At the same time, after 70 years of preparation, Charles III finally came to the spotlight, becoming the oldest king when this country ascended the throne, and also becoming one of the richest people in the world. On September 12, Charles III delivered his first parliamentary speech, citing Shakespeare that the late queen is "the paradigm of all princes' lives." Soon after, the new British king will start his tour of England.
data map Xinhua News Agency posted
However, the future world is full of variables, and the impact of the Queen's death on Britain and the world may have just begun.
Author | Guo Shuang, a researcher at Outlook Think Tank in London,
Editor | Pu Haiyan, Outlook Think Tank
This article is an original article from Outlook Think Tank. If you need to reprint, please indicate the source of Outlook Think Tank (zhczyj) and the author information before the article, otherwise legal responsibility will be strictly pursued.
1
"London Bridge collapses"
On the afternoon of September 8, the secret word "London Bridge collapses" that informed the Queen's death spread throughout the UK and the whole world. The nearest subway station to Buckingham Palace is almost all delayed. A large number of people rushed to Buckingham Palace, and many people couldn't help crying on the subway. In the evening, the official statement of Buckingham Palace announced that Queen Elizabeth II of England died peacefully in Balmoral Fort, Scotland that afternoon.
Buckingham Palace lowered half of the flag, British government website shows black top banner. With the start of the national mourning period, the British government suspended most announcements, press releases and visits, and is expected to start working normally on September 22. The Bank of England also postponed its Monetary Policy Committee meeting to set interest rates to the 22nd. In addition, the Mercury Music Awards, London Fashion Week , BBC "The Last Night of the Prom" and so on have all been postponed for rescheduling.
The British Council officially declared Charles III the British monarch at St James' Palace in London on the 10th. This is Charles III at the ceremony. Xinhua News Agency/American
Since becoming the monarch in 1952, the image of the queen has gradually become a part of the daily life of the British people - from coins, banknotes, passports, stamps, and postage boxes, they are deeply imprinted in the minds of the British people.
According to local media reports, there are currently 80 billion pounds worth of cash printed with the queen's avatar in circulation. If it is replaced by cash from the new monarch's avatar, it will take at least two years. It is not only the UK that was affected. The Queen's avatar also appeared on Canadian 20 Canadian dollars, New Zealand coins, Eastern Caribbean Central Bank and coins and banknotes issued by other parts of the Commonwealth.
Some sports events including cricket test matches have been cancelled. The Premier League, which has huge influence and huge revenues in the world, canceled many games, and other levels of England have also been cancelled to show respect and condolences for the Queen.
The Trades Union Congress postponed its annual meeting. The British Railway, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT) canceled the train strikes scheduled for September 15 and 17. The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) also postponed a lawsuit originally scheduled to be held in mid-September.
London high-end department store Selfridges Department Store, Liberty Department Store, and famous department store Harrods all said they would close their doors. The bars under Wetherspoons stopped playing music. Corporate activities in various parts of the UK were cancelled, and companies paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II. In addition, retailers including Aldi, John Lewis, Waitrose, Primark and Homebase will close their stores on the day of the Queen's Kingdom funeral.
The UK Ministry of Education said that schools and universities should continue to be open during mourning day . The report said: "Although attendance is normal, the principal still has the right to approve students' leave in special circumstances.”
Local media reported that the Queen’s death was at least 12 days and the UK was in a state of shutdown, which could cause billions of pounds of losses in the UK economy.
critics pointed out that the British media had overreacted to the Queen’s death report. The British " Guardian " criticized: Please give us the honor that the late Queen deserves, but don’t join the hysteria and childishism of other British media. We don’t need to know who will take care of Her Majesty’s Corgi, we need to know who will take care of refugees in the future and who will take care of the poor.
2
New King promises "lifelong service"
"Operation London Bridge" is a series of actions on how to deal with the funeral after Queen Elizabeth II's death. In fact, it also includes many branch plans such as "Operation Unicorn" and "Operation Spring Tide", which are used to plan different responses at different stages in various situations.
"Operation Unicorn" refers to the plan to transport the Queen's coffin back to London according to the Queen's death location. This action is named because the unicorn is a symbolic animal of Scotland . "Operation Unicorn" ended after the coffin of the Queen's British Queen left Scotland. At the same time, it also launched "Operation Spring Tide", which refers to the plan of the British Crown Prince's succession.
data map Xinhua News Agency issued
"Operation Unicorn" arranged the Queen's affairs in detail, including national mourning, prince vigil, body admiration, funeral process, etc.; Charles III's succession matters include meetings of the Ascension Committee, members of parliament pledge allegiance to the new king, and the arrangement of updates to the British national anthem lyrics, currency, passport and even police uniforms.
The day of the Queen's death is called D Day (D Day), a 10-day national mourning period starts on September 9 (D+1) and continues until the Queen’s funeral.
The Queen’s state funeral is expected to be held on Monday, September 19 (D+10) at Westminster Abbey, with up to 2,000 dignitaries present. The last royal member to hold a farewell ceremony in Westminster Hall was the Queen’s mother, Queen Elizabeth . In 2002, more than 200,000 publics came to line up for condolences. Westminster Abbey is where Queen Elizabeth married in 1947, and where she was crowned queen in 1953.
According to the UK Constitution, the British monarch inherited the throne at the moment of his predecessor's death, and there was no transition period. That is to say, as the first heir, Charles III automatically inherited the throne from the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8.
On September 9, Charles III met with the new Prime Minister Tras for the first time. Not long ago, after becoming the 15th Prime Minister appointed by Queen Elizabeth II, the new British Prime Minister Tras arrived at Buckingham Palace in a black dress, ushering in a very symbolic moment in national life. At the same time, Charles III's plan to ascend the throne, known as "Spring Tide Operation" was launched.
"Lifetime Service... No matter what your background and belief are, I will work hard to serve you with loyalty, respect and love. "At 6 pm on the 9th, Charles III delivered his first national televised speech since his succession. He integrated politics and personal emotions and paid tribute to his mother. As the king, he would have to avoid politically controversial issues. Echoing the promises made by his mother before ascending the throne, the new king promised "lifelong service".
Charles III announced that the royal family and its staff would comply with a longer 17-day mourning period, and the mourning service lasted until 7 days after the Queen's Kingdom's funeral. All royal members, royal staff and the army that performs etiquette duties will hold The royal mourning ceremony will be held, and the national flag on the royal building will unify the flag . The
Meanwhile, royal residences including Balmoral Fort , Sandringham, Hillsburg Castle, Queen's Gallery and the royal stables at Buckingham Palace will be closed until the end of the funeral.
After completing the constitutional formalities in London, the new king will begin to tour the UK, starting with Scotland where his mother died, at her summer resort in Deesside.
3
The impact has just begun
As US President Biden said, "In a changing world, Elizabeth II is a stable existence for generations of British people, and a source of comfort and pride." However, for this reason, the impact of the Queen's death on Britain and the world may have just begun.
"By God's grace, the Queen, Head of Commonwealth of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and other territories and territories, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II" is the head of the Commonwealth, which includes 54 countries spanning Africa, Asia, America, Europe and the Pacific, covering more than 2 billion people. After her death, while Prince Charles can automatically inherit the throne, the position of the head of the Commonwealth will not be automatically passed to the Queen's successor. This head of state may be collectively elected by the heads of government of the Commonwealth, which means that there are variables in this position.
Globally, there will also be problems with the solidarity and trust of dozens of countries in the Commonwealth. The Queen once played an important role in the solidarity of the Commonwealth nation with her extraordinary influence. After the Queen's death, calls for the removal of the British monarch as head of state in the Commonwealth countries have become increasingly fierce. Even the new British Prime Minister Trass publicly expressed his opposition to the monarchy when he was young.
data map Xinhua News Agency
After the death of the Queen, Australian Green Party MPs said it was time to move towards republic; in some former colonies of Caribbean , the pressure to abolish the monarch as head of state has been rising, and demanded that Britain pay compensation for its participation in the historic slave trade. "As the role of the monarchy changes, we expect this may be an opportunity to promote discussions on compensation in our region," said Niambi Hall-Campbell, chairman of the Bahamas National Compensation Commission. She also urged Charles III to provide "justice demanded by the times."
BBC News Africa received a large number of posts highlighting the negative impact of British colonialism after the Queen’s death, leading to its urge audience to “respect” the BBC’s community rules and manually hide some replies.
In fact, for many young people in Commonwealth countries, Elizabeth II is a distant character, and is more well-known through fictional depictions in popular TV series such as " Crown ". Meanwhile, the tragic story of British colonial rule remains passed down from generation to generation. In some countries such as Kenya , some people did not pay tribute to the Queen, but chose to pay tribute to the independence movement.
If the Commonwealth becomes looser, it may not only lead to a recession in the Commonwealth countries, but also play a negative role in the global economic recovery. Its chain reaction and domino effect are not ruled out that it may have far-reaching political, economic and military impacts on other countries.
During his first official visit in 1947, Elizabeth II, who has not yet become the Queen of England, promised in South Africa that he would devote his life to serving the people, "no matter how long or short". In the UK, according to the British Constitution, the Queen must remain politically neutral, but it was the Queen who repeatedly turned the tide with her personal charm, uniting Scotland and Northern Ireland , and even dozens of Commonwealth countries.
The most classic example is that before the Scottish referendum in 2014, various polls showed that Scottish people who supported leaving the UK accounted for the majority. The Queen, who always deviates from politics, visited Scotland in a timely manner and publicly stated in a cautious manner before the 2014 Scottish independence referendum that she hopes the Scottish people "consider the future very seriously." Scotland stayed in the UK. Before the vote, the Scottish government's independence white paper had clearly stated that even if Scotland is independent, the Queen will still be the head of state of the independent Scotland State.
Now that the Queen has passed away, some analysts say that if Scotland votes again, the probability of leaving the UK is likely to be higher, and if Northern Ireland initiates a referendum, the probability of leaving the UK may increase. However, some experts pointed out that the death of the Queen in Scotland may provide the new king with an opportunity to increase his reputation in Scotland.
4
Controversial Future
In British history, no one has ever prepared for the role of the monarch for such a long time. After 70 years of preparation, the "apprentice" Charles finally came to the spotlight, replacing the longest and nearly perfect monarch in British history, and becoming the oldest king when this country ascended the throne.
A ongoing task of Charles III will be to manage the royal family's huge financial assets. Crown Manor (a collection of land and property belonging to the British monarchy) owns £15.6 billion of property, including large swaths of land in central London, Regent Street , as well as commercial parks, retail parks, rural areas, and then the Principality of Lancaster. The Principality of Lancaster is a private estate of the British monarch, covering an area of more than 18,000 hectares and a net worth of £653 million. Apparently, Charles III will become one of the richest people in the world.
Critics point out that parliament should consider royal reforms more broadly. Although the late Queen voluntarily paid some income taxes in the 1990s, her son did not pay estate taxes, such as the £650 million private property tax exemption in the Principality of Lancaster, which should be reviewed. A quarter of the royal property was given to the reigning monarch in the form of a grant, a donation worth about £85 million last year.
On the other hand, the cost of royal security is borne by the state, which brings the annual cost of the monarchy to £350 million. According to the investigation, in 2020, British taxpayers spent £69.4 million (about 560 million yuan), a record high. At present, all protests against the royal system, as well as the cost of living crisis, have not yet become the headlines in the media.
Experts in the British royal family believe that after Charles III ascends the throne, it is likely that some royal members will be divided and the size of the royal family will be reduced to achieve the goal of "simplifying the royal family". He hopes that each member can play a role in a new, more streamlined monarchy.
However, for King Charles III of England, the current situation is not optimistic.
First of all, there are a lot of personal controversy as far as he is concerned.
British research institutions have counted the popularity of royal personnel among people of different age groups. The results show that among the least supported monarchy, i.e., the respondents aged 18 to 24, only 20% supported Charles. And this data is 60% for the Queen. Among this age group, 47% have negative attitudes towards Charles. In addition to the young group, overall, the support rate of the Queen in the UK is as high as 81%, while Charles III's approval rating is much lower than that of the Queen and his son William . 35% of people have negative comments on him.
Secondly, another dilemma faced by Charles III is the decline in the Commonwealth public's support for the monarchy in recent years.
In fact, the voices calling for the abolition of the royal family have not stopped in recent years. A considerable number of people hope to carry out constitutional reforms to produce elected heads of state. In their view, the monarchy was just a remnant of colonialism. Some experts pointed out that when former global colonies criticized British Empire , Charles III may face the arduous task of maintaining these relationships. In addition to experiencing changes in the power landscape brought about by the change of the new British Prime Minister, they must also face real difficulties such as the inflation of the UK's domestic and the energy crisis of . Critics point out that innate rights are not the right way to choose a monarch, and modern Britain does not need decoration and privileges belonging to another era.
(Original title: The queen passed away, the influence has just begun)
Source: Xinhua News Agency
Process Editor: TF060
