The faded photo shows two tiny but distinctive figures atop the imposing Caernarfon Castle in Wales, a snap taken by a schoolgirl in 1969 that captured a moment in history.

“He came here to stand on this balcony with his mother,” says Maria Sarnacki, holding the picture in front of the balcony where Queen Elizabeth II and the newly anointed Charles, Prince of Wales, greeted the crowd.

“It was a fantastic day. I was convinced she was pointing and waving at me – as a little girl of 11 it was like something you see in movies,” adds Sarnacki, now 66.

The inauguration of today’s King Charles III. as Prince of Wales through his mother in an archaic ritual at the magnificent 13th-century castle was watched live on television by millions around the world.

“But I don’t think there’s any purpose left,” says Sarnacki, who is now mayor of the mountain-lined city on the north coast of Wales.

Charles’ investiture could be his last at the castle, with growing opposition to a similar ceremony for his son William, whom he made Prince of Wales last week.

The Queen’s death has also sparked calls for the centuries-old title to be abolished altogether as nationalist sentiment swells in Wales and other parts of the UK.

Nearly 25,000 people have signed a petition to end the title as “an insult to Wales and a symbol of historical oppression”.

“There are mixed opinions. A lot of people don’t want the title of Prince of Wales because they think it should be a Welshman,” said Sarnacki.

The Welsh dragon flag and British Union Jack fly together at half-mast over the castle after the Queen’s death, but Caernarfon’s royal history doesn’t make it royalist.

“Opinions on proclaiming William Prince of Wales would be very divided,” said Geraint Thomas, 49, who runs a photo gallery in Caernarfon.

The city has the highest percentage of people in Wales who speak Welsh – which Charles spent a semester trying to learn at university before taking office.

While children play with toy spears in the castle courtyard, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the bloody history of England and Wales has never been forgotten.

The title Prince of Wales was originally used by local princes, but the last, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, was killed in 1282 during the conquest of Wales by the English King Edward I.

His head was then mounted on the Tower of London.

To tame Wales Edward began building castles which gave rise to Caernarfon where his heir, the future Edward II, was born in 1284.

He would then bestow the title of Prince of Wales on his son in 1301, and the English monarchs would continue the tradition for their heirs.

“Historically it was a provocative title,” said Thomas, whose gallery flies two red flags for the Welsh independence movement.

The Queen’s decision to conduct Charles’ investiture in Caernarfon in 1969 was controversial even then.

Amid rising Welsh nationalism, protesters took to the streets outside the castle ahead of the ceremony and there was even a spate of bombings.

The investiture, which was recently dramatized on TV series The Crown, showed the Queen placing a crown on 20-year-old Charles’ head as he knelt on a granite pedestal.

He then swore to be her “liege man for life and limb”.

Since then, Wales have gained more political freedom from London and distanced themselves from a royal family that seems more closely linked to Scotland.

“Personally, I think we should have a Welsh prince,” said Rhiannon Evans, 23, a barista in Caernarfon. “We should also be an independent country.”

King Charles is due to visit Cardiff on Friday, having already visited Edinburgh and Belfast on a tour that pinpoints the union’s future in his mind.

But he was criticized for having appointed William Prince of Wales without consulting the Welsh people, including by the First Minister of Wales.

Selwyn Jones, who works in a bookshop, said the investiture at Caernarfon would be “much more toxic than it was in 1969” as the decision about William was “forced on us by the new king”.

Reports suggest there could be a reduced investiture for William in Cardiff next year.

Locals said they “respected” William and his wife Kate, who lived on Anglesey, just opposite the castle, while William was an RAF search and rescue helicopter pilot.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean support, and the Queen’s death could be the catalyst for change.

For Sarnacki – whose late brother served as the Queen’s butler for ten years and “idolized” her – that could mean the historic investiture she photographed will never be repeated.

“I think now is the time to do away with that,” she said.