The New Royal Watch: Waiting for Wills

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PRINCESS DIANA BROKE THE NEWS to her sons at Highgrove, the hated country house she visited for the last time to remove her possessions. Prince Charles sought out the boys at their boarding school to reassure them about his separation from their mother. Then, last Wednesday, British Prime Minister John Major announced the split in the House of Commons in a move timed to get the worst of the press coverage over with before the little princes' Christmas break.

The Prince and Princess of Wales acted wisely on behalf of their sons, because the media coverage was extraordinary. Every paper, broadsheet and tabloid was lying in wait with exhaustive stories. The next morning, the Sun devoted 26 pages to the split. To judge by reaction in the streets, it was a sad day. The fairy-tale marriage was finally over after 11 years, and people were sorry to see the last gleaming gossamer fade into cobweb.

But regret and human sympathy were quickly outdistanced by more practical doubts. Exactly what did the separation announcement, released by the palace, accomplish? "Their Royal Highnesses," it intoned, "would like to stress first and foremost that this decision is amicable . . . There have been no third parties involved, on either side." Well, fine, but the pair have scarcely been able to look at each other, never mind speak, in public, and each has been caught in indiscreet phonefests with a "confidant."

The real boggler was the statement that "there is no reason why Her Royal Highness should not become Queen." That message caused gasps in Parliament. The reaction reflects in part the fact that few believe the Waleses' assurance that they have no plans to divorce. Royal credibility is low on such matters. When Princess Margaret and Princess Anne ended their marriages, the announcements were similar, but divorce followed. The Archbishops of Canterbury and York released a joint statement that the breakup does not affect Charles' future position as head of the Church of England. But that church frowns on divorce. As to remarriage, the stricture is so firm that Princess Anne went to Scotland last Saturday to wed Commander Timothy Laurence.

Tory M.P. John Bowis spoke for many when he said, "It would be absurd to think of two royal processions coming from different directions to the Abbey for a coronation. If it is not possible to have a happy monarch and family, I think we should skip a generation and wait for William." The succession issue lies at the heart of the monarchy; for the institution to survive, it must be stable. If the Waleses pursue other romantic interests, as is likely, the Windsors may reel into even thornier problems than they faced in 1992.

Even the timing of the separation statement was ridiculed. Major canceled a meeting with Jacques Delors, President of the European Commission, just before the Edinburgh summit. Says London University constitutional expert Peter Hennessy: "Royal issues still override all other issues." Anthony Holden, a biographer of Prince Charles, remarks of the announcement, "It just may be that Major is dumb enough to think that the Edinburgh conference would bury it, and the royal family is dumb enough to think that Princess Anne's marriage would obscure it."