He waited as an heir for 70 years before taking the throne. Upon the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, he was crowned exactly one year ago, but after a few months, he learned he had cancer. And he had to slow down, or rather stop his public commitments and keep only some of the official ones behind the scenes (for example the weekly hearings with the prime minister). This was the first year on the throne of King Charles III who today celebrates the anniversary of his and Queen Camilla’s coronation, which took place on 6 May 2023 at Westminster Abbey. No lavish event is planned. And we don’t even know where the king and queen will celebrate. At midday, however, the Royal Horse Artillery fired 41 cannon shots from Green Park, and an hour later, at 1pm, the Honorable Artillery Company fired another 62 from the Tower of London. The king and queen spent the weekend at Highgrove, probably the least regal of their residences, but the place that is dearest to the king, the house that he built in his image and which has always been his ‘buen retiro ‘.
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Today there won’t be the great fanfare that accompanied the coronation: it’s a day spent in private, perhaps with the chance to reflect on what a year it was. The contrast couldn’t be more stark, as one insider pointed out: “Carriages, crowns and crowds compared to cancer.” The cancer was discovered during a routine prostate operation, but it is not known what form it is (although it is not expected to be prostate cancer). Since then, the king has been treated as an outpatient. However, Carlo continues to work tirelessly, say those close to him. In recent weeks, he has wanted continuous updates on the work of the Foundations named after him. And when he resumed his public commitments last Tuesday, after a three-month break, he symbolically visited a center specialized in the treatment of tumors: he appeared relaxed and smiling, shook many hands and spoke with healthcare workers and patients but admitted that it was hard to hear the news of his illness. Almost a joke for a man who, throughout his life, between macrobiotic and organic foods and alternative treatments, had made a healthy lifestyle a line of conduct.
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Now, Palazzo sources say that he is determined to use his illness to be able to influence those who are ill like him, to encourage them and indeed to spread awareness that cancer is better fought if diagnosed early. Practically nothing is known about his illness but the doctors have said they are “sufficiently satisfied” and are monitoring his resumption of public commitments, taking care that his agenda is not too heavy. Important events are planned in the coming months and it is not yet clear whether Charles will take part in them: the parade to celebrate the monarch’s birthday, Trooping the Colour, the commemoration of the Allied landing in Normandy 80 years ago, is expected to arrive in June also of the emperors of Japan in London. The agenda remains confidential and any public appearance by the king will be announced at short notice, only after the ‘green light’ from doctors. Meanwhile, the image chosen to commemorate the first year since the coronation reveals a message: it portrays the king, obviously but next to it is Camilla; and it is the queen who looks confidently towards her camera, while he stares at her lovingly. A tribute to the role that the queen has played in public in recent weeks, but perhaps also a tribute to the couple, who are also facing this new challenge together. And the next one seems to be reconciliation with her son Harry, who will soon be in Great Britain.
