THE PRESS FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 1988. Questions of Monarchy

Press, 30 December 1988, Page 16

THE PRESS FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 1988. Questions of Monarchy

Measuring the popularity of members of the Royal Family by way of opinion poll, has become a feature of Britain’s interest in the Monarchy. It is a harmless exercise that is unlikely to shake the foundations of the State. But it emphasises the intense interest in the personalities of the Royal Family and the way in which those personalities have made an impact on public life.

This is something new. No previous Prince of Wales has taken such trenchant stands on questions of the day; no previous Princess of Wales has so emphatically displayed a relaxed but glamorous style; no previous Princess Royal has worked so hard and with such commonsense. Similar pronounced traits are displayed by almost all of the Queen’s now large family. Gone most surely is the distant Monarch surrounded by grey, silent, almost anonymous relatives. Only the most stuffy would regret this change, to the style of the conduct of Royalty, although the dangers in the change are considerable and already persistently surface. For example, the Prince of Wales in campaigning for unemployed youth and for the rejuvenation of the cities greatly risks taking a disastrous step into the partisan arena. And the stylish glamour of the Princess of Wales might degenerate into selfindulgent tinsel. But by adding energy, personality and interest the altered style has been of great benefit to an ancient institution that was in danger of seeming an irrelevant and dowdy sideshow.

The most recent opinion poll that measured the public’s estimation of the Royal Family also showed that a majority of Britons favoured the abdication of the Queen; the reasoning was that she should end her already long reign in favour of her vigorous

and able son. Momentous events are unlikely to follow this verdict. Abdication has been an exceedingly rare event in the history of the British Monarchy. Also, the Queen, while clearly amenable to changes to her role and to the role of her family, gives no sign of the radicalism that would lead her to retire to the quiet of Great Windsor Park. Neither will the poll’s verdict have fallen like a shock on Buckingham Palace. Because the Queen acceded to the Throne while young, and because she gave birth to Prince Charles while she was still young, her reign is likely to be long and the Prince’s brief. Thus, the prospect of eventual abdication has been periodically canvassed.

It is reasonable to assume that Her Majesty will always reject such action and will have the support of the British Government in so doing, because of the nature of the Monarchy. The divine foundations of the Throne — still explicit in the Monarch’s role as head of the Church of England and in the sacrament of the Coronation service — are grounded in spiritual inheritance. They cannot be breached by temporal decisions involving a retirement and the appointment of a successor. It is for this reason that abdication has featured so seldom in the history of the British Monarchy; even when wholly unable to carry out the duties of King, George 111 remained on the Throne; Edward VIII, after renouncing the Throne, was virtually expunged from British public life. Less theological and constitutional considerations will also no doubt preserve the Queen in her position until her natural end. Societies can be emboldened and envigorated by youthful leadership. But they can be inspired and sustained by dignified matriarchs.