Vocal Voices

Watching the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral yesterday I was struck by the thought that when the Queen passes on, it will seem quite strange. Most people will barely remember a time when she wasn't Queen.
You do wonder what the future holds for them. There will be royal occasions, the Queen's funeral, Charles's or William's coronation; not many royal weddings though, there's nobody of that age.

There does not appear to be much enthusiasm for "King Charles" and William is a plank.

When the Queen dies I would let it go along the lines of more modern European Monarchies such as those from Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and Sweden.

The King / Queen becomes a figurehead head of state and they and their spouses are funded as such. The heir and the spare are also funded. Everyone else gets a Royal P45.

Crommers, that's been in the back of my mind too, ever since the Duke died. It will be extremely strange, as most of us have only ever known HM as our Monarch I think it will be Charles, but possibly only for a few years, as I don't think he'll reach the age of his parents. I don't know why, just an instinct

I hope HM goes on for a good few years yet, but sadly when a couple have been married for as long as she and the Duke were, the surviving spouse often follows on fairly soon afterwards

I was very moved seeing the servicemen on the lawns of the Windsor Castle. The music was beautiful and was perfect for the occasion. It was sad to see Her Majesty look behind for reassurance before she entered the chapel, and again when she bowed head until only her hat was visible. I could imagine there were quite a few tears shed during that moment, I for one shed them. She has been exemplary throughout her reign and is still working aged 95. How many of us are prepared to do that. I agree with Kaz that Charles' reign may not be that long and the future of the Monarchy will lie with William and Catherine. I think they are both ably suited to carry the Monarchy forward. I would not like to see the Monarchy abolished but I agree that Prince Charles has the right idea when he wants it to be slimmed down drastically. What we witnessed yesterday was a very pared down ceremony but the tradition and the debt we owe to our servicemen was so very evident, and I felt privileged to see them honouring a fellow serviceman. I don't see how those who want to see a republic could ever match what we have now.

Kaz I was thinking the same regarding QE, so sad to lose a lifelong partner, and she has loved him for 80 years as Tom pointed out. Poor lady, I really hope she does go on longer but I can't help but feel she might not...

My feelings exactly Medsec. I also think the future lies with William and Catherine.

I have a great respect for tradition and the royal family I grew up with it dad a RSM in the army then husband in the RAF
But younger generation are not interested as such
It's sad but after William and Kate I don't think there will be much interest
I am sad to say the queen looks so frail I don't think it will be long before Charles will be king

Meds I feel very much the same.

When you join the services and swear your oath to the Queen, if you are thinking, you realise that the monarchy provides an extremely important backstop to the country. If you consider Myanmar, the Generals just took over, nothing to stop them really, they owed no real allegiance to the government which keeps changing.

In the UK the military swear allegiance to the Crown and the King or Queen who is the crown at that time. It is something very different and means that no matter what the politicians are doing or HM Government are doing, there is virtually Zero chance of a military coup in the UK as the allegiance to the crown is extremely strong and hard to go against.

Our current Queen has headed off republicanism by giving the country almost all parts of a republican life without surrendering the crown. She doesn't interfere in government, although, as has been seen, when she has been quoted during an "off the record" comment; that her power in the country is still there. She chooses to leave the people and the people's represented electorate, to run the country and she provides the top level stability it needs.

Charles will not do otherwise and neither will William if I read him correctly.

I feel very deeply for HM, she was born into a role, took it up early through her father's illness, has carried out her duty with dignity and strength and now, more than ever, when her body is failing her, needs that strength to survive the loss of someone who has been the mainstay of her life for almost all of her life.

For what she has done in her life she deserves our support and our compassion. She looked very frail to me and nearly tripped and fell as she entered the chapel and it took a few steps to steady herself. She will keep doing what she was born to do until the day she dies. Just as her husband did what he committed to until the end of his life.

There are some very good examples to take from that.

There was one thing said which crystallises the entire family IMO. When one of the row of people the BBC brought in, who knew the Prince, said "I told him I would be honoured to accept the role. He said, rather sharply, it is a Duty, not an Honour and don't ever forget it". I can only suspect the depth of betrayal he felt over the whole US "pantomime" going on right now. He thought he had, at the very least, in his own family, made it clear the difference between Duty and the impression of Honour.

A whole lifetime (almost), lived in Duty. There was a time when the majority of the people in the UK would recognise and understand that. Now I suspect less than a quarter would. Because Duty is a word which is going out of use in our society.

Exactly stuff well said

It is obvious in this grieving period that no sensible conversation can be held about the place of the Monarchy in a modern world - emotion trumps all else.

I have had great admiration for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, but like others I do fear and wonder how long she can go on for. She will not abdicate, she has made that clear many times, so she will die a Queen.

Then we get King Charles. He is a moderniser and somewhat of a secularist. It will be interesting to see how his reign goes.