edward and his wife Sophie, Countess of Wessex , will also serve the King.

Prince Andrew meanwhile has been retired from public life following the scandal surrounding his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, while the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have relinquished their duties.

It's also well known that Charles may plan to open sections of Buckingham Palace and even Balmoral to the public - proposals which were said to have not gone down well with the late Queen. Royal commentator Neil Sean said the Queen had not been keen on the plans, wanting the palace to remain a "family home of sorts".

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