How does Charles remain so calm and composed amidst his own grief?

[asblindasabat]

His speech yesterday was excellent.

I know he kinda has to, but how does he just keep going? I don’t know how he didn’t cry doing that speech yesterday.

If it was my parent I don’t think I could do any of it. I think I’d just be a mess.

He’s 74 and his mum was 96. He knows she had. Wonderful long and healthy life and also known that she wasn’t going to be around for much longer regardless. She has been increasingly frail so whilst I am sure he’s very sad, he will be neither shocked or suprised and therefore it’s probably much easier to get on with what he needs to do. The death of a 96 year old who has lived a full life to the end is a blessing and celebration not a tragedy and he probably feels that

He has been trained in keeping his emotions private. He was quite obviously very sad, though and it was clear that he had cried in private. He did an excellent job, just as his mother would have wished.

Don’t you remember the death of princess Diana and her two dcs were expected to follow the hearse Wo a tear?
It seems that it’s part of being aRoyal 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️

When dh died I was in shock but it hadn't fully sunk in and I did have to get on with stuff as had two kids to support plus the funeral and banking, bills etc to sort out. Had to clean the house for visitors too. He's got a spouse supporting him too.

Because he knows and understands that this is not about him or his feelings and he is trained and practised at managing his outward feelings whilst doing his job. Of course he is in mourning, you can see it in his face. Personally, I don't think this is a negative thing. It doesn't mean he is repressed or doesn't feel devastated, just that he is in control of himself.

I watched a YouTube of the Privy Council signing, it was a US broadcast and they mentioned that the King's first address was pre-recorded which makes sense as he is wearing the same suit and pocket square as in the BBC documentary.

If it is prerecorded I certainly wouldn't hold it against him. I wouldnt want to be broadcasting live with no retakes within hours of my mother's death. Talking about her in the past tense must have been difficult whilst she was still alive.

I have attended 3 funerals for my own children, one after the other.

I tried to do my own speech at the funeral but failed each time. I just couldn't compose myself and really regret that

When my mother died (she'd been given 12 weeks to 18 months - turned out the earlier date was the correct prognosis) I flew to Australia, organised a funeral, sorted her stuff and flew back. It wasn't for about 6 weeks until it actually hit me that she was dead. Something steps in and takes over when it's needed.

So sorry for your losses, I don't know how you even managed to stand. How awful.

I don't understand greiving for people in there twilight years. My parents died and I'm glad they did, it what they would have wanted. They would have never wanted to be alive in that state.

The first address was pre-recorded a few hours before it was shown on tv (according to the tv reports).

I do wonder to. My Dad died recently and I couldn't even get dressed in the first couple of days never mind anything else. It must be very difficult for them all and I dare to say, almost mentally unhealthy to have to continue on in the way they are expected to.

I think there is something in this. When someone dies peacefully at the natural end of a very long and happy life it can be - obviously not always - easier for families. My H's grandfather died at 97 last year, and like the Queen had a very gentle decline over a couple of years. His five children had been prepared for some time, and while were were all very sad it was in no way tragic. They were all able to be composed enough to speak at the funeral.

He's in his 70s. His mother was 96 when she passed away! I've never known anyone of that age to be bawling their eyes out at the passing of a parent. It's hardly tragic or unexpected. She had a wonderful, long life and outlived the vast majority of people. I like her but come on.

I think they were quite close by the end - maybe not in childhood, but they would have spent more time together as adults than in many families. He was visiting her daily towards the end.

For most of us, our 'to do list' when someone dies is about liaising with funeral directors, registering the day etc. For him, is a timetable of formal duties and engagements that he's known he has to plough through, for decades.

He is clearly very upset and sad, you can see it in his eyes, but it's holding it together because he's always known that he'd be doing meet and greets within hours of his death.

It seems an unnecessarily cruel timetable that's been imposed on him, and I hope it's changed for future generations. I hope he gets the chance to grieve privately as well.

Not everybody shows their emotions by crying, or in public.
I was not in floods of tears at my mother’s funeral or whilst dealing with the undertakers etc – it doesn’t mean that I didn’t love her or she was not very important to me.

I realise it's different from losing a mother, but when I lost my Great Aunt (who was more of a Grandmother to me as a child), I didn't cry. I'd just had my first baby and was completely wrapped up in brand new parenthood. Then I had more babies, got married, went to university and generally did life. I never grieved. For some odd reason, when Covid hit, so did my (by then) 12 year old grief for her! I now struggle with it frequently and with, probably misplaced, guilt that I hadn't 'felt' this before.

Nobody knows what to expect with bereavement. Perhaps he just hasn't properly begun to process it. That said, I actually think he looks devastated and that his tears are barely held back. Camilla looks utterly distraught.

I thought Camilla looked very drawn at the Proclamation ceremony today

My dad died (unexpectedly) on the Saturday and I went to work on the Monday. I needed to be busy and given I lived some way away there was nothing practical I could be doing anyway.

My dad did the same after my mum (his wife of over 30 years) died too. He had a couple of days off to arrange things and went back to work. He called it therapy.

Everyone is different and Charles, I imagine, know his mum was old and frail and had had enough. Not everyone falls apart in grief.

Exactly. Loads of us have no choice but to get back to work. I was allowed one day off school when my mum died.

It will hit big time it didn’t with my mother I didn’t care she left me at eight so I refused to care. But he’ll have been brought up that way also she was 96 so had a long time with her. Death not a shock as it is when much younger.

This

He has been trained to be the future king of England since he was born.

I dont think people grasp how different Charlies life would have been from his siblings

My FIL was crying and deeply upset at his elderly mothers death.

I mean just think, he's in his seventies, his mother was in her nineties. She died at home. His sons lost their young mother when they were still children in tragic circumstances. Perhaps he can see the glaring differences in the situations and consider himself actually quite fortunate?

I didn't have any choice. Work didn't give a shit so I just carried on.

He kind of got a bit peeved at the pen situation