25 King Charles Quotes About Family, Technology & the Environment

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Published Oct 18, 2022

During his 70-year wait to ascend the British throne, King Charles III has garnered quite the reputation for speaking his mind. Whether it be about architecture, climate change or technology, the history-making monarch doesn’t shy away from hot-button issues. And of course, we can’t forget his heartfelt comments about his family.

So, to honor His Majesty (and glean from his wisdom), we’re reflecting on 25 of the most memorable King Charles quotes.

1. “The future of mankind can be assured only if we rediscover ways in which to live as a part of nature, not apart from her.” — King Charles III

2. “As human beings, we suffer from an innate tendency to jump to conclusions, to judge people too quickly and to pronounce them failures or heroes without due consideration.” — King Charles III

3. “Do we want to go down in history as the people who did nothing to bring the world back from the brink in time to restore the balance when we could have done? I don't want to.” — King Charles III

4. “You never quite know what influence you’re having or what difference the garden is making, but it’s only years later that people will admit it. I had no idea, for instance, that my own children might have been paying attention to me about rubbish and plastic waste.” — King Charles III

5. “Children respond to timelessly intriguing things like small, hidden paths which you never quite know where they’re leading. Or little tunnels and little places that make it exciting and interesting. That’s what I love.” — King Charles III

6. “Just as mankind had the power to push the world to the brink so, too, do we have the power to bring it back into balance.” — King Charles III

7. “I believe passionately that everyone has a particular God-given ability.” — King Charles III

8. “The mistake is to think that clever technology can solve everything, but it can’t solve our relationship with nature, which is where I think it’s gone wrong in that we have somehow abandoned our proper connection with nature.” — King Charles III

9. “We can halt the destruction of the world’s rainforests—and even restore parts of them—in order to ensure that the forests do what they are so good at. In other words, storing carbon naturally.” — King Charles III

10. “As technology advances at an alarming pace, the place of drawing remains as valid as ever in the creation of art and architecture.” — King Charles III

11. “For when it comes to the air we breathe and the water we drink, there are no national boundaries. We all depend on each other—and, crucially, on each other's actions—for our weather, our food, our water and our energy.” — King Charles III

12. “Relationships with fathers can be such complex ones. So often, I suppose, one must long to have got on better or to have been able to talk freely about the things that matter deeply but one was too inhibited to discuss.” — King Charles III

13. “I miss my grandmother every day. I miss her vitality, her interest in the lives of others, her courage and determination, her perceptive wisdom, her calm in the face of all difficulties, her steadfast belief in the British people and, above all, her unstoppable sense of mischievous humor.” — King Charles III

14. “When people are uncertain about what is right and what is wrong and anxious about being considered old-fashioned, it seems to be worse than folly that Christians are still arguing about doctrinal matters, which can only bring needless distress to a number of people.” — King Charles III

15. “Grandparenthood is a unique moment in anyone’s life, as countless kind people have told me in recent months, so I am enormously proud and happy to be a grandfather.” — King Charles III

16. “If you think about your and my grandchildren, this is what really worries me. I don’t want them—if I’m still alive by then—to say, ‘Why didn’t you do something about it?’, when you could have done..” — King Charles III

17. “It is baffling, I must say, that in our modern world we have such blind trust in science and technology that we all accept what science tells us about everything—until, that is, it comes to climate science.” — King Charles III

18. “I’ve had this extraordinary feeling, for years and years, ever since I can remember really, of wanting to heal and make things better. I feel more than anything else it’s my duty to worry about everybody and their lives in this country, to try to find a way of improving things if I possibly can.” — King Charles III

19. “I think we’d be very foolish to expect that we can just import everything from somewhere else and imagine that that’s going to last forever and ever and ever.” — King Charles III

20. “There isn’t really a set job or role. You have to some extent to do what you feel is right. Doing nothing would be easy enough. The important thing is to serve this country and its people and the Commonwealth.” — King Charles III

21. “The whole imposing edifice of modern medicine is like the celebrated tower of Pisa—slightly off balance.” — King Charles III

22. “There is no doubt that we live in an age of unprecedented, and sometimes terrifying, technological advances where the speed of advance so often outstrips the necessary ethical considerations.” — King Charles III

23. “I'm a dangerous person because I mind about things.” — King Charles III

24. “Painting transports me into another dimension which, quite literally, refreshes parts of the soul which other activities can't reach.” — King Charles III

25. “I find myself born into this particular position. I'm determined to make the most of it. And to do whatever I can to help. And I hope I leave things behind a little bit better than I found them.” — King Charles III

Nakeisha Campbell

Associate Editor, News and Entertainment

Nakeisha has been interviewing celebrities and covering all things entertainment for over 8 years, but she has also written on a wide range of topics, like career...

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