Can the British monarchy survive in its gilded cage?
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[April 20, 2023]
By Michael Holden and Sarah Mills
LONDON(Reuters) - As Britain prepares to crown King Charles III in a
ceremony with traditions dating back some 1,000 years, the monarchy
confronts a question it has faced down the centuries: how does it
survive in the modern world?
For the House of Windsor, that does not mean dealing with growing
hostility from politicians or the public, for which there is little
evidence, but rather their indifference and simply becoming negligible.
And in a world where mobile phones are ubiquitous, brutal social media
commentary is rampant, and the media's voracious appetite for royal
stories is insatiable, the greatest issue might be that the family
themselves no longer fancy the job.
"One thing that Prince Harry has really reminded us, if we needed any,
is just how incredibly painful it is to live in a cage in which you are
constantly scrutinised," royal author Tina Brown told Reuters.
"It's a pretty terrible thing to contemplate that your own life is
something that you have no control over and that ultimately, it's just
not going to change and you are going to be in a zoo forever.
While many other European monarchies have come and gone, or are far
diminished in scale and importance, the British royal family has
remained remarkably resilient.
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Polls show the monarchy is supported by the majority of Britons,
although that backing has slipped slightly since the death of Queen
Elizabeth last September, and Charles does not enjoy quite the same
overwhelming popularity of his mother.
But surveys also constantly indicate the young are less bothered about
the institution than older generations, and as Elizabeth herself once
said, while it was hard for them to gauge public opinion, partly because
of deference, "read it we must".
Republic, a group that wants to abolish the monarchy, has pointed to a
poll which showed a majority of people were not interested in the
coronation.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Apr/20/images/ads/current/culligan_sda_SFARM_2023.png)
"Most of us aren't that interested, and most of us think the royals
should pay," its chief executive Graham Smith said.
RELEVANCE
"Relevance is absolutely crucial to the monarchy," said Robert Hardman,
a long-time royal correspondent and author of 'Queen of our Times'.
"The big threat to the future of the House of Windsor is not mobs
storming the gate, it's not revolution, it's becoming irrelevant. The
queen always used to say we have to be seen to be believed."
But therein lies the catch for the royals. There has long been a
symbiotic relationship between the press and the royals, with papers
extensively covering their engagements such that barely a day passes
without an appearance on the front page of a national newspaper.
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![](../images/042023PIX/news_a18.jpg)
Britain's King Charles arrives to attend
The Sovereign's Parade at the Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst,
Britain, April 14, 2023. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls
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But, in return, the royals are considered public property with an
expectation that they play the press "game" in return for gilded
lives in palaces.
"Monarchs and their families need the media just as the media need
them," Harshan Kumarasingham, senior lecturer in British politics at
the University of Edinburgh.
"A monarchy exists in a very precarious existence where it can be at
the centre of our adulation, but it can also be at the centre of our
criticism and fears."
In his memoir "Spare", Netflix documentary series and TV interviews,
Prince Harry, the king's younger son, made it clear that such an
life in a media goldfish bowl was not one he was prepared to put
himself nor his U.S. wife Meghan and their children through any
more.
He also accused his family or those working for them, notably elder
brother and heir Prince William and his stepmother Camilla, now the
queen consort, of colluding with the press to plant negative stories
about him in order to enhance or protect their public image.
In his younger days, Harry made front page news when he was pictured
wearing a Nazi uniform at a costume party, had run-ins with
paparazzi outside nightclubs, and was later pictured naked while
partying in Las Vegas.
EXPOSURE
With everyone having cameras on their mobile phones, there will be
even more risk of exposure for the three young children of Prince
William who face having every minor misdemeanour, inappropriate
comment, or embarrassing mistake captured on film.
"When people talk about the privileges, I would say that the
difficulties and the and the imprisonment of it, far outweigh really
the privileges," Tina Brown said. "So I'm not sure whether one
should expect that of modern people."
However, whatever difficulties it has faced over the years, from
wars, divorce, internal squabbles or even abdication, the monarchy
has always shown a remarkable ability to bounce back from adversity.
"It's remarkable at adapting," Laura Clancy, a media lecturer at
Lancaster University who specialises in the royals. "They've shown
that they know that they need to adapt to the modern world in order
to keep existing."
Whether they will want to is another matter.
"People rightly talk about the privilege and the money and the
palaces and the Bentleys," a former close aide of King Charles once
told Reuters. "It is a privilege, but it carries a great burden. I
would never wish that life on anyone."
(Reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
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