William VI of the United Kingdom

William VI
Duke of Hanover
King of the British and the other Commonwealth Realms Canada 1997-2017 Australia 1997-2017 New Zealand 1997-2017 Jamaica 1997-2017 Barbados 1997-2017 The Bahamas 1997-2017 Grenada 1997-2017 Papua New Guinea 1997-2017 Solomon Islands 1997-2017 Tuvalu 1997-2017 St. Lucia 1997-2017 St. Vincent and the Grenadines 1997-2017 Belize 1997-2017 Antigua and Barbuda 1997-2017 St. Kitts and Nevis 1997-2017 Puerto Rico 1997-2017
Reign	15 January, 1997 - 13 October, 2017
Coronation	20 March, 1997
Predecessor	Charles III
Successor	Alexandra
Prime Ministers	See list John Major Tony Blair Gordon Brown David Cameron Theresa May
Born	William Edward Francis Albert Charles (1950-12-17) 17 December 1950 Balmoral Castle, Scotland
Spouse	Connie Nielsen (1989 - 1993, engaged) Märtha Louise of Norway (m. 1995)
Issue	Queen Alexandra Richard, Duke of Cleveland Alistair, Duke of Edinburgh Mary, Duchess of Sussex
Full name William Edward Francis Albert Charles
House	Hanover
Father	Charles III
Mother	Lauren Bacall
Religion	Protestant
Military service
Branch/service	Royal Navy
Years of service	1979-1996 (active service)
Rank	Brigadier
Battles/wars	The Troubles Falklands War Multinational Force in Lebanon

William VI (William Edward Francis Albert Charles; born 17 December 1950) was King of the British from 1997 to 2017. In 1995, he married the Norwegian princess Märtha Louise with whom he has four children: Alexandra, Richard, Alistair, and Mary. Despite his constitutional status, as King, he was instrumental in promoting continued relations between the United Kingdom and its allies in Asia through his respective state visits to the continent, and was particularly responsible for the passing of the Succession to the Crown Act 1997, which saw a fundamental change in the country's succession law. The later half of his reign was marked by the deaths of the former King Charles III and Queen Lauren in the year 2011 and 2014 respectively.

Following a sudden health crisis and upon the recommendation of the then Prime Minister, an ageing William abdicated the throne in favour of his daughter who ascended to the throne as Queen Alexandra while styling himself as Duke of Hanover, becoming the second British monarch to do so after his own father, King Charles III a decade earlier. Nevertheless, since his retirement, the former monarch has occassionally furthered his involvement in philantrophy and royal duties.

As a result of his mother's Jewish identity, William is recognised as being the first Jewish monarch of the United Kingdom through the Jewish matrilineal descent.

Early Life

William was born on December 17th 1950 to the then Charles, Prince of Wales and Lauren, Princess of Wales, formerly known as Lauren Bacall, during the reign of his grandfather, King Edward VII. His godparents, in a manner previously unknown in that of his predecessors, consisted both of British and American nationals, whilst including both royalty and non-royalty, such as his great-uncle and aunt, Prince Frederick, Duke of Clarence and Avondale and Princess Astrid of Sweden, then British Prime Minister, Clement Attlee, and American Hollywood figures, actor, Frank Sinatra, and actress, Katharine Hepburn.

Prince of the Welsh

Around the time when William was only a year old, the death of his grandfather, King Edward VII led to his father becoming the new sovereign, as Charles the Third. At the same time, as the new heir apparent, William was created Duke of Cornwall on July 7th by his father. Furthermore, following his father's ascension to the throne, the family of three subsequently moved from their previous residence at Edinburgh Castle to the central residence of Buckingham Palace in London.

Like his own father, William's new life in Buckingham Palace was said to had been initially considerably restrictive due to some considerable animosity against the royal family by some small circles of the general public. Nevertheless, the much liberal approach towards his upbringing appliedgenera by his parents ensured that despite the restrictions, the young prince, to some extent, would enjoy a relatively happy childhood. Nevertheless, at times, as a mean to familiarise the young prince with an American environment, William, whilst being solely accompanied by his own mother, would either occassionally live in the family's Wales House residence in New York, or at the residence of his parents' close friend, Katharine Hepburn, based in neighbouring Connecticut.

Reign

Upon his father's abdication on January 1997, William automatically ascended to the throne as King William VI. Despite his longstanding ceremonial status, William, in a manner similar to that of his father and predecessor, King Charles III, also partook to some degree in the country's political affairs whilst adhering to his position as a constitutional monarch.

His first notable achievement upon becoming king was the passing of the Succession to the Crown Act 1997, which occurred following an agreement at a meeting among Commonwealth leaders to amend the pre-existing succession laws, particularly concerning the initial male-preference primogeniture system, which was subsequently replaced with that of an absolute primogeniture instead. The change in the succession laws, which had arose following personal concerns over the possibility of the then heir presumptive, Princess Alexandra being replaced as heir by a subsequent younger brother was initially championed by the then Queen Mother Lauren whom, with the support of William himself was able to successfully pressure the then Prime Minister John Major and the other Commonwealth leaders into a unanimous agreement to amend the pre-existing succession laws, which had initially ran under a male-preference primogeniture system. On May 11th that year, soon after Parliament had passed the Succession to the Crown Act 1997, William himself notably declared, "A Commonwealth of the 20th and 21st centuries must never be one of an oppressive patriarchal nature, let alone one that deny the women of today an equal opportunity, whether by legal or illegal means".

On January 1998, William notably became the first high-ranking British citizen to visit the Islamic Republic of Iran where in a private meeting in its capital city of Tehran, the King met with the Iranian Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. He also met the Chinese President, Jiang Zemin later that February, followed by a subsequent visit to Taiwan on the same month. His visit to both countries, whilst receiving great attention from international commentators was also seen as a symbolic diplomatic gesture due to the fact that a year prior, the United Kingdom had ceded the territory of Hong Kong to China itself.

Abdication

During the final year of his reign, despite already being sixty seven years of age, William was consistently described as a "generally healthy, and well-conditioned man", as he was notably credited for almost regularly playing a game of polo with the palace staff and his close associates during his free time, leading him to be known as the "Polo King" among his close circle. However, on October 6th, having just went back to his chambers alongside his wife, the King unexpectedly collapsed onto his bed while the latter had went inside the chambers' bathroom. Around a minute later, royal doctors were immediately summoned following signs of a weakened pulse, leading him to be transferred instead to a special room for an operation. At the same time, by his own wife's insistence, both the British and Pakistani governments agreed to preserve details of his operation, as to not jeopardise his daughter's then ongoing state visit to the Pakistan itself. Following an initially successful operation, he was declared to be in a "mildly stable" condition but soon after, subsequent operations were also conducted which lasted until just hours before his daughter Alexandra's return from her state visit, during which he was declared to had fully recovered from his illness, which was subsequently recorded as a stroke, albeit privately.

In light of the incident, William began seriously contemplating in an abdication, during which he made it known to the then Prime Minister Theresa May, whom he had specifically invited to Buckingham Palace for the matter. Discussions between the two would continue until December 10th when in a coordinated manner, William first declared his abdication at 10:30 AM in a BBC broadcast from Buckingham Palace before an Act of Parliament was granted royal assent by the King himself, thereby effectively formalising his abdication. In his abdication speech, William chose not to publicly disclose the details of his illness leading to his abdication, having instead chose to cite "ill-health and inability to sustain the continuation of royal duties" as his primary reasons for abdicating. He subsequently attended the coronation of his daughter and successor, Queen Alexandra whom later created the former king Duke of Hanover in light of his abdication.

Post-Abdication

Following his abdication, William promptly took an initial period of rest for approximately five months before returning to his royal duties, now as a royal duke, albeit on a periodical basis. On May 2018, he embarked on a second state visit to China, the first of which since his abdication, during which he reassured Chinese premier Xi Jinping of a sustained bilateral relationship between the two countries. On October of the same year, in an official broadcast from his residence of Buckingham Palace, William called for the Saudi ruler, King Salman of Saudi Arabia to reprimand his officials believed to be involved in the attempted kidnapping of his daughter and successor, Queen Alexandra. While there had been no immediate response from the Saudi government, the broadcast itself was largely praised by the British public, though a minority of critics labelled the broadcast as an overstepping of the former King's royal duties.

Marriage

As William's parents had chosen a rather informal and morganatic approach to marriage, prospects of the young William in exemplifying his parents were largely encouraged. Consequently, William frequently indulged himself in events concerning the country's nobility and celebrity circles. Rumours of his alleged relationships with several prominent women became a common theme for local tabloids, but at the same time, neither were officially confirmed. However, from 1979 to 1985, the prince was in a lengthy relationship with Austrian-American actress Sybil Danning. The couple later peacefully separated over issues concerning work and residence. Nevertheless, Danning herself would later attend his own coronation in 1997.

In 1989, the royal palace announced the surprise engagement between William and a young Danish actress by the name of Connie Nielsen. Following the announcement, Nielsen and William began to appear together in public, with Nielsen herself frequently accompanying the prince on both his local and state visits. Three years later, the couple officially broke off their engagement, albeit in a peaceful manner. Regardless, both William and Nielsen remained close partners in the aftermath of their separation, with Nielsen herself being made a viscountess on the same year, alongside a British citizenship before subsequently marrying William's brother of the same name three years later. At the same time, the end of their engagement raised concerns over the question of William's successor. Compounding this was William's own age, in which he was already in his 40's.

In the months following his separation, William was first introduced to the Norwegian princess Märtha Louise, who is almost 20 years his junior during a state visit to Norway. Throughout the following months, the two decided to pursue a relationship, albeit in a private manner before they were officially wed in 1995. Though their marriage were partially received with despair as it was hoped that William was to marry a commoner, the wedding was greatly received and publicised by both the British and Norwegian medias. After only a few months into their marriage, their first child, the current Queen Alexandra was born. Through their respective ancestors, William and Märtha Louise are distant cousins as Märtha Louise's grandmother was the sister of Astrid who had in turn, married William's great uncle Frederick, the Duke of Clarence of Avondale. Furthermore, the similarities in their respective backgrounds were also extensively noted, as both William and Märtha Louise had both been royals born from a royal father and a commoner mother, though unlike the latter's case, William's own mother had been that of a starkly different religion and nationality while Märtha Louise's mother, Queen Sonja had strictly been of both Norwegian birth and of the Protestant faith.

Despite the glaring age difference, the couple enjoyed a well-built marriage in which throughout the succeeding years, they received the birth of their twin sons, Richard and Alistair and an another daughter, named Mary.

Titles & Honours

• 17 December 1950 - 7 July 1951 His Royal Highness Prince William of Cambridge
• 7 July 1951 - 22 July 1951 His Royal Highness The Duke of Cornwall
• 22 July 1951 - 15 January 1997 His Royal Highness The Prince of the Welsh
• 15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017 His Majesty The King of the British
• 13 October 2017 - 22 December 2017 His Royal Highness Prince William
• 22 December 2017 - Present His Royal Highness The Duke of Hanover

Honours

National & Commonwealth

• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Most Noble Order of the Garter
• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Royal Family Order of King William V
• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Royal Guelphic Order
• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Order of St. George
• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle​
• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Most Illustrious Order of Saint Patrick
• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath​
• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George
• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Order of the British Empire
• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Distinguished Service Order
• United Kingdom - Sovereign of the Williamite Cross
• Canada - Sovereign of the Order of Canada
• Australia - Sovereign of the Order of Australia
• New Zealand - Sovereign of the Order of New Zealand
• Barbados - Sovereign of the Order of Barbados
• Saint Lucia - Sovereign of the Order of St Lucia
• Solomon Islands - Sovereign of the Order of Solomon Islands
• Belize - Sovereign of the Order of Belize
• Antigua and Barbuda - Sovereign of the Order of Antigua and Barbuda
• St Christopher and Nevis - Sovereign of the Order of St Christopher and Nevis
• Grenada - Sovereign of the Order of Grenada​
• Tuvalu - Sovereign of the Order of Tuvalu
• Puerto Rico - Sovereign of the Order of Puerto Rico

Foreign

• Spain - Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece
• Norway - Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of St Olav
• Norway - ​Recipient of the Medal of the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of King Olav V
• Norway - Recipient of the Royal House Centenary Medal
• Norway - ​Recipient of the King Harald V Silver Jubilee Medal
• Sweden - Member of the Royal Order of the Seraphim
• Sweden - Commander Grand Cross - of the Royal Order of the Sword
• Denmark - Knight of the Order of the Elephant
• Denmark - Grand Commander of the Order of the Dannebrog
• Germany - Grand Cross Special Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
• Japan - Collar and Grand Order of the Order of the Chrysanthemum
• Japan - Golden Medal of Merit Japanese Red Cross
• Japan - Golden Medal of Honorary Member of Japanese Red Cross
• France - Grand Cross of the National Order of the Legion of Honour
• Malaysia - Honorary Recipient of the Order of the Crown of the Realm
• China - Recipient of the Order of Friendship
• Republic of China - Recipient of the Order of Brilliant Jade

Military Appointments

United Kingdom
3 June 1979 - 28 May 1980: Officer Cadet, Royal Navy
28 May 1980 - 25 June 1982: Midshipman, Royal Navy
25 June 1982 - 11 January 1984: Lieutenant, Royal Navy
11 January 1984 - 5 May 1985: Lieutenant Commander, Royal Navy
5 May 1985 - 20 September 1990: Captain, Royal Navy
20 September 1990 - 15 January 1997: Commodore, Royal Navy
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Lord High Admiral, Royal Navy
13 October 2017 - Present: Admiral of the Fleet, Royal Navy
25 June 1982 - 3 June 1986: Colonel, British Army
3 June 1986 - 12 November 1990: Brigadier, British Army
3 June 1986 - 15 January 1997: Major General, British Army
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Commander-in-Chief of the British Armed Forces
13 October 2017 - Present: Field Marshal, British Army
5 June 1986 - 15 January 1997: Air Marshal, Royal Air Force
15 January 1997 - Present: Marshal of the Royal Air Force

Canada
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Army
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Canadian Navy
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Canadian Air Force

Australia
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Commander-in-Chief of the Australian Army
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Australian Navy
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Australian Air Force

New Zealand
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Commander-in-Chief of the New Zealand Army
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Commander-in-Chief of the Royal New Zealand Navy
15 January 1997 - 13 October 2017: Commander-in-Chief of the Royal New Zealand Air Force

Ancestry

Ancestors of William VI of the United Kingdom

8. George V of the United Kingdom 4. Edward VII of the United Kingdom 9. Princess Sophia of Prussia 2. Charles III of the United Kingdom 10. Wilhelm II, German Emperor 5. Princess Victoria Louise of Prussia 11. Princess Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg 1. William VI of the United Kingdom 12. Zalman Perski 6. William Perske 13. Sheyna Yofa 3. Lauren Bacall 14. Max Weinstein 7. Natalie Bacall 15. Sophia Bacall