Born like this: why Prince Charles was destined to be a king

From the day of his birth, the way was free for Prince Charles.

"The new prince will be trained from an early age for his important role on a future stage," said Matthew Halton, of the CBC, after his birth 70 years ago.

And while the queen's firstborn would succeed him one day in the future, Charles was the first child born as a direct successor to the throne in half a century.

"Neither his mother, nor his grandfather, the current king, nor his great-grandfather, King George V, had to – at the moment of their birth – inherit the crown," Halton told the listeners.

In this early 1950s photo, we see Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth with their eldest children – Prince Charles, on the left, and Princess Anne, on the right. (OFF / AFP / Getty Images)

Indeed, it was an unexpected abdication of King Edward VIII who placed George VI on the throne, and then Queen Elizabeth, after the death of his father in 1952.

But, as Halton pointed out, because of the relatively young age of George VI and Elizabeth, still alive, it was possible that Charles "may be 50 or 60 years old before ascending the throne".

Wednesday, Charles will be 70 years old and his mother, 92 years old, is still queen.

Prince Charles, seen in a photo of May 2018, will turn 70 on November 14, 1948. (Edit Katai / MTI / Associated Press)