The Queen of records has been at the foot of the canyon for 70 years and 115 days, has dispatched with 14 prime ministers (from Churchill to Boris Johnson), has appeared on the coins of 45 countries, has seen her country enter and leave the Union European, and has overcome the turbulence of his own family; from Diana’s death to ‘Megxit’, through the Prince Andrew scandal.
With the 96 already fulfilled, and with the scare in the body by the storm that forced to abort the landing of her private plane on the way back from Scotland, Elizabeth II is preparing to finally celebrate her Platinum Jubilee, which will be deployed for four days with the utmost pomp.
It is estimated that more than 12 million Britons will participate in one way or another in the tributes to the monarch, spread over more than 85,000 popular meals and 16,000 street parties, plus the triumphant parade on Thursday in the royal carriage through the ‘mall’ and the appearance on the Buckingham balcony with the ‘royals’ in full exercise of their duties: Carlos, Camila, William and Kate. Harry and Meghan will be the big absentees that day, although they will reappear on Friday at St. Paul’s Cathedral.
61% of Britons currently support the monarchy, compared to 24% who would prefer an elected head of state. The majority continue to believe in the historical and symbolic value of the “Firm” (as the royal family is popularly known), although support is weakening among the youngest and, above all, in Scotland, where royal support has dropped. up to 45%, according to a recent British Future survey.
“Make Elizabeth II the last”, meanwhile proclaim the posters sponsored by the Republic group, which these days dot the billboards of British cities thanks to the 50,000 euros raised by crowdfunding. “Seventy years with the same person as head of state is not a great idea, nor is it healthy for a democracy,” warns “Republican” Major Graham Smith. “Now that the Queen has passed that ceiling, it’s time to think about what comes next.”
Then comes the “co-monarchy”, a term coined, among others, by the royal chroniclers Ephraim Hardcastle and Kinsey Schofield, to illustrate the pact between Elizabeth II and her heir to alternate roles, as has happened in the recent opening of Parliament , when Carlos read with his deep voice the traditional “Queen’s Speech” and provisionally occupied the throne in the House of Lords.
Isabel II, who has missed the appointment for the first time in 59 years and due to “mobility problems”, has surprised, however, by attending days later in her best clothes – in bright yellow and leaning on her cane – at the inauguration of the new underground line that bears his name in Paddington. She also hasn’t wanted to miss the equestrian parade in Windsor or the Chelsea Flower Show, where she has debuted her luxury golf cart.
Apparently, while the body endures and the good weather allows it, the Queen intends to continue appearing in special events, although most of her official activity will be done “virtually”. The monarch herself, who has spent a night in the hospital and has suspended her schedule for more than three months due to exhaustion and medical prescription, has publicly acknowledged that the Covid left her “very tired” and has come to recognize before her few visitors at Windsor Castle: “I can’t move.”
The former royal chronicler of ‘The Sun’ Duncan Larcombe has opened an intense debate predicting that the Regency Act will be invoked within a year and that Carlos will end up acting as “prince regent” and guaranteeing a transition to his own reign. Elizabeth II’s own announcement, anticipating that Camila will be “queen consort” when the time comes, is a step in that direction. In fact, Carlos and Camila will officially represent the Queen at the great Platinum Jubilee luncheon to be held on Sunday at The Oval, London’s iconic cricket ground.
According to a survey by ‘The Daily Express’, 76% of Britons are willing to accept Carlos as “regent”, compared to 23% who refuse to accept him, in the case of Elizabeth II’s physical or mental illness. The Queen decided to face adversity after the death of Philip of Edinburgh, faithful to her promise made in her day to “devote all life, long or short, in the service of our great imperial family”. The setbacks of this last year may have made her reconsider and opt for an intermediate formula.
Tina Brown, author of The Palace Papers, has assured, in fact, that the transformation of Carlos as “the father of the nation” is underway and predicts that the “Firm” has a guaranteed future “with the right actions and advisers “with William and Kate on the horizon and even with a possible ‘reentry’ of Harry and Meghan as ambassadors of the Commonwealth of Nations.
“The monarchy still has a very deep resonance with the British,” Brown warned. “In the face of a real big event, there are always anxiety attacks and doomsday predictions that eventually turn out to be totally wrong. When the time comes, people flip and go totally crazy.”
Elizabeth II is, today, the longest-living British queen (her great-great-grandmother Victoria died at the age of 81 and spent 63 years on the throne) and the third in world history (after Louis XIV, who reigned for 72 years in France, and King Bhumibol of Thailand, who was on the throne for 70 years and 123 days). Among the seven Guinness records that appear in his possession is also that of the richest Queen and that of the largest aquatic parade, with the presence of 670 boats on the River Thames on the occasion of his Diamond Jubilee, in that unrepeatable and epic summer of the 2012 Olympics, culminating in the James Bond helicopter descent.
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