Protesters' Pic Inside Buckingham Palace Goes Viral For All The Wrong Reasons

Queen Elizabeth II shaped the monarchy for the modern world during her 70 years on the throne, and she was a symbol of stability for the country and the commonwealth at large. But Her Majesty's son, King Charles III, doesn't have that same longevity to draw upon. There's been an increasing number of citizens who don't support the monarchy in recent years, particularly among the younger generation. In fact, the royal family as a whole has its highest approval ratings from the oldest people in the UK, according to Statista.

A number of protestors have been quite vocal about their dislike of Charles. Those in favor of replacing the monarchy with an elected head of state are considered republicans — not to be confused with the uppercase Republicans of the U.S. A number of British republicans from the advocacy group Republic recently staged a protest at Buckingham Palace, during which they pretended to be tourists, but once they got into the Grand Hall, the group revealed shirts that spelled out "Not My King" and posed for a picture.

Shortly after the photograph was taken, six of the nine protestors were stopped by security, who then accompanied them out of the palace. Onlookers definitely took notice and have started sharing the protestors' pic on social media. But not, perhaps, with the focus that the republicans would have hoped. Instead of a serious discussion about abolishing the monarchy, it's turned into a free-for-all of editing and ridicule.

The internet did its thing with the picture of the republican protest at Buckingham Palace. A number of people have edited the shot to show the protestors spelling out different things, none of them related to the original message: "Not my king." One posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, a version spelling out "Burger King." Another changed it to say, "No smoking." And a number of users pointed out on X that the way the protestors stood for their picture was confusing; "I couldn't figure out what a 'no tmyking' is," one wrote.

Seemingly before the photoshopped versions came out, or perhaps in spite of them, chief executive of Republic Graham Smith told The Telegraph that the protest was: "A fantastic statement of intent, citizens standing up in the home of the monarchy to declare their opposition to hereditary power."

It may be the first anti-monarchy protest within Buckingham Palace, but it's hardly the first for King Charles III. Over 50 protestors were arrested during his coronation. And, although Charles has made major changes since Queen Elizabeth II's death, it's clearly not enough for those who don't like the monarchy as a whole.