The Monarchy

"My whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service

God help me to make good my vow"

I agree, she didn't do anything legendary or daring like the knights and Kings of old. But in a way she did do something incredible, certainly by modern standards; she kept her word. A promise fulfilled. An oath made and kept. She made good her vow and she never flagged or failed us for over seventy years. It's this simple truth that earned her my tears and respect. I am humbled and grateful for her service.

Go forth, your majesty, to a well earned rest.  God Save The King!

I might not have the natural, almost innate understanding of the monarchy but I've always had a great deal of respect for Her Majesty and, dare I say, I simply liked her a lot. She was tough as nails and yet she radiated a sort of warmth you can rarely see in a crowned head. She had a character - one that told you she was not to be messed with but also one that showed she was a person. A deeply human one, as cliché as it may sound. She was like no other and I'm afraid we will not see anyone quite like her in our lifetimes - and certainly not on a throne, I'm afraid.

The memes of an immortal Queen Elizabeth over the last few years were amusing but I think they also told of how we couldn't imagine a world without her and a fear of what that might feel like 

When I heard the announcement she wasn't doing well pretty much all work stopped and I waited along with our cousins across the water for the inevitable.  When the news of her passing was announced it fell like a hammer on me.  I knew I'd have feelings about it but I didn't expect to cry or cry a lot and that's what I did most of that day and the following one I know I can't feel this as strongly as her subjects but in America there were hearts breaking too.  Please don't mistake our media for how we feel about things.  God save the King.

It's going to take a long time for me to get used to the idea that the Queen is gone, she seemed as fixed a feature as Westminster Abbey. That said, as sad as it is I am consoling myself that at the end of dinner I and my friends can at last stand and with glass in hand say "Gentlemen, the King!"

I am honouring HM the Queen because the lady gave her entire adult life to her country, as was her duty.  Some things transcend politics. I post it that the people who are vitriolically being disrespectful, are actually just very small minded.  God save the King

She was from a superior age, an age less degenerated, things will only get worse from here. In her age, virtue, decency and tradition meant something and not so much now and I recognised in her the same kind of sense of class and dignity that no longer exists. How things have decayed.

he unhinged of the left would have you think that she would perch herself upon Piccadilly Circus with a Lee Enfield picking off the peasantry. Yes, it is quite difficult for us Americans to understand the importance of the Crown as it the adhesive that binds a people to it's tradition and identity. Despite the wealth and opulence of her lifestyle, her duties through ever changing times were unenviable tasks. She performed her duty with remarkable grace and dignity. God Bless Her Majesty and blest Isle with matchless beauty crowned.

I don't believe that the Americans are truly unaware of the splendour and enchantment of monarchy. If they were, then Walt Disney would not have erected a princess' castle in the very heart of his Californian theme park, inspired by the films, based on the fairytales, of a European past which Americans regard with quiet wonderment and nostalgia. It's no coincidence that the famous "magic" of Disney is so closely linked to these old stories. The Americans haven't truly forgotten.

No, I feel that the Americans simply misunderstand what monarchy is today. Their sense of the "royal sovereign" is vague and outdated, such that King Mufasa from The Lion King is the closest understanding of "monarch" which most across the pond can call to mind... although there are certainly worse examples of fictional royalty to call upon for reference.

The monarch of the United Kingdom is the avatar of the nation - a walking constitution, and a living monument. They are Britannia incarnate: The flesh-and-blood embodiment of British culture, traditions, and history, distilling the majesty of an entire country into a single human being. They are the personal appointee of God himself, literally or figuratively, and are pledged to serve the nation until death. 

The monarch is above the petty affairs of human politics. They stand above the rancour, tumult, and muck of Parliamentary discourse. They are beholden only to their subjects, tasked with the maintenance of the country's rituals and beliefs, and are the only human being alive with the power to dissolve Parliament and hold the government immediately accountable to the people, should its members fall short in their duty. In so being, the monarch is the ultimate safeguard of democracy. Under their watch, no coup, civil war, corruption, or scandal can take root or fester. They are the Sword of Damocles which hangs above every representative in Parliament, and ensures their constant loyalty and obedience to the realm.

This is why the courts, police, and military all swear their allegiance to the monarch. Not to the government, not to Parliament... to the monarch. The monarch is non-partisan. They do not take sides. They do not have secret agendas, dealings, or motives. What need have their for riches or power when they already wear a gold crown? No, they are bound only by their duty to their subjects, which they are sworn to uphold for life. This is why the servants of government pledge their loyalty to the monarch, and act in their name; only the monarch is truly noble. By taking oaths to act in the name of the crown, the people of government are declaring their impartiality and fairness... before the eyes of God.

This is why having an elected head of state is a bad idea. Sure, it's a good idea on paper... but it doesn't work so well once you actually start digging. "More democracy = more good" may be superficially moral and persuasive, but you need to keep in mind that the elected head of state is then a politician... and politicians are slimy, partisan, self-serving, corrupt, and dishonest. Do you really want your judiciary and armed forces to swear allegiance to such a petty, conniving bureaucrat who may have narrowly won a controversial election? Is it wise to tie your lawmen and generals to the whims of a two-term senior legislator?

Take a good, hard look at the United States - at the two most recent Presidents - and compare that with Elizabeth II. I defy anyone to tell me that republics produce better heads of state than monarchies purely because they are elected rather than annointed.

I understand the roots of the American republic. I understand that the Founding Fathers were stung by monarchy, and wished to distance themselves from it when they created their new, better nation. I also agree that the USA is one of the greatest countries on Earth, and that her government is well designed and highly accomplished. 

However, it still remains true that the US President is effectively an elected 18th century monarch of short duration, with all that such entails. They have the power of a king, but without the birthright or the life-long appointment. Meanwhile, actual monarchies have moved past this understanding of what a "head of state" is supposed to be. The sovereign is not the head of government; they are the head of the nation, and above government. They are the soul of their people, and the spiritual icon to whom all crown servants defer, unmoved by the shifting tides of politics and society, and unaffected by human corruption, doubt, or myopia. This is monarchy. This is what it means, this is why it works... and this is why a kingdom grieves for their lost queen. God save the King.

Americans don't understand royalty and don't want to.  As Nancy Reagan said when told when to bow before the Queen when she was going to meet her, "Americans don't bow."  But we've read Thomas Paine's Common Sense and heard George Washington say, "No kings here."  But sorry for the loss to Britain.It does prove how heavily Monarchy relies on carefully crafted imagery, 

or to put it more bluntly - manipulation. 

Let's face it - The times where Monarchs truly served their Nations

tend to be mere glimpses in lives spend enriching themselves and those around them.   

Likewise, For every Magna Carta like event, one can easily find a 100 

where enforcing 1 Persons visions & ideals lead to terrible repression and suffering,

sometimes lasting centuries beyond their deaths.

Finally: To reflect on, how over-hyped the "burden" of sitting on the Throne might be,

I'd like to ask you dear reader, to think of other Jobs 96 year Olds tend to do.

All that said, I do consider myself an Anglophile and have nothing but the

best wishes for the future for King Charles III and the People of Great Britain & all the Realms.

Queen Elizabeth was a great person, but... Seems hard to appreciate this institution that precedes primogeniture, with a start in this combination of a select class but yet election by success in arms and of buy-in by the aristocracy and/or powers of the times.  With this muddle of religious attitudes, with a head of the Church of England getting rid of inconvenient wives, yet rejection of someone who married a divorcee, but now accepts the same.  With this vast range of powers, rights, and responsibilities varying over time for this institution.  It all just seems like ex post facto justification.