Why some Welsh people think Charles should have been the last Prince of Wales

On July 1, 1969, 11-year-old Maria Sarnacki stood cheek by jowl with her friends, Brownie camera raised, as she tried to capture Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles on the balcony of Caernarfon Castle.

“It was literally out of a movie, a fairy tale,” Sarnacki said. “Her late Majesty and Prince Charles came out … and they turned and waved. And to this day I’m sure they waved to me and no one else but me.”

Sarnacki, now the mayor of the small Welsh town of Caernarfon, was one of the thousands outside the castle the day when Charles was officially presented as the Prince of Wales; moment in history watched by 500 million people.

While it remains a day he will “not forget,” he said the romance of the occasion has soured.

“We don’t know any better,” he said, noting that as he got older and learned more about the history of his native Wales, the investiture of the Prince of Wales lost its significance.

“If it happened now, I probably wouldn’t be involved.”

Sarnacki’s opposition to this elaborate ceremony was echoed by many across the country. An opinion polls taken shortly after the death of the Queen last year shows that more than one-third of the people in Wales would prefer not to investiture to take place in Welsh land for Prince William, the eldest son of King Charles III and the newly-minted Prince of Wales.

For some, it’s a reminder that they are subjects rather than citizens, while others say the bigger issue is the title.

A symbol of oppression

“There is nothing Welsh about this,” said Elfed Wyn ap Elwyn, a crusader for Welsh independence and councilor for Gwynedd county, where Caernarfon is located. “It’s a title that’s accepted just to continue that facade, that shame of history.”

The “historic shame” the 25-year-old refers to is when Wales was conquered by Edward I of England in the 13th century.

Caernarfon Castle was built as a symbol of conquest and his son, Edward of Caernarfon, was dubbed Prince of Wales, the first Englishman to hold that title, according to Nia Jones, a historian of medieval England.

“The creation of the title of Prince of Wales in the medieval period was actually more of a recognition of the frustrations of the native Welsh elite after the conquest. returned. So here you are, this is the heir,” said Jones.

For the past 700 years, the title of Prince of Wales has been reserved for the heir to the British throne.

Today, the moniker feels more like “salt in the wound” than a loose hand, says Wyn ap Elwyn, who launched a campaign in October last year to scrap the title. It was passed with the support of 46 Gwynedd councillors, while four voted against and another four abstained.

“After the Queen died, I kept quiet because … you want to give yourself time to grieve. And I think the discussion about the future of the monarchy can develop later. us,” he said.

William was officially named Prince of Wales by his father in a public broadcast the day after the Queen’s death on September 8, 2022. The King anointed William as such, adding that the title was one that he himself had been “privileged to bear during his many lives and my job.”

But for Wyn ap Elwyn, a sheep farmer and father of twins, the King’s announcement negates “all that [the monarchy] say about Wales being an equal partner in England”

Speaking in Welsh and English, Wyn ap Elwyn told the CBC, “No matter how much time passes, we’re all still subjects.”

It is not yet known how Wyn ap Elwyn’s move will be received by higher-ups in government, but he says the most important goal has been achieved: getting more people involved in the ongoing conversation about whether there is a place for the monarchy in modern society.

An online petition to end title “in honor of Wales” has almost 40,000 signatures. And in 2017, the Welsh actor Michael Sheen returned the OBE (Order of the British Empire), an award given by the authorities to honor the contribution of individuals in their respective fields, by way of protest again the title of Prince of Wales.

The Welsh language and the war of words

Back in Caernarfon, a few steps from the castle walls, owner Rhys Davies stands behind the polished wooden bar of Tŷ Glyndwr, a bunkhouse named for the late Prince of Wales. He said he met the King who is now Prince Charles.

“I felt like it broke every royal protocol in the book because you’re not supposed to interrupt and everything he said I didn’t agree with, so I couldn’t sit down,” Davies said.

He acknowledged that since Charles was born into his position and the institution of the monarchy, “you can’t judge him,” but he said Charles should do more to strengthen the Welsh language.

Before his investiture in 1969, Prince Charles spent ten weeks studying Welsh culture, history and the language at Aberystwyth University in Wales, and gave speeches in English and Welsh during the ceremony.

But for Davies and some other local Welsh speakers – about 80 per cent of Caernarfon speak the language – this gesture is not enough.

Davies said centuries of suppression of the Welsh language had left members of the community who could recall a time when they could not speak it.

He told the CBC about the punishment of the “Welsh Not,” a wooden board placed around the neck of schoolchildren caught speaking their mother tongue in the 19th century.

“The opposition to the monarchy tends to be closer, I would say, to a strong Welsh identity,” Jones said.

Historians say the title Prince of Wales is a “useful shorthand” for the various issues that separate Welshness and Britishness; characteristic of a “broken” society that was never more common than when Prince Charles invested in 1969.

Jones said you can see how “divided” the country is in substantial support and strong opposition to the investiture.

Union flag-waving families line the streets, with more than 4,000 people sat inside the castle to witness the event, 3,500 people live and work in Wales.

But the failed bomb plot and the national anthem were clear manifestations of growing nationalist and anti-monarchy sentiment.

The Welsh paramilitary group Mudiad Attyffyn Cymru devised a plan for the investiture that involved several explosive devices, one of which exploded unexpectedly, killing two of its members, and another planted near the castle seriously injured a boy who was found a few days later.

“He’s out of date, out of touch, and he’s holding us back,” said Dafydd Rhys, who was just nine when Charles was invested.

He was banned from attending the wedding by his politically conscious parents, and he told the CBC in Welsh that the abolition of the monarchy was one of the things he felt most strongly about.

“Holding the investiture now is likely to expose more fissures and may continue,” Jones said.

“If you’re someone who voted for Welsh independence, you might as well welcome the investment because you’ll be one of the people in Wales who respond.”

Rewriting the role of the royal family

However, there are many in Wales who support the continuation of the Prince of Wales title and the monarchy itself.

A poll released in April this year, shows more than half of Wales supports to keep the monarchy.

“Having a monarchy is a very important part of us,” said Sam Rowlands, a member of the Welsh Parliament. Furthermore, he said it is a source of pride to have the Prince and Princess of Wales and will welcome the investiture.

“It’s a real honor and a privilege for us to have a title that’s known on a global level. I think it’s a big deal in terms of the ambassadorial role for us … and our strength as a British nation.”

As of November 2022, Kensington Palace says the Prince of Wales has no plans for an investiture like it did for his father.

However, Prince William wants to “deepen his understanding of the issues and opportunities that matter most to the Welsh people,” the royal told BBC News.

But as far as county councilor Wyn ap Elwyn is concerned, the best the Prince can do for the Welsh people is to step back from a role he says is “disrespectful” to Wales.

“He is not just a British prince, it has nothing to do with nationality. He is a prince who was planted here just to remind us that we are a conquered nation,” he said.

“And the prince, the princess, the king and the queen were in one place; and it was a fairy tale.”