King Charles III, Camilla, the Queen Consort, Prince William, and Kate, Princess of Wales, Prince Edward, and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh. Photo / AP
King Charles III, Camilla, the Queen Consort, Prince William, and Kate, Princess of Wales, Prince Edward, and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh. Photo / AP
OPINION:
As his sister the Princess Royal recently pointed out, King Charles III’s vision of a slimmed-down monarchy isn’t quite going according to plan.
Little did he know, when he first conceived the idea of a more value-for-money monarchy, that the antics of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Prince Andrew would put The Firm on an enforced diet anyway. In the absence of the fifth and eighth in line to the throne – and following the death of Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh, the self-evident decrepitude of the Kents, and the Gloucesters’ increasing age – the House of Windsor has never looked leaner.
As Princess Anne put it, just before the Coronation, “I think the ‘slimmed-down’ [monarchy] was said in a day when there were a few more people around to make that seem like a justifiable comment.” The 72-year-old princess added: “It doesn’t sound like a good idea from where I’m standing, I have to say. I’m not quite sure what else, you know, we can do.”
The sentiment could only be expressed by a hard-working trooper like Anne, who carries out more public duties in a year than most of the other royals put together. But despite her unparalleled work ethic, there is arguably more the royals could do – if only they were allowed.
Take Investitures – once described by the late Queen as among the most important of all her royal duties. These are the ceremonies at which those lucky enough to have made it on to the two honours’ lists every year are presented with their various awards. The most well-known honours are knighthoods, damehoods, MBEs, OBEs and CBEs, but there are a whole range of others that are handed out, such as the different classes of the Order of the Bath and the Order of St Michael and St George, and the rankless Order of Merit and the Companions of Honour.
The late Queen Elizabeth II shakes hands after knighting Sir Rodney Williams upon his appointment as Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda during an audience at Windsor Castle. Photo / Getty Images
Around 30 Investitures are held each year, and more than 60 recipients attend each ceremony, either in the Throne Room at Buckingham Palace or in the Grand Reception Room at Windsor Castle. Investitures also happen occasionally at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, or overseas during state or royal visits in recognition of outstanding achievements, personal bravery and services to the UK and British Overseas Territories.
Currently, Investitures are hosted by the King, the Princess Royal and the Prince of Wales in line with a long-standing convention that awards and honours should only be presented by a “blood” royal. But with Camilla now Queen, and Kate, the new Princess of Wales, might the King be minded to soup up his slimmed-down monarchy with a bit of girl power?
As well as his wife and daughter-in-law, he could also call upon the Duchess of Edinburgh to host the ceremonies, when the member of the Royal family places the decoration on the recipient and congratulates them on their honour. (Those who are receiving a knighthood kneel on an Investiture stool to be dubbed – more on that, later.)
According to constitutional expert Vernon Bogdanor, professor of government at King’s College London, there is no formal rule on who should preside over Investitures. “It’s up to the King – there’s nothing formally written down. It is one of the problems of slimming down the monarchy, that there may not be enough people to do these important jobs. But if the King did want more royals to carry out Investitures, then he could make it happen. It’s all down to his discretion and many would see it as an act of modernisation.”
Lorraine Kelly from Bourne End was made a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) by the Princess Royal at Windsor Castle. Photo / Getty Images
Prof Bogdanor adds that any changes would have to be supported by public opinion. Christopher Joll, British military historian and author, agrees: “There might be a feeling that if an Investiture was conducted by someone who had married into the family, it wouldn’t be quite the same thing.
“But actually I think people would be happy to receive honours and awards from any royal with enough seniority. It’s perhaps worth remembering that the King can delegate anybody to act on his behalf which is why you get lord-lieutenants carrying out one-off Investitures – or generals in the field. As the fount of honour, the monarch can decide who can act on his behalf.”
Curiously, although the convention dictates that the Queen and Princess of Wales don’t currently host Investitures, as blood royals, Andrew’s daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie could, even though they are “non-working” royals. “This is perhaps one of the problems with the King introducing this relatively new concept of ‘working’ and ‘non-working’ royals,” says Joll. “On one hand, the Yorks could, in theory, carry out an Investiture as blood princesses, but because they are ‘non-working’ royals, they currently don’t.”
Might the King, 74, also be minded to modernise the way damehoods are awarded? At present, it is only the male recipients of knighthoods who are “dubbed” during Investitures. The procedure, also known as an “accolade”, sees the royal giving the honour tap with the flat side of a knighting sword on each shoulder of the recipient as they kneel on a special knighting-stool (the late Queen used her father’s Royal Navy sword).
As blood royals, Andrew’s daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie could host Investitures, despite being 'non-working' royals. Photo / Getty Images
First, the royal lays the side of the sword’s blade on to the accolade’s right shoulder before raising the sword just up over the recipient’s head, flipping it counterclockwise so that the same side of the blade will come in contact with the knight’s body, and placing it on his left shoulder. The new knight then stands up to be presented with the insignia of his new order.
Contrary to popular belief, the phrase “Arise, Sir ...” is not used. The earliest reference to the knighting as a formal ceremony in Germany is in the Annals of Aachen under the year 1184, when Emperor Frederick I’s sons, Henry VI and Frederick VI, “were made knights”. Although a panel in the Bayeux Tapestry shows the knighting of Harold by William of Normandy, the specific gesture is not clearly represented.
There are currently 11 different knighthoods being bestowed: Knights Bachelor, Knights Commander and Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire, Royal Victorian Order, Order of Saint Michael and Saint George and Order of the Bath, Knights Companion of the Order of the Thistle and the Order of the Garter.
But women who are awarded damehoods – or appointed Ladies in the case of the Garter and the Thistle – do not receive the accolade, despite sharing equal status with men awarded knighthoods. “The restriction of dubbing and the title of knight harks back to the days when awardees were ‘knights in shining armour’,” says Joll.
“Prior to the dawn of the 20th century, it was felt to be indelicate for the fair sex to be so awarded and designated. But in 1917, that changed with the introduction of the title Dame. Nonetheless, the chivalric ‘tap on the shoulder’ for ladies was thought then – and is still thought now – to be inconsistent with the original concept. Joan of Arc would probably not have agreed.”
Combining style with stalwart service, the Wives of Windsor have so far proved themselves to be secret weapons of the Carolean era. If Charles III really wants to be seen as a truly modern monarch, then the feminising of Investitures would be a good place to start.
