King Charles was recently hospitalized due to side effects from his ongoing cancer treatment, which inevitably kicked off speculation that Prince William could take the throne sooner rather than later. And while there are no plans for Charles to abdicate, insiders tell Harper's Bazaar that the royals are preparing for William to become King "earlier than expected." Though, to be clear, "succession planing" has been going on for years.

“The people I’ve spoken to have said that the succession planning, as they call it, began even before Charles’ diagnosis,” royal author Tom Quinn tells the outlet. “I mean, he’s the oldest Prince of Wales to become king in history, so succession planning had begun before Charles came to the throne simply because of the age issue.”

He adds that "they’re preparing William by giving him more of the sort of work that Charles would do. Obviously, the cancer diagnosis has made everything more urgent.”

Meanwhile, Quinn says “Officials and aides—people who work very closely with William and Kate and Charles—they’re all conscious that William might have to become king earlier than expected. Partly the cancer, partly simply [because Charles is] 76. He could go on another 10 years, he could go on for 20 years. But with the cancer diagnosis, it’s a wake-up call. Charles knows that he isn’t going to be king for that long.”

As for how King Charles is doing, royal author Christopher Andersen says “The palace is putting on a good front, but the situation, in reality, is still very fluid. It’s still touch-and-go.”