LONDON
As the UK marks one full year under the rule of King Charles III, the future of the country’s monarchy remains a pressing and highly divisive issue.
The popularity of the monarchy versus calls to abolish it has grown into a more and more contentious divide, especially since Charles' ascension to the throne following the death of his long-serving mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
According to a YouGov poll done last month, one-third of the country now has a negative view of the monarchy.
The poll shows that the number of Britons who have a negative view of the monarchy has risen since the much-loved queen died last year, with over a third of people now having either a very negative (16%) or fairly negative (17%) view of the royals.
It also said that the number of people with a very positive view of the monarchy has also fallen from 31% to 20%.
"The coronation (of King Charles) has done nothing to secure the monarchy's future. The royal's £250 million ($311 million) PR operation in May failed," said Graham Smith, speaking for the anti-monarchy Republic group.
On May 6, in the country's first coronation service in nearly 70 years, King Charles III was crowned along with Queen Camilla at Westminster Abbey in London.
Citing the poll, he noted how it tends to break down along age lines. As people under 40 are "increasingly unlikely" to support the monarchy, he said, the republican movement is growing.
- 'Hard to apologize for something totally wrong'
Perceptions of the monarchy in the UK differ between generations, according to the poll. Speaking to Anadolu, Graham Hamilton, 75, said that he quite likes the monarchy.
He said without a monarchy the country would have an ex-politician as president standing as head of state, calling such a move "too political" for Britain.
The president would have to be from the political left or right, he said, which would be too divisive. “I just don't think it would be as good at having the monarchy."
Asked why younger Britons like the monarchy less, Hamilton said they want a republic instead of a monarchy because they haven't thought through the alternatives.
On demands that the UK monarchy issue a formal apology over financing the slave trade, he said: "I think we all know slavery was wrong and I don't think anyone can defend it in any shape or form but we weren't the first."
"It's very hard to apologize for something which is totally, totally wrong. So I don't think apologizing now would make any difference to the people," he added.
For her part, Gill Lingwood Bessis, 75, praised Charles, especially his signature Prince's Trust initiative, a charity he founded in 1976 to help vulnerable young people get their lives on track.
"We have a monarchy in this country and always have had. I would be enormously disappointed and unhappy if that ever changed," she said.
Not being part of politics and keeping the Commonwealth of former British Empire colonies alive are among the advantages of having a monarchy, she argued.
"There have always been anti-monarchists, it's a free world," she added.
On the royal family’s historic ties to the slave trade, Bessis said: "I think it's faced it, but I don't think it's finished doing enough. I think there is a lot in every single way to try and put right that terrible trade."
However, she said that everyone should always be aware of the mistakes they made and whenever these come up, everyone should ask "what more can we do."
- 'Outdated, out-of-touch institution'
But republican groups, with memberships skewing on the young side, have sharply critically views of the monarchy.
Speaking to Anadolu, Ben Clinton, communications officer at Republic group, also cited the recent polls saying that support for the monarchy is falling, while they have seen the group's membership more than triple since Queen Elizabeth died.
"People are sick and tired of the monarchy," an institution which eats up public money and represents "the complete opposite of democratic values," he argued.
Saying that support for republicanism "has come a long way," Clinton stated while the monarchy is losing approval, republicanism is gaining more and more supporters.
"There's still a long way to go, but this can only be a positive development for the republican cause," he added.
On expectations for a formal apology over the financing of slave trade, Clinton said he is in favor of this.
"It's a simple thing to do – apologize and recognize the fact that a large proportion of the crown's wealth is derived from the profits of slavery.
“We've seen other families do it in recent years. On the other hand, the monarchy is still an outdated and out-of-touch institution, so we're not holding our breath.”
Saying that other royal families have issued apologies over the issue, Clinton indicated this bolsters the case that the British monarchy is hopelessly behind the times.
In July, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands officially apologized for his country's role in slavery.
Also speaking to Anadolu on the behalf of the No More Royals Oxford group, a spokesperson highlighted the trouble millions of people have making ends meet while "the king gets a pay rise."
"People are rightly angry at this system and we've seen repeated protests against the monarchy," said the spokesperson.
Although it is possible that the king may apologize for Britain's role in the slave trade, "such words are meaningless without action," said the spokesperson.
"We demand the king give up his immense wealth that has been plundered from the imperialized world to help fund reparations for the victims of colonialism – including the slave trade."
The countries affected by the transatlantic slave trade are still to this day "being stolen via a regime of neocolonial extraction," the group added.
