An American and The Monarchy

I admit a fascination with the English Royal Family, some of it good and some of it, well, when your brother is a creep, but still gets to live in luxury, that is not a great look.

On a lighter note>>>

Anne seems like a hard worker, and William and Kate seem lovely.
The queen did have some lovely hats, lol, and she seemed a sincere soul who honestly tried to serve her nation.

I am fascinated by English fancy hats, have no idea why, perhaps it is only because Americans gave up fancy hats, for all practical purposes, by the 70's.
They almost seem like characters in a play, and the real people seem to get lost behind the appearances and royal reporting.

I wonder, at times, if some of the royal reporting is not as it seems.
What I find particularly petty is all the talk of "stealing one's thunder" and "upstaging each other."
Are all the Royals really that thin-skinned and petty, or does it just make good copy?
It is a little like watching a reality soap opera, and I am fascinated by how it will all turn out.

As an American, I am not unhappy that we do not have a royal family that we, the taxpayers, would have to support.
So, I am a bit of a hypocrite in not wanting the pomp and circumstance of the United Kingdom to completely end, but then I am not paying for it.

It seems like so much magic has gone out of the world, and that pomp and circumstance, even if it is only for a small moment in time, brings some of it back.
It is like they are the keepers of their own ancient history, and that is something that could not be brought back once you lay that mantle down.
Maybe that is the fascination?
Something from an ancient time that surely would have been forgotten and definitely not practiced if there were no keepers at the gate?

Many Americans couldn't care less, I know.
We tend to move on quickly to each new thing and adapt rather quickly.

The British Monarchy has been accused of not keeping up with modern times.
I am not sure it would survive a complete overhaul into modern times?
Some people may be happy to pay for King William and Queen Katherine, but they may lose the last of the clinging pro- monarchs if they are paying vast sums of money for the upkeep of their neighbors, Kate and Will?

I observe it, like a person looking through a window, not really touching it.
It fascinates me all the same.
I don't feel promonarch, as an American, I do not feel I can judge whether it is a good or bad thing for the people to sit under kings and queens.
I will watch until the end, either its end or mine.

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FreddieUK · 70-79, M

I think you have summed up the mixed feelings of many of your countrymen and women well.

Justmeraeagain · 56-60, F

@FreddieUK It really isn't possible not being brought up or living in the UK to understand what it would be like to live under a monarchy.
We haven't been under a monarchy since 1700's and none of us can remember that long ago, lol.

FreddieUK · 70-79, M

@Justmeraeagain Most of us don't even think about it. The Monarchy has no political power BUT having it means certain powers are held away from potentially megalomaniacal politicians. Conversely, should we end up with a complete nutcase as Monarch, they won't have any effect on anything important.

Justmeraeagain · 56-60, F

@FreddieUK I do believe some of your countrymen do get sick of paying for their lifestyle, though ,don't they?
And I think , some rightfully protest to Andrew being "protected"

ArishMell · 70-79, M

@Justmeraeagain The money from the Treasury is peanuts in national budget terms, and in fact the Royal estates pay enormous amounts of money into it, as taxes.

The Civil List, as it's called, is not a salary, as most is used for running the Monarchy, not paying the individuals.

Andrew, now plain Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor, is no more "protected" than anyone else. I've not heard of protests against doing so, but he has the same rights under the law as any other citizen.

You asked further back about "keeping up with the times". Well, that rather depends on your definition of "the times" but both the Monarchy and the Royal Family (two different entities) are very much modern even though the basic tradition dates back a thousand years and more.

That's by no means a new idea, either; the keeping up with the times being very much from gradual but major constitutional changes over the centuries, but also by social developments and pressure; and by the choices of the royals themselves. For example, as far back as the latter half of the Nineteenth Century, Queen Victoria and her consort, Prince Albert, were a thoroughly modern couple in their own era.

Justmeraeagain · 56-60, F

I'm not sure I agree about Andrew, but that's my own opinion.
I do believe there are some people in the British Kingdom who do not like paying for the royals maybe they don't understand how it works anymore than I do, but I have talked to people who live in the UK who have been vocal about not wanting to keep paying for the monarchy.
I guess ,what I mean about being way too modern is if they lose the pomp and circumstance of the monarchy it might be the end of the monarchy... I'm not suggesting that's even in play.
But ,there have been discussions ,by your own countrymen and women, about how they should lose the ceremonial bits, because it cost the country too much money.
I think it would be strange without it ,because when people from other places think about your country the monarchy is one of the first things that come to their mind right along with Big Ben and the Tower of London.
Of course there's much more to Great Britain than those things, but it's like when people think about America they tend to think about New York or Hollywood.