Monarchy faces delicate transition

When the Brits celebrate their Queen, they also celebrate themselves. Tens of thousands of spectators descended on The Mall and St. James’s Park on Saturday evening to watch the BBC’s Platinum Jubilee Party in front of Buckingham Palace on big screens. Old masters such as Diana Ross, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Elton John were also there, as was the rapper Diversity and the Tiktok star Mimi Webb, in order to depict the British music scene and society in all its breadth and diversity.

Spectators from young to old had tied British flags or the Union Jack on their cheeks and sang the national anthem “God Save the Queen” at the top of their lungs. For health reasons, the Queen did not follow the concert on site, but in front of the television at Windsor Castle. However, she did record a humorous skit over tea with popular children’s book character Paddington. The crowd cheered frantically every time a picture of the monarch was shown on the screen.

The Queen and her moderating effect

Pathos, creativity and patriotism characterized the four-day celebrations of Elizabeth II’s 70th jubilee, which ended on Sunday with street parties across the country and a colorful pageant at Buckingham Palace. The happily celebrated national pride seemed neither dull nor exclusive. Rather, the Queen, as the country’s grandmother, represents a positive identification figure onto which the population can project patriotic feelings without a guilty conscience. Even many Britons who have little to do with the monarchy feel respect for the lifetime achievements of the 96-year-old monarch.

Unlike other members of the royal family, the Queen is above all scandals. It symbolizes values ​​such as integrity, diligence, altruism and service to the community. The contrast to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who lacked such values ​​in the party affair and who may soon face an internal party vote of no confidence, is all the sharper. When Johnson arrived with his wife Carrie for the thanksgiving service in honor of the Queen’s Jubilee at London’s St Paul’s Cathedral on Friday, he was met with whistles and boos.

Labor leader Keir Starmer had declared at the start of the celebrations, it is the patriotic duty of all Britons to celebrate the Queen. He emphasized that the monarch and her moderating influence had contributed to the fact that extremist forces had never been able to assert themselves over the past seventy years. In the appraisals of the last few days, there has been a lot of talk about the unifying effect of the queen, who sets the guard rails for the tough political debate. In addition, as a moral authority, the Queen keeps politicians in check. It is said that David Cameron dreaded speaking to the Queen if Scotland had voted for independence in 2014.

Young people are more critical of monarchy

The Queen and her achievements were at the center of the celebrations. But the platinum jubilee also made it clear that the monarchy is in a phase of transition. Although the Queen attended the “Trooping the Color” birthday parade on the balcony of Buckingham Palace on Thursday, she had to cancel her appearances planned for the following days for health reasons. The focus was all the more on the new generation of royals – not least the grandchildren George, Charlotte and Louis. The heir to the throne, Prince Charles, who had already opened Parliament in place of his mother in the spring, now inspected the traditional military parade for the first time on behalf of Her Majesty.

The population is slowly getting used to the idea that Charles will succeed his mother to the throne in the foreseeable future. But the festivities have also made it clear how difficult this transition will be, especially since Charles has significantly lower popularity ratings than the Queen. He paid tribute to his mother in a touching way when he appeared alongside his wife Camilla at the BBC party. But the prince seemed awkward, and the audience erupted in applause, but no enthusiasm.

The challenge for 73-year-old Charles is all the greater as he has to get the younger generation excited about the monarchy again. A survey by the research institute Yougov has shown that that support for the monarchy has fallen from 71 percent to 61 percent over the past decade, with 22 percent in favor of an elected head of state and 17 percent expressing no opinion. While the over-65s support the monarchy the most, supporters and opponents of the monarchy are roughly evenly divided among the 18-24 year olds.

William is committed to climate protection

Charles wants to slim down the monarchy and spread the responsibilities on fewer shoulders. The popular William, who is second in line to the throne after Charles, will be even more in the spotlight. The almost 40-year-old revealed at the BBC party on Saturday evening how he intends to position the monarchy in the future. He focused his speech on environmental and climate protection – a topic that is particularly burning under the nails of the younger generation.

William and Charles are likely to try to use their influence to serve climate protection and thus broaden the basis for their legitimacy. Unlike in the US, there is bipartisan support for climate policy in the UK, which is why the royals can afford such position references. But the line between moral authority and political activism is fine, especially since the Queen, as head of state, is committed to neutrality.

Approaching end of an era

Great gratitude for the Queen and looking back on her seventy years on the throne marked the approaching end of an era. After Brexit and in view of the acute economic problems, the country faces an uncertain future in which, sooner rather than later, the stabilizing effect of the Queen will also be missing. But in her message for the anniversary, the Queen was confident that her descendants will master the balancing act between tradition and renewal. “As we reflect on what we have achieved over the past seventy years, we look to the future with confidence and enthusiasm.”