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The documented life of Queen Elizabeth II will consist of hundreds of millions, if not billions, of sheets of paper. Titles, meeting papers, patent letters and official letters. But somewhere at the bottom of the box is a letter that gives us the clearest picture of the woman behind the crown.
“Dear Mommy,” the then Princess Elizabeth wrote in a letter to her mother, Queen Elizabeth, after honeymooning in Broadland, the Earl Mountbatten’s estate in Hampshire. “I think I have the best parents in the world and I just want to raise my children in the happy atmosphere of love and justice that Margaret and I grew up in.”
It was an affectionate letter, written in her characteristic ornate script, which seemed the smallest in comparison to a heavy official document. At the same time, rare allusions to the future Queen Elizabeth II were found in it: a daughter and wife, and later a mother and grandmother. The most important women of the 20th century were sometimes imperfectly balanced in different ways.
When Queen Elizabeth II ascended the throne in 1952, she was already the mother of two children. As with most royal promotions, it has a grim preamble: no one gets promoted in the royal family until the person ahead of you in the line of succession dies. When her father, King George VI, died, she inherited an institution that not only endured many tumultuous scandals, but also defied the conventions of the day.
When their cousins, the royal houses of Europe, were overthrown and either completely dissolved, reduced, or, as in the case of the Romanovs in Russia, slaughtered during the revolution, the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha family became the Windsor family, sparkling like Koh-i- Noor, this 105.6 carat diamond is the undisputed rock star of British Crown Jewels.
First under the watchful eye of the emerging media, under the watchful eye of the emerging media, Queen Mary, wife of King George V, and then Queen Elizabeth, they have evolved from German-speaking peasants into a real force in society. , diplomacy and politics Second, brought Her grandmother’s Windsor cottage farm into a full-fledged business.
Princess Elizabeth with Queen Mary (left) and Queen Elizabeth after the birth of Princess Anne in 1950. Image credit: Associated Press
The abdication of Edward VIII in 1936 plunged the monarchy and the country into crisis. In the eyes of many, the former king was a cripple whose indulgence broke the ancient system, unfairly burdened his younger brother, and reputedly shortened his lifespan. From another point of view, we could think of him as the most mortal person, the one who “gives everything for love.”
But even in this dark chapter of history, the Queen’s complicated relationship with her family was visible. Her mother, the Queen Mother, excommunicated the former King and Lady Windsor. But the Queen communicates with her “Uncle David”, knowing that they are extremely equal, at least constitutionally.
These meetings were short but instructive. They illustrate how the queen, despite her advanced age, came to understand the many human complexities that the crown brings with it. She should be everything to everyone. Mother, faithful daughter. And those disgraced Windsor, the queen and niece. During her 70-year reign, this pattern repeated itself over and over again.
As queen, she must oversee the succession to the crown. She did not approve of the renunciation, but eventually made peace with the characters in the story. She disapproves of her daughters-in-law, Diana and Sarah, but has a different understanding of their problems. Although she ordered the Sussexes to end their relationship (and titles), her role as Prince Harry’s grandmother has not changed.
The Queen (second from left) speaks to the exiled Duchess of Windsor at the funeral of King Edward VIII in London. Image credit: Press Association.
The difference between the roles of mother (or grandmother) and monarch became apparent less than a year and a half after her reign, when she embarked on a complex six-month world tour that included visiting Australia, including 13 countries. Her children, Charles, who was 5 at the time, and Ann, who was only 3, stayed at home.
In one of the most photographed and subsequently analyzed moments of her reign, she shook hands with her children instead of hugging them upon her return. Describing this moment as a failure of the mother, like so many others, misunderstands the versatility of the character. As long as the cameras are rolling, Queen Elizabeth II is the unchanging queen, and nothing more.
Her relationship with two young children, Andrew (born 1960) and Edward (born 1964), will be completely different. less formal. This shows that even though she plays these many roles, like a tiara-wearing Sibyl, she learns more and more about them and the complex connections between them over time.
“We understand the limitations of time and her duties as a monarch, the things she has to do and the journeys she has to make,” her daughter Princess Anne said in a 2002 interview. So think for a second that she doesn’t take care of us like other mothers. I just think it’s unusual for someone to explain that it might not be true.”
The Queen with grandchildren James and Louise and great-grandchildren Mia Tindall, Princess Charlotte, Savannah Phillips, Prince George and Ella Phillips. Image Credit: Annie Leibovitz via AP.
In fact, the multiple roles of monarch and mother have been intertwined over the centuries. Even her family members have to get official marriage permission from the Queen for such a simple thing.
Amendments to the succession law in 2013 limited it to the succession of the first six members of the royal family. This is why, for example, Prince Harry’s marriage to Meghan Markle in 2018 required the Queen’s permission, but Princess Eugenie’s marriage to Jack Brooksbank did not.
Back in June 1969, when the documentary The Royal Family aired, the focus was on the confluence of different aspects of a woman. In pure numbers, this is a hit. It was broadcast on the BBC and ITV and was seen by 30 million viewers in the UK and later by an estimated 350 million viewers worldwide. However, it went down in history, mainly because the queen, who wisely owns the rights, withdrew it from distribution after the initial broadcast.
Undercover Boss and Survivor: A Balmoral edition that reveals the woman behind the crown: working with staff and official correspondence in her office, traveling aboard the royal yacht Britannia, meeting US President Richard Nixon, and sometimes doing side tasks such as crown trimming. The Sandringham Christmas tree and a selection of dresses and decorations.
The latter may have exposed a less important side of the queen as she worked on the Timur ruby, a 361 carat uncut polished red spinel set in a necklace legendaryly traced back to the Persian emperor, he said: “I think one should really create a dress that can be wear”.
But the 89-minute film also showcases a new role the Queen will play: head of the firm she says runs the royal family, including her opulent palace, the centerpiece of which is the 775-room Buckingham Palace. , with thousands of employees. But she’s also a mother and grandmother, and Prince Philip fiddled with salad dressings when he cooked sausages at a Scottish BBQ by the river.
“I think it’s a great blessing to be able to do so much together as a family,” Princess Anne said in 2010, holding back a little for those who have gone through the same experience and understand the pressure. So it’s both a protective [and] appreciative group. ”
The death of the Princess of Wales in Paris in 1997 caused the most difficult conflict of the queen’s many roles.
“Diana’s passing was an especially difficult and almost dangerous time for the Queen, Prince Philip and the entire royal family,” Countess Mountbatten, a cousin and close friend of Myanmar, said in 2010. Despite expectations that her role as monarch should come first, the Queen has decided to stay out of the public eye in Balmoral, Scotland, with Diana’s sons William and Harry.
The impact – and the headlines – were devastating. “Show us that you care”, “Your people are suffering. Talk to us, ma’am” And on the front page of The Sun, a destructive image of Buckingham Palace on top of Buckingham Palace without a flagpole: Where? Where is our flag?
In her address to the nation, the queen was both an acknowledgment of Diana’s death and a not-so-subtle mistake of her indecisiveness, saying: “What I am telling you now, as your queen and grandmother, I am saying it from below On the one hand, I believe that from her life and the extraordinary and touching reaction to her death can be learned.”
In particular, for the future Prince William, the different roles of grandmother and monarch will become clearer after the death of his mother. “When I was younger, growing up as a little boy, I could tell that [she] was first a queen and then a grandmother,” William said in a 2012 TV interview. “But now it’s definitely grandma first, and then the queen.”
The Queen Mother (left) and the Queen (second from right) at the funeral of the Princess of Wales. Image credit: Reuters.
William said the distinction between the two was clearer during his planned marriage to the current Duchess of Cambridge, Catherine Middleton. “I had a very calm moment when I received a list of 777 names, not a single person that I knew or Katherine knew, and I thought: yes, that’s right, isn’t it?” William remembers the road.
Like any grandson, William turned to his grandmother for help. “I went up to her and said, look, I have this list and I don’t know any, what should I do? She’s coming, get rid of it, start with friends, over time we will add people who need This is your day.
As the queen got older, the moving parts of the monarchy gradually realigned around her, with the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge taking on most of the work, and a new balance of roles of grandmother and monarch was found.
“I think that usually happens with grandparents and theoretically that’s one of their biggest advantages because technically they are not responsible, they can have fun and if something goes wrong you can return it, you know. Li” – princess. Anna said in 2010.
Prince Philip, Princess Anne, Prince Edward, The Queen, Prince Andrew and the Prince of Wales in 1972. Image Credit: Press Association.
“I think it’s really something special, she seems to have time for everyone,” Princess Anne added, referring to the Queen’s eight grandchildren William and Harry, Anne’s children Peter and Zara, and Andrew’s daughter Eugenie with Beatrice and Edward’s children. Louise and James.
“But her grandchildren also grew up in a very different home environment, in a more relaxed environment than the one she grew up in or the one we started out in,” Annie added. “I suspect some changes will need to be dealt with first, and I think she’s used to it.”
Queen Elizabeth II has also become a slightly less formal monarch, preferring her many worlds to blend into one another, appearing alongside James Bond (Daniel Craig) in a skit at the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony and ahead of the filming of the infamous Mic Drop. in 2016 with Prince Harry at the Invictus Games. “Hey Prince Harry” challenges Barack and Michelle Obama in the clip with the “Boom” climax.
“For me, [we] are closer than ever,” Prince William said in 2012. Or ask her what. I think it’s gotten a lot better over the years, I’ve matured, hopefully a little bit, and tried to learn more about her character as well as my own. She was also a very loving grandmother to me. ”
In his latest report on the royal family, Michael Flanders offered a strange visionary idea: “We don’t know what Prince Charles will do. For centuries, his family has provided some monarchs who will be remembered forever. But if he needs help, he can turn to thousands of years of family experience.”
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Post time: Sep-14-2022