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King Charles III's reign has started with a series of political dramas which have seen the prime minister, Liz Truss, resign less than two months after she became the last leader to be appointed by Queen Elizabeth II, a new episode of Newsweek's The Royal Report podcast has heard.
Truss announced her resignation on October 20, just 44 days into her premiership following the disastrous effects of her government's "mini budget" announcement which caused the U.K.'s economy to plummet.
The budget, which would have seen tax cuts for some of the country's richest citizens among other measures to try and stabilize the economy over the harsh winter period for many, saw controversial actions rescinded after widespread public backlash, dividing the Conservative party, leading Truss to resign.
Chief royal correspondent Jack Royston told royal commentator Kristen Meinzer on The Royal Report that Britons had been in "simultaneous hysterics and perpetual dread" over the country's political climate, adding that constitutionally, now Truss had resigned, it "then falls to the monarch to play a role in what comes next."
"Liz Truss has announced her resignation to Charles privately, before she told the public and there will now be a leadership election," Royston said.
As sovereign, the U.K. government acts in Charles' name to govern his people. Once a new leader is elected either by the political party in power or via a general election, that leader is invited to Buckingham Palace where the monarch formally asks them to form a government and become prime minister.
Truss was appointed by Queen Elizabeth II just two days before her death in Scotland on September 8. The 96-year-old, being unable to travel, received outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson and incoming Truss at Balmoral Castle instead of Buckingham Palace.
Elizabeth II's 70-year reign saw 15 British prime ministers. With Truss' resignation, Charles will have already had two within his first three months on the throne.
"Not that this is King Charles' fault," Meinzer observed to Royston. "But...the queen kind of stood for stability. Charles has only been on the throne for a few weeks and so far, things are very not stable. This is not a good defining moment for what does King Charles' reign look like?"
To this, Royston referenced an earlier meeting between Truss and the king at Buckingham Palace for one of their weekly audiences between monarch and prime minister.
"There was this video of him meeting Liz Truss," he said. "She came in all gracious and curtseying and prostrating herself before him, and he said 'you again, ah, dear oh dear.' Which actually a lot of people found absolutely hilarious but it is interesting because...I'm sure he didn't intend to tell the world what he thought of Liz Truss but it does feel like 'emotional leakage' doesn't it?"
By tradition, monarchs do not let their personal feelings towards their prime ministers show. The late-queen's opinions on politics remained confidential, with very few confirmed instances throughout her reign of similar incidents.
"It does feel like this was Charles' verdict on Liz Truss which he's not really supposed to give," observed Royston. "Especially on camera for the world to see."
Of Truss' premiership, he continued: "It was a very odd reign, she was in power for two months. She came in and two days after she's formed a government the queen passed away, so everything was then put on hold for the 11 days of mourning and then as soon as the royal mourning period was over, they launched this mini budget..."
As prime minister, Truss' popularity ratings according to recent polling show her more unpopular than even Prince Andrew, who has consistently featured at the bottom of the most popular royals lists with an approval rating of just 8 percent.
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About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more