June 5, 2022, Queen Elizabeth II waved to the people on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, London Photo/ Xinhua News Agency
As a symbol of national unity, Elizabeth II should not make people know her position and tendencies. No matter which party comes to power, what policies it introduces, or how strong the Queen herself has, it cannot be expressed publicly, otherwise it may cause a political storm. The newly succeeded Charles III obviously has a very different understanding of his role, which will inevitably have a completely different impact on the royal family and British society.
This article was first published in Southern People Weekly
article / Special article Zhao Lingmin
Editor / Zhou Jianping [email protected]
On September 8, local time, Queen Elizabeth II of England passed away at the age of 96. Since she ascended the throne in 1952, she has been in power for 70 years and is the longest-reigning monarch in British history. Over the past 70 years, with her hard work, the British royal family has become a golden signboard today when the monarchy is declining, maintaining the unity of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. Behind her, whether everything can remain the same has become a big question.
June 2, 2022, London, Queen Elizabeth II (third from left) and royal members watched the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the Queen's ascendance to the throne on the balcony of Buckingham Palace Photo/Xinhua News Agency
Elizabeth II's father is George VI , which is the stuttering king in the movie "Handle King's Speech ". George VI's brother is the famous Edward VIII . Because he insisted on marrying Mrs. Simpson, Mrs. Simpson divorced twice and was very close to the Nazis. At that time, Prime Minister Baldwin threatened the resignation of the cabinet. After the constitutional crisis, Edward VIII chose to abdicate. George VI, who had no chance of being with the throne and was unprepared, rushed to ascend the throne, and his eldest daughter Elizabeth became the heir to the throne.
Duke of York and the Duchess, who later George VI and Queen Elizabeth, and the new princess, who later Queen Elizabeth II, Picture/Visual China
952, George VI died of lung cancer, and the 26-year-old Elizabeth ascended the throne, known as Elizabeth II. In the 70 years since she ascended the throne, she appointed 15 prime ministers, witnessing the whole process of Britain's decline from the British Empire to a second-rate country, and experienced major events such as Churchill's resignation, Suez Canal crisis, , the crisis of phase when McMillan stepped down in 1963, the severe inflation in the 1970s, the storm of Thatcher era, the breakdown of the marriage of children and the death of daughter-in-law Diana , the Scottish independence referendum, Brexit and other major events. In August 1951, Elizabeth II (first right) and her husband Prince Philip (second left), Prince Charles (first left) and Princess Anne (second right) Photo/Xinhua News Agency
June 2, 1953, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom Photo/Visual China
July 1, 1969, Wales, England, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom crowned her son Prince Charles Photo/Visual China
As the virtual head of state under the constitutional monarchy of , Elizabeth II did not have real power and could not make real political decisions. Instead, it demonstrated the orthodox nature of the state's operation through various ceremonies, including the appointment of the prime minister, convening parliament, approving bills, receiving foreign guests, visiting at home and abroad, enthroning titles, sponsoring charities, etc. She can be understood as a "mascot", but this mascot is not optional. When she was alive, abolishing the monarchy was never the mainstream public opinion in Britain. In the polls about who cares more about the sufferings of the people, there were more people who chose Elizabeth II than any politician.
There are two important reasons why Elizabeth II can enjoy the love of the British: one is to try not to do wrong things, and the other is to correct them if they do wrong things.
Elizabeth II's life was strict with himself and conscientious, and he had almost never made any mistakes in public. She loves her job and works until the last moment. Taking 2021 as an example, she is 95 years old and still performs 192 official duties.In addition to the handshake, opening ribbon cutting and interview seen on TV, she also had to instruct government documents and meet with the Prime Minister every week. Compared to her peers who have long been enjoying retirement, she really "does her job to death". In an era when the divine empowerment of the monarchy has become a thing of the past, she knew very well that in order for the monarchy to continue, it was necessary to make the people like it, and to continue to provide those enduring positive values, and to become a role model for people in morality and behavior.
Although she adheres to traditional values, she is not conservative and seems to be able to accurately grasp the pulse of the times and find a balance between modernity and tradition. The queen's outfit is very conservative, and the principle is that the common people can clearly see her. The weight of the dress is also calculated to ensure that it will not be exposed by the wind. Her seemingly unchanging outfit has made her among the top 50 most charming women in the world by top fashion magazines for many years, ranking alongside those supermodels.
July 15, 2022, Berkshire , Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom shook hands with patient Pat White when attending the opening ceremony of the new building of the Thames Hospice Hospital in Head, Photo/Visual China
She also opened an account on social media, met with Lady Gaga, paid taxes for private income, cut royal members to reduce the burden on the country, publicize royal expenses online, remind staff to turn off the lights and save electricity, advertise to recruit staff, allow Prince Charles to marry divorced woman Camilla, and allow Prince William to marry civilian Kate . Therefore, one of the major achievements of Elizabeth II was to adapt the monarchy to modern society.
, and once an error occurs, her correction speed is always lightning-proof, and public relations awareness and ability are exemplary. When Diana died, the queen had just begun to react coldly, but public opinion was coming, and some even threatened to kill Charles . The queen quickly changed her course and made a speech to restore the influence. The decoration of the palace made the people dissatisfied, and she immediately announced the royal tax payment and used more positive measures to suppress negative public opinion.
September 16, 1984, St. Mary's Hospital in London , Princess Diana is with her husband Charles, holding their newborn son Harry in her hand Photo/Visual China
In short, Elizabeth II does have the style of a king, is moderate, diligent and reliable, and has done what she should do for decades, providing people with spiritual and spiritual support in the era of drastic changes. The words of former British Prime Minister Cameron should represent the British's feelings for the queen: "Sometimes you will hear people say that the king is just a shining ornament, or just an embellishment of national life. This is a misunderstanding of the constitution and an underestimation of the queen. As far as I and most of the people of this country are concerned, she is always by our side."
The UK not only has the British Isles, but also leads the international organization of the Commonwealth. There are more than 50 countries in the Commonwealth, distributed in different places, and the political system and people's conditions are very different. It is impossible to unite them with the Prime Minister, because the Prime Minister is constantly changing people, and the standards and ethics of British politicians have been deteriorating in recent years, and it is difficult to convince the public. At this time, the role of the queen is highlighted, and only she can bear this responsibility, just as the former Prime Minister of New Zealand
said: We are fighting, and she is uniting. This is an arrangement made by Britain to save respect when its status is weakened.On October 14, 1986, Queen Elizabeth II of England and her husband Prince Philip visited Badaling Great Wall Photo/Visual China
In 2016, Queen Elizabeth II of England took a photo with her grandchildren and five great-grandchildren at Windsor Castle Photo/Visual China
Looking around the world, Elizabeth II's generation of leaders are basically no longer alive, and it is not an exaggeration to say that her death represents the end of an era. It was an era when responsibilities and commitments were considered greater than the sky, and that they appreciated restraining themselves rather than being indulgent and willful.
As a monarch, one of the very important cultivations of Elizabeth II is to never interfere in politics and strictly adhere to political neutrality. She has been getting along well with the 14 prime ministers in the past 70 years (the 15th Tras died just two days after the appointment of the queen). These 14 prime ministers come from different parties. Churchill, Cameron, and Blair
's appreciation for her is beyond words, but people have never known what her true political stance is. This is exactly what she succeeds. As a symbol of national solidarity, she should not have known her position and tendencies. No matter which party comes to power, what policies it introduces, or how strong the Queen herself has, it cannot be expressed publicly, otherwise it may cause a political storm.On April 12, 1985, London, Mrs. Thatcher (third from left) accompanied by Queen Elizabeth II of England and five former prime ministers, held a dinner at 10 Downing Street, London to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Downing Street, becoming the official residence of British Prime Minister Photo/Visual China
On September 6, 2022, Queen Elizabeth II of England welcomed Trass. Elizabeth Trass, who was just elected as the leader of the British Conservative Party, was officially appointed by Queen Elizabeth II in Scotland, and became the new British Prime Minister. Photo/Visual China
. Her son Charles, who just succeeded to the throne, was exactly the opposite of his mother in many aspects. Charles is self-centered in everything. He only eats two meals a day and does not eat lunch. This is understandable, but he doesn't eat it himself, so he thinks that others don't need it. When attending events or visiting abroad, he arranged his daytime work well and did not leave any time for lunch for the staff. These people had to accompany him hungryly from morning to night. He has countless other strict requirements in life.
On March 20, 2006, Charles and his wife Camilla visited Cairo, Egypt, Photo/Xinhua News Agency
In addition, Charles was unpopular because of the triangle relationship with Diana and Camilla. To this day, many people still blame Diana's death on him, so many people called for skipping him and letting his son William ascend the throne.
The more serious problem is that he can't control his desire to express himself and always wants to interfere in politics. Charles, who cares about state affairs, often wrote letters since he was young, stating his "personal opinions" to government officials. Almost all British departments have complained about Charles' chattering policy letters in private, and are very disgusted by this move.
In April 2022, the British government announced a plan to deport and place illegal immigrants to Rwanda to curb illegal immigrants from English Channel into the UK. Prince Charles clearly disagreed with the British government's policy, criticizing it and privately called it "shocking". The move was clearly warned by a cabinet minister who made it clear to the media: "Prince Charles is a decoration of our public life, but if he becomes king, he will no longer be charming. This will cause serious constitutional problems." "Many of his views on architecture and gardening are interesting, and I always want to listen to it privately. But this is very different from his public intervention as a monarch. The genius of the queen is that most of us don't know what she is thinking."
On May 10, 2022, London, England, Prince Charles, the British crown prince, attended the opening ceremony of the British Parliament on May 10, 2022, Prince Charles of the UK attended the opening ceremony of the British Parliament on May 3, 2022. Photo/Visual China
There is a scene in Netflix's series " Crown ": When Charles was sworn in Prince of Wales , his speech was useless for the press release, but he expressed his sympathy and support for the independent emotions of Wales in his own words. The Queen taught him a lesson, "We all have to be used to having no say, we all make sacrifices and suppress our true selves. From beginning to end, we cannot have all the true selves. This is not a choice, it is a responsibility. It is not easy to be impartial and not in line with human nature. People always want us to smile, or agree, or frown, or say something, but the moment we do this is equivalent to proclaiming our position and expressing our opinions.As royalty, that's something we have no right to do, so we have to hide these feelings and not show them. Because the less we do, the less we say, the less we express our opinions..."
Charles responded: "But it is not as easy for me as you do, because I have a beating heart, I have personality, thoughts, and my own will. I am not just a symbol, I can lead the people without just wearing uniforms or cutting ribbons, I can lead by showing people myself! Mom, I have ideas to express! "
The two British monarchs before and after were obviously very different in their understanding of their roles, and they will inevitably have completely different impacts on the royal family and British society, both big and small.
Queen Elizabeth II of England Photo/Visual China
In 2014, a stage play "Charles III" appeared in the UK. This is a "future historical drama" that imagines the story that happened after Prince Charles inherited the throne. In the play, Charles was determined to make some achievements, and even broke the tacit understanding of political neutrality and broke with Congress, resulting in a constitutional crisis and national turmoil, and finally had to abdicate in disgrace. Could this be a far-leading prophecy?
