Family On The Throne

British Constitutional Monarchy

During the last two weeks, we have witnessed much pomp and ceremony in Britain. The mourning rituals and the funeral of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, were elaborately and meticulously planned. But what was also planned, in fact, it has been planned and replanned and practiced for almost two centuries now, are the vivid displays of the human side of the British monarchy. For example, we saw the sadness of Her Majesty’s family in the last two weeks.

This is the soft side of power, and perhaps the only type of power left to a British King or Queen, whose predecessors had absolute power that was predicated on the factual power to rule, i.e., to legislate and decree, and divine right — the perception that monarchs were anointed by God.

Soft power is also a kind of power that even Queen Victoria, whose reign began in 1837, appreciated. She strived to distinguish herself from the two previous British monarchs, who were not known for attending to their families. For example, in her official portraits, she not only included her entire family, which was a novel form of presenting the monarchy, but also took great care to show her children playing with their puppies and toys on the messy floor, as if they were a normal family.