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BRITISH MONARCHY AND ITS INFLUENCE UPON GOVERNMENTAL INSTITUTIONS

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BRITISH MONARCHY AND ITS INFLUENCE UPON GOVERNMENTAL INSTITUTIONS

Walpole retired in 1742, after establishing the foundation of the modern

constitutional monarchy: a Cabinet responsible to a Parliament, which was,

in turn, responsible to an electorate. At that time, the system was far

from truly democratic; the electorate was essentially the voice of wealthy

landowners and mercantilists. The Whig party was firmly in control,

although legitimist Tories attempted one last Jacobite rebellion in 1745,

by again trying to restore a Stuart to the throne. Prince Charles Edward

Stuart, known as the Young Pretender or Bonnie Prince Charlie, landed in

Scotland and marched as far south as Derby, causing yet another wave of

Anti-Catholicism to wash over England. The Scots retreated, and in 1746,

were butchered by the Royal Army at Culloden Moor. Bonnie Prince Charlie

escaped to France and died in Rome. The Tories became suspect due to their

associations with Jacobitism, ensuring oligarchic Whig rule for the

following fifty years.

Walpole managed to keep George out of continental conflicts for the first

twelve years of the reign, but George declared war on Spain in 1739,

against Walpole's wishes. The Spanish war extended into the 1740's as a

component of the War of Austrian Succession, in which England fought

against French dominance in Europe. George shrank away from the situation

quickly: he negotiated a hasty peace with France, to protect Hanover. The

1750's found England again at war with France, this time over imperial

claims. Fighting was intense in Europe, but North America and India were

also theatres of the war. Government faltering in response to the French

crisis brought William Pitt the Elder, later Earl of Chatham, to the

forefront of British politics.

Thackeray describes George II and Walpole as such, in The Four Georges

"... how he was a choleric little sovereign; how he shook his fist in the

face of his father's courtiers; how he kicked his coat and wig about in his

rages; and called everybody thief, liar, rascal with whom he differed: you

will read in all the history books; and how he speedily and shrewdly

reconciled himself with the bold minister, whom he had hated during his

father's life, and by whom he was served during fifteen years of his own

with admirable prudence, fidelity, and success. But for Robert Walpole, we

should have had the Pretender back again."

GEORGE III (r. 1760-1820)

George III was born on 4 June 1738 in London, the eldest son of

Frederick, Prince of Wales, and Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. He became

heir to the throne on the death of his father in 1751, succeeding his

grandfather, George II, in 1760. He was the third Hanoverian monarch and

the first one to be born in England and to use English as his first

language.

George III is widely remembered for two things: losing the American

colonies and going mad. This is far from the whole truth. George's direct

responsibility for the loss of the colonies is not great. He opposed their

bid for independence to the end, but he did not develop the policies (such

as the Stamp Act of 1765 and the Townshend duties of 1767 on tea, paper and

other products) which led to war in 1775-76 and which had the support of

Parliament. These policies were largely due to the financial burdens of

garrisoning and administering the vast expansion of territory brought under

the British Crown in America, the costs of a series of wars with France and

Spain in North America, and the loans given to the East India Company (then

responsible for administering India). By the 1770s, and at a time when

there was no income tax, the national debt required an annual revenue of Ј4

million to service it.

The declaration of American independence on 4 July 1776, the end of the

war with the surrender by British forces in 1782, and the defeat which the

loss of the American colonies represented, could have threatened the

Hanoverian throne. However, George's strong defence of what he saw as the

national interest and the prospect of long war with revolutionary France

made him, if anything, more popular than before.

The American war, its political aftermath and family anxieties placed

great strain on George in the 1780s. After serious bouts of illness in 1788-

89 and again in 1801, George became permanently deranged in 1810. He was

mentally unfit to rule in the last decade of his reign; his eldest son -

the later George IV - acted as Prince Regent from 1811. Some medical

historians have said that George III's mental instability was caused by a

hereditary physical disorder called porphyria.

George's accession in 1760 marked a significant change in royal finances.

Since 1697, the monarch had received an annual grant of Ј700,000 from

Parliament as a contribution to the Civil List, i.e. civil government costs

(such as judges' and ambassadors' salaries) and the expenses of the Royal

Household. In 1760, it was decided that the whole cost of the Civil List

should be provided by Parliament in return for the surrender of the

hereditary revenues by the King for the duration of his reign. (This

arrangement still applies today, although civil government costs are now

paid by Parliament, rather than financed directly by the monarch from the

Civil List.)

The first 25 years of George's reign were politically controversial for

reasons other than the conflict with America. The King was accused by some

critics, particularly Whigs (a leading political grouping), of attempting

to reassert royal authority in an unconstitutional manner. In fact, George

took a conventional view of the constitution and the powers left to the

Crown after the conflicts between Crown and Parliament in the 17th century.

Although he was careful not to exceed his powers, George's limited

ability and lack of subtlety in dealing with the shifting alliances within

the Tory and Whig political groupings in Parliament meant that he found it

difficult to bring together ministries which could enjoy the support of the

House of Commons. His problem was solved first by the long-lasting ministry

of Lord North (1770-82) and then, from 1783, by Pitt the Younger, whose

ministry lasted until 1801.

George III was the most attractive of the Hanoverian monarchs. He was a

good family man (there were 15 children) and devoted to his wife, Charlotte

of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, for whom he bought the Queen's House (later

enlarged to become Buckingham Palace). However, his sons disappointed him

and, after his brothers made unsuitable secret marriages, the Royal

Marriages Act of 1772 was passed at George's insistence. (Under this Act,

the Sovereign must give consent to the marriage of any lineal descendant of

George II, with certain exceptions.)

Being extremely conscientious, George read all government papers and

sometimes annoyed his ministers by taking such a prominent interest in

government and policy. His political influence could be decisive. In 1801,

he forced Pitt the Younger to resign when the two men disagreed about

whether Roman Catholics should have full civil rights. George III, because

of his coronation oath to maintain the rights and privileges of the Church

of England, was against the proposed measure.

One of the most cultured of monarchs, George started a new royal

collection of books (65,000 of his books were later given to the British

Museum, as the nucleus of a national library) and opened his library to

scholars. In 1768, George founded and paid the initial costs of the Royal

Academy of Arts (now famous for its exhibitions). He was the first king to

study science as part of his education (he had his own astronomical

observatory), and examples of his collection of scientific instruments can

now be seen in the Science Museum.

George III also took a keen interest in agriculture, particularly on the

crown estates at Richmond and Windsor, being known as 'Farmer George'. In

his last years, physical as well as mental powers deserted him and he

became blind. He died at Windsor Castle on 29 January 1820, after a reign

of almost 60 years - the second longest in British history.

GEORGE IV (1820-30)

George IV was 48 when he became Regent in 1811. He had secretly and

illegally married a Roman Catholic, Mrs Fitzherbert. In 1795 he officially

married Princess Caroline of Brunswick, but the marriage was a failure and

he tried unsuccessfully to divorce her after his accession in 1820

(Caroline died in 1821). Their only child Princess Charlotte died giving

birth to a stillborn child.

An outstanding, if extravagant, collector and builder, George IV acquired

many important works of art (now in the Royal Collection), built the Royal

Pavilion at Brighton, and transformed Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace.

George's fondness for pageantry helped to develop the ceremonial side of

monarchy. After his father's long illness, George resumed royal visits; he

visited Hanover in 1821 (it had not been visited by its ruler since the

1750s), and Ireland and Scotland over the next couple of years.

Beset by debts, George was in a weak position in relation to his Cabinet

of ministers. His concern for royal prerogative was sporadic; when the

Prime Minister Lord Liverpool fell ill in 1827, George at one stage

suggested that ministers should choose Liverpool's successor. In 1829,

George IV was forced by his ministers, much against his will and his

interpretation of his coronation oath, to agree to Catholic Emancipation.

By reducing religious discrimination, this emancipation enabled the

monarchy to play a more national role.

George's profligacy and marriage difficulties meant that he never

regained much popularity, and he spent his final years in seclusion at

Windsor, dying at the age of 67.

WILLIAM IV (1830-37)

At the age of 13, William became a midshipman and began a career in the

Royal Navy. In 1789, he was made duke of Clarence. He retired from the Navy

in 1790. Between 1791 and 1811 he lived with his mistress, the actress Mrs

Jordan, and the growing family of their children known as the

Fitzclarences. William married Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen in 1818,

but their children died in infancy. The third son of George III, William

became heir apparent at the age of 62 when his older brother died.

William's reign (reigned 1830-37) was dominated by the Reform crisis,

beginning almost immediately when Wellington's Tory government (which

William supported) lost the general election in August 1830. Pledged to

parliamentary reform, Grey's Whig government won a further election which

William had to call in 1831 and then pushed through a reform bill against

the opposition of the Tories and the House of Lords, using the threat of

the creation of 50 or more peers to do so. The failure of the Tories to

form an alternative government in 1832 meant that William had to sign the

Great Reform Bill. Control of peerages had been used as a party weapon, and

the royal prerogative had been damaged.

The Reform Bill abolished some of the worst abuses of the electoral

system (for example, representation for so called 'rotten boroughs', which

had long ceased to be of any importance, was stopped, and new industrial

towns obtained representation). The Reform Act also introduced standardised

rules for the franchise (different boroughs had previously had varying

franchise rules) and, by extending the franchise to the middle classes,

greatly increased the role of public opinion in the political process.

William understood the theory of the more limited monarchy, once saying

'I have my view of things, and I tell them to my ministers. If they do not

adopt them, I cannot help it. I have done my duty.' William died a month

after Victoria had come of age, thus avoiding another regency.

VICTORIA (1837-1901)

Victoria was born at Kensington Palace, London, on 24 May 1819. She was

the only daughter of Edward, Duke of Kent, fourth son of George III. Her

father died shortly after her birth and she became heir to the throne

because the three uncles who were ahead of her in succession - George IV,

Frederick Duke of York, and William IV - had no legitimate children who

survived. Warmhearted and lively, Victoria had a gift for drawing and

painting; educated by a governess at home, she was a natural diarist and

kept a regular journal throughout her life. On William IV's death in 1837,

she became Queen at the age of 18.

Queen Victoria is associated with Britain's great age of industrial

expansion, economic progress and - especially - empire. At her death, it

was said, Britain had a worldwide empire on which the sun never set.

In the early part of her reign, she was influenced by two men: her first

Prime Minister, Lord Melbourne, and her husband, Prince Albert, whom she

married in 1840. Both men taught her much about how to be a ruler in a

'constitutional monarchy' where the monarch had very few powers but could

use much influence. Albert took an active interest in the arts, science,

trade and industry; the project for which he is best remembered was the

Great Exhibition of 1851, the profits from which helped to establish the

South Kensington museums complex in London.

Her marriage to Prince Albert brought nine children between 1840 and

1857. Most of her children married into other royal families of Europe:

Edward VII (born 1841, married Alexandra, daughter of Christian IX of

Denmark); Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (born

1844, married Marie of Russia); Arthur, Duke of Connaught (born 1850,

married Louise Margaret of Prussia); Leopold, Duke of Albany (born 1853,

married Helen of Waldeck-Pyrmont); Victoria, Princess Royal (born 1840,

married Friedrich III, German Emperor); Alice (born 1843, married Ludwig

IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine); Helena (born 1846, married Christian

of Schleswig-Holstein); Louise (born 1848, married John Campbell, 9th Duke

of Argyll); Beatrice (born 1857, married Henry of Battenberg). Victoria

bought Osborne House (later presented to the nation by Edward VII) on the

Isle of Wight as a family home in 1845, and Albert bought Balmoral in 1852.

Victoria was deeply attached to her husband and she sank into depression

after he died, aged 42, in 1861. She had lost a devoted husband and her

principal trusted adviser in affairs of state. For the rest of her reign

she wore black. Until the late 1860s she rarely appeared in public;

although she never neglected her official Correspondence, and continued to

give audiences to her ministers and official visitors, she was reluctant to

resume a full public life. She was persuaded to open Parliament in person

in 1866 and 1867, but she was widely criticised for living in seclusion and

quite a strong republican movement developed. (Seven attempts were made on

Victoria's life, between 1840 and 1882 - her courageous attitude towards

these attacks greatly strengthened her popularity.) With time, the private

urgings of her family and the flattering attention of Benjamin Disraeli,

Prime Minister in 1868 and from 1874 to 1880, the Queen gradually resumed

her public duties.

In foreign policy, the Queen's influence during the middle years of her

reign was generally used to support peace and reconciliation. In 1864,

Victoria pressed her ministers not to intervene in the Prussia-Austria-

Denmark war, and her letter to the German Emperor (whose son had married

her daughter) in 1875 helped to avert a second Franco-German war. On the

Eastern Question in the 1870s - the issue of Britain's policy towards the

declining Turkish Empire in Europe - Victoria (unlike Gladstone) believed

that Britain, while pressing for necessary reforms, ought to uphold Turkish

hegemony as a bulwark of stability against Russia, and maintain bi-

partisanship at a time when Britain could be involved in war.

Victoria's popularity grew with the increasing imperial sentiment from

the 1870s onwards. After the Indian Mutiny of 1857, the government of India

was transferred from the East India Company to the Crown with the position

of Governor General upgraded to Viceroy, and in 1877 Victoria became

Empress of India under the Royal Titles Act passed by Disraeli's

government.

During Victoria's long reign, direct political power moved away from the

sovereign. A series of Acts broadened the social and economic base of the

electorate. These acts included the Second Reform Act of 1867; the

introduction of the secret ballot in 1872, which made it impossible to

pressurise voters by bribery or intimidation; and the Representation of the

Peoples Act of 1884 - all householders and lodgers in accommodation worth

at least Ј10 a year, and occupiers of land worth Ј10 a year, were entitled

to vote.

Despite this decline in the Sovereign's power, Victoria showed that a

monarch who had a high level of prestige and who was prepared to master the

details of political life could exert an important influence. This was

demonstrated by her mediation between the Commons and the Lords, during the

acrimonious passing of the Irish Church Disestablishment Act of 1869 and

the 1884 Reform Act. It was during Victoria's reign that the modern idea of

the constitutional monarch, whose role was to remain above political

parties, began to evolve. But Victoria herself was not always non-partisan

and she took the opportunity to give her opinions - sometimes very

forcefully - in private.

After the Second Reform Act of 1867, and the growth of the two-party

(Liberal and Conservative) system, the Queen's room for manoeuvre

decreased. Her freedom to choose which individual should occupy the

premiership was increasingly restricted. In 1880, she tried,

unsuccessfully, to stop William Gladstone - whom she disliked as much as

she admired Disraeli and whose policies she distrusted - from becoming

Prime Minister. She much preferred the Marquess of Hartington, another

statesman from the Liberal party which had just won the general election.

She did not get her way. She was a very strong supporter of Empire, which

brought her closer both to Disraeli and to the Marquess of Salisbury, her

last Prime Minister. Although conservative in some respects - like many at

the time she opposed giving women the vote - on social issues, she tended

to favour measures to improve the lot of the poor, such as the Royal

Commission on housing. She also supported many charities involved in

education, hospitals and other areas.

Victoria and her family travelled and were seen on an unprecedented

scale, thanks to transport improvements and other technical changes such as

the spread of newspapers and the invention of photography. Victoria was the

first reigning monarch to use trains - she made her first train journey in

1842.

In her later years, she almost became the symbol of the British Empire.

Both the Golden (1887) and the Diamond (1897) Jubilees, held to celebrate

the 50th and 60th anniversaries of the queen's accession, were marked with

great displays and public ceremonies. On both occasions, Colonial

Conferences attended by the Prime Ministers of the self-governing colonies

were held.

Despite her advanced age, Victoria continued her duties to the end -

including an official visit to Dublin in 1900. The Boer War in South Africa

overshadowed the end of her reign. As in the Crimean War nearly half a

century earlier, Victoria reviewed her troops and visited hospitals; she

remained undaunted by British reverses during the campaign: 'We are not

interested in the possibilities of defeat; they do not exist.'

Victoria died at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight, on 22 January 1901

after a reign which lasted almost 64 years, the longest in British history.

She was buried at Windsor beside Prince Albert, in the Frogmore Royal

Mausoleum, which she had built for their final resting place. Above the

Mausoleum door are inscribed Victoria's words: 'farewell best beloved, here

at last I shall rest with thee, with thee in Christ I shall rise again'.

SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA

The name Saxe-Coburg-Gotha came to the British Royal Family in 1840 with

the marriage of Queen Victoria to Prince Albert, son of Ernst, Duke of

Saxe-Coburg & Gotha. Queen Victoria herself remained a member of the House

of Hanover.

The only British monarch of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha was King

Edward VII, who reigned for nine years at the beginning of the modern age

in the early years of the 20th century. King George V replaced the German-

sounding title with that of Windsor during the First World War. The name

Saxe-Coburg-Gotha survived in other European monarchies, including the

current Belgian Royal Family and the former monarchies of Portugal and

Bulgaria.

SAXE-COBURG AND GOTHA

1837 - 1917

THE WINDSORS

1917 – PRESENT DAY

VICTORIA = m. Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg &

Gotha

(1837-1910) (Prince Consort)

EDWARD VII = m. Princess Alexandra, dau.

of CHRISTIAN IX, King of

(1910 – 1936) Denmark

DUKE OF WINDSOR

GEORGE VI = m. Lady Elizabeth

EDWARD VIII

1936-1952 Bowes-Lyon, dau. of Earl of

(abdicated 1936)

Strathmore and

Kinghorne

(Queen

Elizabeth

The

Queen Mother)

QUEEN ELIZABETH II

(1952 – present day)

EDWARD VII (1901-10)

Edward VII, born November 9, 1841, was the eldest son of Queen Victoria.

He took the family name of his father, Prince Consort Albert, hence the

change in lineage, although he was still Hanoverian on his mother's side.

He married Princess Alexandra of Denmark in 1863, who bore him three sons

and three daughters. Edward died on May 6, 1910, after a series of heart

attacks.

Victoria, true to the Hanoverian name, saw the worst in Edward. She and

Albert imposed a strict regime upon Edward, who proved resistant and

resentful throughout his youth. His marriage at age twenty-two to Alexandra

afforded him some relief from his mother's domination, but even after

Albert's death in 1863, Victoria consistently denied her son any official

governmental role. Edward rebelled by completely indulging himself in

women, food, drink, gambling, sport and travel. Alexandra turned a blind

eye to his extramarital activities, which continued well into his sixties

and found him implicated in several divorce cases.

Edward succeeded the throne upon Victoria's death; despite his risquй

reputation, Edward threw himself into his role of king with vitality. His

extensive European travels gave him a solid foundation as an ambassador in

foreign relations. Quite a few of the royal houses of Europe were his

relatives, allowing him to actively assist in foreign policy negotiations.

He also maintained an active social life, and his penchant for flamboyant

accouterments set trends among the fashionable. Victoria's fears proved

wrong: Edward's forays into foreign policy had direct bearing on the

alliances between Great Britain and both France and Russia, and aside from

his sexual indiscretions, his manner and style endeared him to the English

populace.

Social legislation was the focus of Parliament during Edward's reign. The

1902 Education Act provided subsidized secondary education, and the Liberal

government passed a series of acts benefiting children after 1906; old age

pensions were established in 1908. The 1909 Labour Exchanges Act laid the

groundwork for national health insurance, which led to a constitutional

crisis over the means of budgeting such social legislation. The budget set

forth by David Lloyd-George proposed major tax increases on wealthy

landowners and was defeated in Parliament. Prime Minister Asquith appealed

to Edward to create several new peerages to swing the vote, but Edward

steadfastly refused. Edward died amidst the budgetary crisis at age sixty-

eight, which was resolved the following year by the Liberal government's

passage of the act.

Despite Edward's colorful personal life and Victoria's perceptions of him

as profligate, Edward ruled peacefully (aside from the Boer War of 1899-

1902) and successfully during his short reign, which is remarkable

considering the shifts in European power that occurred in the first decade

of the twentieth century.

THE HOUSE OF WINDSOR

The House of Windsor came into being in 1917, when the name was adopted

as the British Royal Family's official name by a proclamation of King

George V, replacing the historic name of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. It remains the

family name of the current Royal Family.

During the twentieth century, kings and queens of the United Kingdom have

fulfilled the varied duties of constitutional monarchy. One of their most

important roles was national figureheads lifting public morale during the

devastating world wars of 1914-18 and 1939-45.

The period saw the modernization of the monarchy in tandem with the many

social changes which have taken place over the past 80 years. One such

modernization has been the use of mass communication technologies to make

the Royal Family accessible to a broader public the world over. George V

adopted the new relatively new medium of radio to broadcast across the

Empire at Christmas; the Coronation ceremony was broadcast on television

for the first time in 1953, at The Queen's insistence; and the World Wide

Web has been used for the past five years to provide a global audience with

information about the Royal Family. During this period British monarchs

have also played a vital part in promoting international relations,

retaining ties with former colonies in their role as Head of the

Commonwealth.

GEORGE V (1910-36)

George V was born June 3, 1865, the second son of Edward VII and

Alexandra. His early education was somewhat insignificant as compared to

that of the heir apparent, his older brother Albert. George chose the

career of professional naval officer and served competently until Albert

died in 1892, upon which George assumed the role of the heir apparent. He

married Mary of Teck (affectionately called May) in 1893, who bore him four

sons and one daughter. He died the year after his silver jubilee after a

series of debilitating attacks of bronchitis, on January 20, 1936.

George ascended the throne in the midst of a constitutional crisis: the

budget controversy of 1910. Tories in the House of Lords were at odds with

Liberals in the Commons pushing for social reforms. When George agreed to

create enough Liberal peerages to pass the measure the Lords capitulated

and gave up the power of absolute veto, resolving the problem officially

with passage of the Parliament Bill in 1911. The first World War broke out

in 1914, during which George and May made several visits to the front; on

one such visit, George's horse rolled on top of him, breaking his pelvis -

George remained in pain for the rest of his life from the injury. The

worldwide depression of 1929-1931 deeply affected England, prompting the

king to persuade the heads of the three political parties (Labour,

Conservative and Liberal) to unite into a coalition government. By the end

of the 1920's, George and the Windsors were but one of few royal families

who retained their status in Europe.

The relationship between England and the rest of the Empire underwent

several changes. An independent Irish Parliament was established in 1918

after the Sinn Fein uprising in 1916, and the Government of Ireland Act

(1920) divided Ireland along religious lines. Canada, Australia, New

Zealand and South Africa demanded the right of self-governance after the

war, resulting in the creation of the British Commonwealth of Nations by

the Statute of Westminster in 1931. India was accorded some degree of self-

determination with the Government of India Act in 1935.

The nature of the monarchy evolved through the influence of George. In

contrast to his grandmother and father - Victoria's ambition to exert

political influence in the tradition of Elizabeth I and Edward VII's

aspirations to manipulate the destiny of nations - George's royal

perspective was considerably more humble. He strove to embody those

qualities, which the nation saw as their greatest strengths: diligence,

dignity and duty. The monarchy transformed from an institution of

constitutional legality to the bulwark of traditional values and customs

(particularly those concerning the family). Robert Lacey describes George

as such: ". . . as his official biographer felt compelled to admit, King

George V was distinguished 'by no exercise of social gifts, by no personal

magnetism, by no intellectual powers. He was neither a wit nor a brilliant

raconteur, neither well-read nor well-educated, and he made no great

contribution to enlightened social converse. He lacked intellectual

curiosity and only late in life acquired some measure of artistic taste.'

He was, in other words, exactly like most of his subjects. He discovered a

new job for modern kings and queens to do - representation."

EDWARD VIII ( JANUARY-DECEMBER 1936)

As Prince of Wales, Edward VIII (reigned January-December 1936) had

successfully carried out a number of regional visits (including areas hit

by economic depression) and other official engagements. These visits and

his official tours overseas, together with his good war record and genuine

care for the underprivileged, had made him popular.

The first monarch to be a qualified pilot, Edward created The King's Flight

(now known as 32 (The Royal) Squadron) in 1936 to provide air transport for

the Royal family's official duties.

In 1930, the Prince, who had already had a number of affairs, had met and

fallen in love with a married American woman, Mrs Wallis Simpson. Concern

about Edward's private life grew in the Cabinet, opposition parties and the

Dominions, when Mrs Simpson obtained a divorce in 1936 and it was clear

that Edward was determined to marry her.

Eventually Edward realised he had to choose between the Crown and Mrs

Simpson who, as a twice-divorced woman, would not have been acceptable as

Queen. On 10 December 1936, Edward VIII executed an Instrument of

Abdication which was given legal effect the following day, when Edward gave

Royal Assent to His Majesty's Declaration of Abdication Act, by which

Edward VIII and any children he might have were excluded from succession to

the throne. In 1937, Edward was created Duke of Windsor and married Wallis

Simpson.

During the Second World War, the Duke of Windsor escaped from Paris,

where he was living at the time of the fall of France, to Lisbon in 1940.

The Duke of Windsor was then appointed Governor of the Bahamas, a position

he held until 1945. He lived abroad until the end of his life, dying in

1972 in Paris (he is buried at Windsor). Edward was never crowned; his

reign lasted 325 days. His brother Albert became King, using his last name

George.

GEORGE VI (1936-52)

George VI, born December 14, 1895, was the second son of George V and

Mary of Teck. He was an unassuming, shy boy who greatly admired his brother

Edward, Prince of Wales. From childhood to the age of thirty, George

suffered with a bad stammer in his speech, which exacerbated his shyness;

Lionel Logue, an Australian speech therapist, was instrumental in helping

George overcome the speech defect. George married Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon

in 1923, who bore him two daughters, Elizabeth and Margaret. He died from

cancer on February 6, 1952.

Due to the controversy surrounding the abdication of Edward VIII, popular

opinion of the throne was at its lowest point since the latter half of

Victoria's reign. The abdication, however, was soon overshadowed by

continental developments, as Europe inched closer to yet another World War.

After several years of pursuing "appeasement" policies with Germany, Great

Britain (and France) declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939. George,

following in his father's footsteps, visited troops, munitions factories,

supply docks and bomb-damaged areas to support the war effort. As the

Nazi's bombed London, the royal family remained at Buckingham Palace;

George went so far as to practice firing his revolver, vowing that he would

defend Buckingham to the death. Fortunately, such defense was never

necessary. The actions of the King and Queen during the war years greatly

added to the prestige of the monarchy.

George predicted the hardships following the end of the war as early as

1941. From 1945-50, Great Britain underwent marked transitions. The Bank of

England, as well as most facets of industry, transportation, energy

production and health care, were brought to some degree of public

ownership. The birth pangs of the Welfare State and the change from Empire

to multiracial Commonwealth troubled the high-strung king. The political

turmoil and economic hardships of the post-war years left the king

physically and emotionally drained by the time of his death.

In the context of royal history, George VI was one of only five monarchs

who succeeded the throne in the lifetime of his predecessor; Henry IV,

Edward IV, Richard III, and William III were the other four. George, upon

his ascension, wrote to Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin concerning the state

of the monarchy: "I am new to the job but I hope that time will be allowed

to me to make amends for what has happened." His brother Edward continued

to advise George on matters of the day, but such advice was a hindrance, as

it was contradictory to policies pursued by George's ministers. The "slim,

quiet man with tired eyes" (as described by Logue) had a troubled reign,

but he did much to leave the monarchy in better condition than he found it.

ELIZABETH II (1952-PRESENT)

Elizabeth II, born April 21, 1926, is the eldest daughter of George VI

and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. She married Philip Mountbatten, a distant cousin,

in 1947; the pair have four children: Charles, Prince of Wales, Anne,

Andrew and Edward. She has reigned for forty-six years, and appears capable

of remaining on the throne for quite some time.

Monarchy, as an institution in Europe, all but disappeared during the two

World Wars: a scant ten monarchs remain today, seven of which have familial

ties to England. Elizabeth is, by far, the best known of these, and is the

most widely traveled Head of State in the world. Her ascension was

accompanied by constitutional innovation; each independent, self-governing

country proclaimed Elizabeth, Queen of their individual state. She approves

of the transformation from Empire to Commonwealth, describing the change as

a "beneficial and civilized metamorphosis." The indivisibility of the crown

was formally abandoned by statute in 1953, and "Head of the Commonwealth"

was added to the long list of royal titles which she possesses.

Elizabeth's travels have won the adulation of her subjects; she is

greeted with honest enthusiasm and warm regard with each visit abroad. She

has been the master link in a chain of unity forged among the various

countries within the Commonwealth. Hence, the monarchy, as well as the

Empire, has evolved - what once was the image of absolute power is now a

symbol of fraternity.

Elizabeth has managed to maintain a division between her public and

private life. She is the first monarch to send her children to boarding

schools in order to remove them from the ever-probing media. She has a

strong sense of duty and diligence and dispatches her queenly business with

great candor, efficiency and dignity. Her knowledge of current situations

and trends is uncannily up to date, often to the embarrassment of her Prime

Ministers. Harold Wilson, upon his retirement, remarked, "I shall certainly

advise my successor to do his homework before his audience." Churchill, who

had served four monarchs, was impressed and delighted by her knowledge and

wit. She possesses a sense of humor rarely exhibited in public where a

dignified presence is her goal.

Elizabeth, like her father before her, raised the character of the

monarchy through her actions. Unfortunately, the actions of her children

have tarnished the royal name. The much publicized divorces of Charles from

Diana and Andrew from Sarah Ferguson have been followed by further

indiscretions by the princes, causing a heavily-taxed populace to rethink

the necessity of a monarchy. Perhaps Elizabeth will not reign as long as

Victoria, but her exceptionally long reign has provided a bright spot in

the life of her country.

THE MONARCHY TODAY

THE QUEEN'S ROLE

The Queen is the United Kingdom's Head of State. As well as carrying out

significant constitutional functions, The Queen also acts as a focus for

national unity, presiding at ceremonial occasions, visiting local

communities and representing Britain around the world. The Queen is also

Head of the Commonwealth. During her reign she has visited all the

Commonwealth countries, going on 'walkabouts' to gain direct contact with

people from all walks of life throughout the world.

Behind and in front of the cameras, The Queen's work goes on. No two days

in The Queen's working life are ever the same.

QUEEN'S ROLE IN THE MODERN STATE

Until the end of the 17th century, British monarchs were executive

monarchs - that is, they had the right to make and pass legislation. Since

the beginning of the eighteenth century, the monarch has become a

constitutional monarch, which means that he or she is bound by rules and

conventions and remains politically impartial.

On almost all matters he or she acts on the advice of ministers. While

acting constitutionally, the Sovereign retains an important political role

as Head of State, formally appointing prime ministers, approving certain

legislation and bestowing honours.

The Queen also has important roles to play in other organisations,

including the Armed Forces and the Church of England.

QUEEN'S ROLE IN THE MODERN STATE

Until the end of the 17th century, British monarchs were executive

monarchs - that is, they had the right to make and pass legislation. Since

the beginning of the eighteenth century, the monarch has become a

constitutional monarch, which means that he or she is bound by rules and

conventions and remains politically impartial.

On almost all matters he or she acts on the advice of ministers. While

acting constitutionally, the Sovereign retains an important political role

as Head of State, formally appointing prime ministers, approving certain

legislation and bestowing honours.

The Queen also has important roles to play in other organisations,

including the Armed Forces and the Church of England.

QUEEN AND COMMONWEALTH

The Queen is not only Queen of the United Kingdom, but Head of the

Commonwealth, a voluntary association of 54 independent countries.

Most of these countries have progressed from British rule to independent

self-government, and the Commonwealth now serves to foster international co-

operation and trade links between people all over the world.

The Queen is also Queen of a number of Commonwealth realms, including

Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

ROYAL VISITS

Visits to all kinds of places throughout the United Kingdom, Commonwealth

and overseas are an important part of the work of The Queen and members of

the Royal family. They allow members of the Royal family to meet people

from all walks of life and backgrounds, to celebrate local and national

achievements and to strengthen friendships between different countries.

Many of the visits are connected to charities and other organisations with

which members of the Royal family are associated. In other cases, royal

visits help to celebrate historic occasions in the life of a region or

nation. All visits are carefully planned to ensure that as many people as

possible have the opportunity to see or meet members of the Royal family.

THE QUEEN'S WORKING DAY

The Queen has many different duties to perform every day. Some are

familiar public duties, such as Investitures, ceremonies, receptions or

visits within the United Kingdom or abroad. Away from the cameras, however,

The Queen's work goes on. It includes reading letters from the public,

official papers and briefing notes; audiences with political ministers or

ambassadors; and meetings with her Private Secretaries to discuss her

future diary plans. No two days are ever the same and The Queen must remain

prepared throughout.

CEREMONIES AND PAGEANTRY

The colourful ceremonies and traditions associated with the British

Monarchy are rich in history and meaning and fascinating to watch. In some,

The Queen takes part in person. In others - such as Guard Mounting or Swan

Upping - the ceremony is performed in The Queen's name. Many of the

ceremonies take place on a regular basis - every year or even every day -

which means that British people and visitors to London and other parts of

the United Kingdom may have an opportunity to see some of these interesting

events take place.

THE QUEEN'S CEREMONIAL DUTIES

The Queen has many ceremonial roles. Some - such as the State Opening of

Parliament, Audiences with new ambassadors and the presentation of

decorations at Investitures - relate to The Queen's role as Head of State.

Others - such as the presentation of Maundy money and the hosting of

garden parties - are historical ceremonies in which kings and queens have

taken part for decades or even centuries.

ROYAL PAGEANTRY AND TRADITIONS

In addition to the events in which The Queen takes part, there are many

other ceremonies and traditions associated with the British Monarchy. Some

of these have military associations, involving troops from the present

Armed Forces as well as the members of the historical royal bodyguard, the

Yeomen of the Guard. Others are traditions which are less well known than

the colourful pageantry but are interesting in their own right. Some - such

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