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united Royal Family.
lt
is, of
cou rse, the Quecn who has played
the regal role. The charm of her
personality is an accepted fact.
There is nothing "chocolate-box"
about her radiant good looks
because they go with a singular
dignity and gracc that have made
her walkabouts as well as her
State appearanccs unaffected and
totally successful.
The Queen, as the mcmbcrs of
her royal household know, is a lov–
ing and outstandingjoyful mother,
able to romp with her children
when they werc young and win
their complete confidence as thcy
have grown older. Her own paren ts
TheCrown
and
Religion
T
he Queen is the titular "Defen–
der of the Faith" -and in par–
ti cular the Church of England. The
assumption has always been that
no heir to the throne should marry
a Roman Catholic . This wou ld
automatically avoid the risk of the
Royal Family becoming Catholic
at sorne time in the future. A
Roman Catholic Princess would
have been an unacceptable bride
for Prince Charles simply because
of her religion.
brought hcr up to practice modera–
tion and to believe in modesty. Shc
also learncd how to belong in a real
home that was simplicity itsclf and
never a mattcr of pomp and cir–
cumstancc. Thc Qucen 's grand–
mother, the late Quecn Mary,
found her "steadfast" and "deter–
mined" as a child, and her charac–
ter maturcd with a notable consis–
tency.
Her seriousness as a child gave
way to a spontaneous readiness to
smile and laugh, and shc secms to
have passcd on this balance of
character to her children. One of
the characteristics that she has
passed to Prince Charles is to pres-
PTPhOIO
" The English Monarchy strength–
ens our Government with the
strength of religion ." The Mon–
arch is "the Lord's anointed . "
Nor was the belief in a "sacred
line of sovereigns" ever forsaken.
The sacred line became an
English Protestan! line.
The t ille of "Defender of the
Faith" dates back to the treatise
written by King Henry VIII, which
ironically defended the seven sacra–
ments of the Roman Catholic
Church. Henry, often wrongly sup–
posed to have helped convert the
people of his realm from Roman
Catholicism to the Protestan! faith,
wrote his treatise in opposition to
Martín Luther. 11 was accorded
instan! recognition by Rome. Henry
remained a Catholic all his days . He
did object to !he overlordship of
Rome, and his real aim may have
been the creation of an English
Catholic Church, independent of
Rome.
Walter Bagehot wrote that
But sadly it has to be said that
religion plays a decreasing part in
the lite of Britain today. lf a public
opinion poli were to have been
held recently on the subject of
whether an heir to the throne
should marry a Roman Catholic,
many Britons would have ab–
stained, and many who might
have sa id ' 'No' ' would have
reacted only instinctively. There is
no consensus of opinion in Britain
today on any subject with a reli–
gious connotation.
o
24
ent a "public face" that is truly
happy. This goes beyond a capacity
to act a part; it entails ability to
regard public occasions as worth–
while and even enjoyable.
The case with which the
Queen chats to childrcn during
her walkabouts is notorious. She
has mastered the art of saying
the right word at thc right
moment.
But she also has a keen sense
of discipline and a highly devel–
oped sense of responsibility.
Being groomed for her own role,
she has made sure that this has
been repeatcd for all of hcr chil–
dren.
The Duke of Edinburgh has
helped a grcat deal. Once or twice
he has come under fire of critics
for spcaking bis mind bluntly.
But overall, his patent honesty,
good sense and vigour have stood
him in good stead. Maybe one of
his least-noticcd achicvcments
has becn lo guide his chi ldren
into so many interests: they are at
ease in politics and public life, in
their work and in the outdoors.
Betwccn them, the royal cou–
ple havc created a united family.
Princess Anne, happily married
to Captain Mark Phillips, is
incrcasingly becoming an asset.
She has overcome an earlier
unsureness, giving a rcmarkably
convincing performance when she
was installed in March of this
year as Chancellor of London
University.
Pcrhaps the outstanding quali–
ty of a ll four of the Qucen's chil–
dren is that they remain unaf–
fectedly unspoiled- a tribute to
their parents' care and a sensible
upbringing among children of
their own age. To be royal and
commoners at one and the same
time may not be easy. Somehow
thc royal children havc managed
it.
Walter Bagehot has also writ–
ten that "A
family
on the throne
is an interesting idea also.
lt
brings down the pride of sover–
eignty to the level of petty life."
Written more than a hundred
years ago, these words underline
a truth that holds good today.
The fact of "family" brings the
Queen, her husband and her chil-
The
PLAIN TRUTH