Heir apparent to the British throne, Prince Charles, has tested positive for coronavirus, and is now self-isolating at home in Scotland, although he is said to be ‘up and about’
Charles, 71, is said to be “up and about” and in “good spirits” and has continued to work for the last few days; as doctors believe the earliest he would have been contagious was on 13 March. He last saw the Queen on 12 March, following an investiture; and his last public engagement was also on 12 March, and has since then held private meetings.
Buckingham Palace said, “Her Majesty the Queen remains in good health. The Queen last saw the Prince of Wales briefly on the morning of 12 March and is following all the appropriate advice with regard to her welfare.”
Charles met Prince Albert of Monaco, who announced he tested positive five days ago, at a Water Aid event in London on 10 March.
Clarence House has said it is impossible to know how Charles became infected due to his very busy schedule of public engagements.
He was tested on Monday after qualifying for an NHS test due to age and medical condition criteria in Aberdeenshire; and received the results on Tuesday.
Medical advice is that it is unlikely that his condition will escalate into a more serious case. He is thought to have first displayed symptoms over the weekend.
Clarence House said, “The Prince of Wales has tested positive for coronavirus. He has been displaying mild symptoms, but otherwise remains in good health and has been working from home throughout the last few days as usual.
“The Duchess of Cornwall has also been tested but does not have the virus. In accordance with government and medical advice, the prince and the duchess are now self-isolating at home in Scotland. The tests were carried out by the NHS in Aberdeenshire, where they met the criteria required for testing.
“It is not possible to ascertain from whom the prince caught the virus, owing to the high number of engagements he carried out in his public role during recent weeks.”
Camilla is self-isolating separately from Charles at Birkhall and will do so for 14 days.
Meanwhile, no details have been made public about exactly what symptoms Charles has displayed, except that they are mild.
Prince Charles and the duchess travelled to Birkhall on Sunday, with a small team of domestic staff, who will remain there, according to sources, who said the couple are to be interacting with that small team of staff in any way.
Charles is understood to have spoken to the Duke of Cambridge, who is in Norfolk, and the Duke of Sussex, who is on Vancouver Island.
Since his last public engagements on 12 March, Charles has held a small number of private meetings at Highgrove, his home in Gloucestershire, on Duchy of Cornwall business; and the people he interacted with during those meetings have been informed of his diagnosis. It is, however, not known whether they have been tested.
