In what continues to be an odd and difficult year in literally every respect, March has also been odd. The Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, and as it should, dominates much of the news coverage. I don’t necessarily think that is particularly a bad thing for the royals, at least not for the British Royal Family- 2022 has not been a great year thus far. However, royal activities do seem to be picking up as of late, again, and they will continue to do so throughout the spring. So without further adieu, I present my Musings on Monarchy: March 2022!
For this month’s royal Twitter account feature, I am highlighting @RoyalsOther, aka History, Royals, and Other Things. They share a lot of royal history (mostly OTD posts), as well as other interesting bits and bobs! (They always include fantastic photos, a must follow in my books.)
The Queen Skips Commonwealth Day Service
The Commonwealth Day Service has long been an important annual event for Her Majesty, but a few days before, the Palace announced that she would not be attending this year. I would imagine that they are being extra careful with her Covid infection, as it hasn’t been that long. And from the reports I’ve read, the concerns were largely with her mobility- Westminster Abbey is a thousand years old, and the flooring isn’t exactly even. However, as of Friday, March 25th, reporters are still saying she hopes to attend the Service of Thanksgiving in honour of Prince Philip on the 29th!
Who Is and Is Not Going to the Service…
Speaking of Prince Philip’s service, there has been a lot of talk on who will and who will not be attending. Prince Harry let it be known earlier in March that he would not be able to attend due to security reasons; given that his case against the Home Office about security is still in progress, this isn’t surprising but it is sad that he is unable.
Many royals from across Europe will be attending. King Felipe and Queen Letizia of Spain will be there, as well King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium, and King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima, and Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands. The Scandinavian royals will also be there with Queen Margrethe of Denmark, King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden, and King Harald and Queen Sonja of Norway. In addition to these royals and more to be expected, there will be 500 represented from charities and organisations that he was patron of.
The Cambridges Head to The Caribbean
As announced earlier, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge embarked on a Caribbean tour, visiting Belize, Jamaica, and the Bahamas this past week. And to say the least, this has been an odd tour.
Described by many reporters as a charm offensive, this tour has carried significant weight. Barbados removed The Queen as their head of state in late 2021, and several other Caribbean nations have been agitating for the same change. At a dinner in Jamaica this week, the Jamaican Prime Minister gave a speech remarking on the country’s plan to become a republic as soon as possible. I suspect that we will quickly see more nations looking to make the same change.
They met with children at playgrounds and schools, visited a cacao farm, had several formal dinners, and several informal events. It’s been a whirlwind, and if I’m being honest, not a lot of it is standing out aside from the talk of republicanism. I’m not sure if it is me as the person following, or if the Cambridges are off their game, but the tour just feels off.
I do think that part of it might be the reporting. Reporters shared a photograph of the Duchess of Cambridge touching hands/greeting children through a chainlink fence. If you see the other photographs/videos, it is because it is at a football (soccer) stadium but the image of the white Duchess shaking hands with black children through a chainlink fence is not a good one… There also has been a back and forth on “THERE ARE PROTESTORS” and “THERE ARE ALWAYS PROTESTORS”.
At the time of writing, the tour isn’t quite done, but as of right now, I won’t say it is a failure but it isn’t a glowing success either.
Charles and Camilla Are Visiting the Emerald Isle
In a weird scheduling blip, The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall were in Ireland while the Cambridges were on their tour which always leads to less coverage. To start off with, most royal reporters were on the Caribbean tour, so few were actually present in Ireland, and understandably, the bulk of the attention was on the Cambridges.
Having lived in Ireland, it has been a lot of fun following this tour. Yes, there has been less coverage, but it really appears that both Charles and Camilla are enjoying themselves. While I’m neither here nor there on the horse racing stuff (apologies to the racing fans reading this), seeing the couple visit the Rock of Cashel was very cool for me. (I studied early Irish history, and that site featured in much of my research.)
Charles and Camilla also always appear to be good sports on engagements and tours. And of course while in Ireland, you make sure to fit in a few ceilidh dances! And given that THe Duchess had to cancel a few engagements prior to the trip due to persistent Covid symptoms, I’m thrilled to see her out and about dancing. (Though I’m sure that she will need to rest as soon as they are home.)
I still maintain that it is odd that Ireland of all places got another royal visit when they had one in March 2020 before everything closed, and Ireland has such a complex history with the crown that a Jubilee year visit seems bizarre, I’m glad we got to see it.
What would you have included in your Musings on Monarchy: March 2022 post?
Cheers,
The Historian
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