Welcome back to my monthly feature where I share my thoughts on current royal news items. I have to say, February has been so busy, I strongly considered breaking it up into fortnightly posts… This month I am focusing solely on the British Royal Family, as they have kept us more than busy. Without further adieu, here is Musings on Monarchy: February 2022!
Before I jump into royal news, I want to feature a different royal voice each month. This month I am featuring Ed W, known as The Legal Monarchist on Twitter– he is a Canadian lawyer who is incredibly knowledgeable about the BRF and constitutional law (an important combination), he is a must follow! (If you are in Canada, you will often catch him on CBC…)
The Platinum Jubilee Officially Begins… With an Announcement
On 6 February, The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee officially began- 70 years early, she ascended the throne upon her father’s death. While she normally marks the day in quiet reflection at Sandringham, she did meet with locals on the 5th for a tea to celebrate. There was a lovely cake with a cake cutting- something we always watch for- and Her Majesty looked to be in good spirits.
Notably in her statement released on the 5th, The Queen specifically noted that she wanted Camilla to be known as a Queen Consort, rather than Princess Consort as originally suggested in 2005 when Charles and Camilla wed. Some people have said that they feel betrayed (or words to that effect) because “they’ve changed their minds” on what was said in 2005. Well, the world was in a different place in 2005, Camilla has tirelessly dedicated herself to the job for 17 years, and it is time to move forward. If you haven’t ever changed your mind on something, you may want to consider why that is instead of questioning why others can and do…
Some have also said that this announcement overshadowed the 6th, but I don’t think that is an issue. It very much is a day for quiet contemplation for Elizabeth, not a day of celebration. That will come in June. She is laying the groundwork for the monarchy after her reign, and I would expect nothing less from her.
Prince Andrew Settles
I am not going to wade too far into this story because I am not 100% on the legal side of it, but Prince Andrew’s civil case in the US with Virginia Giuffre was settled out of court to the tune of £12,000,000.
It’s interesting for a few reasons. Firstly, from all sources connected to Andrew, he wanted to go to court so that he could prove his innocence- settling has not proved his innocence whatsoever. Secondly, his statement did not have a common line you see in statements of this nature proclaiming his innocence still. And finally: there is still the question of where the money will come from. Some reporters have said that The Queen will cover the portion that will be donated to Giuffre’s charity, so that she can help with the bill but technically not pay his legal fees. However, that still leaves the large majority to be paid…
Covid Strikes the BRF
This is somewhat personal for me, as I had Covid myself in January 2022 (and have had related issues for quite some time after), but I find it rather worrying that the three most senior members of the British Royal Family (The Queen, Prince Charles, and The Duchess of Cornwall) have contracted Covid, with Prince Charles on his second infection. From over here in Canada, the BRF seems to be rather cavalier with Covid protocols (in my opinion, not ascribing that to others)- they’ve ditched masks immediately, even though they often have large crowds at public engagements (oftentimes with vulnerable populations). And I know that they are tested daily but as indicated by these infections, that isn’t a huge help to stopping yourself being infected.
I am hopeful that it will at least provide even more protection on top of their three vaccines, but it felt very risky to me to jump back into pre-Covid engagement styles. I don’t think that they need to be solely virtual, but perhaps keeping masks, some physical distancing, and smaller crowds would have been a safer way to expand their activities. I’m a healthy individual in their early 30s with lasting symptoms, and I took far fewer risks- I’m baffled as to why the royals took these risks.
Royal Tour Announcements Largely Overshadowed
I’m writing this the day before this post goes up, and wow, were people unhappy with my statements on Twitter. However, if you missed it on my Twitter, I will share it here.
On Thursday, 24 February, the British Royal Family announced several “royal tours”, though the first is very much a short trip to Ireland. They are as follows:
Charles and Camilla- Ireland, 23-25 March
William and Catherine- Belize, Jamaica, The Bahamas, 19-26 March
Edward and Sophie- Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, 22-28 April
Anne and Tim- Papua New Guinea, 11-13 April
There are several things that stand out to me with these announcements.
The big flag to me is that while Canada, New Zealand, and Australia have nothing announced yet, Ireland of all countries has another visit in a Platinum Jubilee year. Given Ireland’s relationship with both the monarchy and England, it seems bizarre- I know that there have been visits in the last decade but still an odd statement to make in a Jubilee year. (And that’s not even factoring in that the Cambridges were there in March 2020…)
A few people replied and many, many people DM’d me to say that Canadian tours happen later in the year, which I know-I saw The Queen and Prince Philip in October 2002 in Winnipeg on their Golden Jubilee tour one of my favourite memories!- but it still is… interesting… that the senior realms have nothing announced yet. The BRF is on the offensive with the Caribbean, but with the world events of 2020 and 2021, they need to “court” all countries. (And Canada, New Zealand, and Australia all have significant Indigenous populations, which all have different but incredibly complex relationships and histories with the Crown.)
And people on Twitter largely disagreed with me but I’m going to say it again- I thought the timing of the tour announcements was horrible and insensitive. Russia had literally invaded Ukraine that morning, and the BRF pushed out these releases. They weren’t embargoed, they were sent out. On the first day of an invasion of a sovereign nation.
Yes, I understand that they had to coordinate with several governments. However, that can happen. If The Queen or another senior member of the royal family was gravely ill or even passed away, you can put all of your gold and silver on announcements being pulled back. Holding off on the announcements would have very much been possible, the BRF chose not to do it. And quite frankly, there was little coverage of it anyway, as the world’s eyes are on Ukraine. While I’m sure people will be thrilled to bits when the tours happen, I think the announcements were a mis-step.
If you missed my January 2022 instalment, you can catch up here: https://anhistorianabouttown.com/musings-on-monarchy-january-2022/.
And if you want more royal news, you can follow my reporting at Royal Central here: https://royalcentral.co.uk/author/jstoroschuk/.
If you have any thoughts on what I’ve said in Musings on Monarchy: February 2022, or have a royal family you’d like to see me touch on, feel free to email me at AnHistorianAboutTown@gmail.com or message me on social media!
Cheers,
The Historian
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