Dr Gavin Ashenden, who served as an honorary chaplain to Queen Elizabeth II from 2008 to 2017, has claimed the late monarch would view King Charles's reign as a 'disaster.' In an appearance on The Karl Stefanovic Show, Ashenden criticized the King as 'woke' and accused him of failing to meet royal expectations.
Criticism Over Faith Title Changes
Ashenden's remarks follow Buckingham Palace's alteration of official documents describing the monarch. The phrase 'Head of the Church of England and Defender of the Faith' was changed to 'His Majesty is Supreme Governor of the Church of England and protects the space for Faith within the multi-faith nation.' Although the King has not legally altered his title of 'Defender of the Faith,' Ashenden argued that Charles has 'got caught up in something that pleases him.'
Ashenden told Stefanovic: 'Evidently, we have a woke King. Coincidentally, we have a King who can't think straight despite having had the best possible education. He has got caught up in something that pleases him, which is the idea that all religions and all spiritual realities are of equal value. And if you can somehow mix them together, it's good for society. There's no evidence in history of this at all.'
Comparison to Queen Elizabeth II
When asked what Queen Elizabeth would think of her son's tenure, Ashenden responded: 'I think she would know it's a disaster. She was a very intelligent, alert woman, full of integrity. I think one of the reasons we loved her is that we felt that we were dealing with a woman of integrity. When the world is run by people of integrity, it is safe. We loved her because she was a model of how this thing needs to be done. Unfortunately, Charles... is just falling short of what's expected of a King.'
Ashenden resigned from his honorary chaplain role in 2017, stating he wished to speak freely on theological issues without dragging the Queen into controversy.
