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William has just been announced as Her Majesty’s Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland this year. As Daily Express royal correspondent Richard Palmer
pointed out, this is an “honorary appointment” but holds more serious undertones showing the Queen is preparing him to become King. After a year that the Queen described as particularly
“bumpy” after Philip’s health scare, difficulties with Prince Andrew and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle outlining their struggles, William and his wife Kate Middleton have emerged as “star
royals”. In a BBC interview with Nicholas Witchall from April 2016, William revealed what he has envisioned for his takeover of the monarchy. He said: “It is something that occupies a lot of
thinking space as to how on earth you would develop into something modern in today’s world. “I’m in a unique position, a very privileged position, to be able to see some of this now, which
is that I’ve got my grandmother, who takes more of a passive role in how she believes her role should be. “She’s above politics and keeps away from it. I’ve got my father who minds an awful
lot about a lot of the charitable causes he is involved in. “The Royal Family has to modernise and develop as it goes along and it has to stay relevant. That’s the challenge for me – how do
I make the Royal Family relevant in the next twenty years time. It could be 40 years, could be 60, I have no idea when that could be.” He added that he was confident he could make and keep
the monarchy relevant within the UK, especially with the Queen as his role model. READ MORE: TRIP EDWARD TOOK WITH MRS SIMPSON SPARKING ABDICATION CRISIS REVEALED The Duke of Cambridge said:
“She’s more of a soft, influencing, modest kind of instruction – so it’s more guidance rather than instruction. “She believes in finding your own path but with very good examples and
guidance around you to support you. I think that’s what she has found to be most effective for herself since 1952. I think she sees that more important than instructing.” He added that the
monarchy is about a “long-term view” and having a “vision”, as well as “representing timeless values” of the institution. William explained: “That’s very important. You’ve got to mix
traditional with the modern and I think that’s something she’s done extremely well.” He spoke about the Queen’s conspicuous sense of duty too and said he shared that trait. William said:
“That’s part of the fabric of what the Royal Family and any future the monarch has. It’s something that is very important and I take duty very seriously. “When the Queen decided she wants to
hand down more of her responsibilities, I will be the first person to accept them.” However, he also used the interview to address criticism of him as a “reluctant royal”, which was
prominent at the time of the interview. The Duke of Cambridge admitted, “I’ve got my fingers in many pies at the moment” referring to his role as a father and with the Air Ambulance, but
explained he would soon take on more royal duties when he had finished working within the local community of Anglesea. He said he wants to instil that sense of duty and service to others in
his children too.