Charles, Prince of Wales and heir apparent to the British throne, was probably the most photographed and written-about person in the Western world in the late 1970s but has since been eclipsed in popularity by his ex-wife, Princess Diana.

Prince Charles Philip Arthur George, the eldest child of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip, was born on November 14, 1948, in Buckingham Palace. He had a younger sister, Princess Anne, born in 1950, and two younger brothers, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward, who were born in 1960 and 1964, respectively. After the death in February 1952 of his grandfather, King George VI, and his mother's succession as Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles became the Duke of Cornwall, a dukedom which includes considerable--and lucrative--property, and the heir apparent to the throne of the United Kingdom.

Like all parents, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip were very concerned about their children's education, and the academic training of the...