1 minute read
The Coronation: Should We Care?
It Matters
Freddie
Advertisement
History. The end of our late Queen’s 70 year reign marks the longest Britain has ever gone with- out a coronation. 2023 may not inaugurate such a long reign, but it undoubtedly marks 70 years of unprecedented historical change. Politics. Sure, its members might stray, but the Monarchy is essentially apolitical. The coronation allows Britons to soar above political partisanship. What harm can that do politics?
Culture. Our late Queen’s 1953 coronation speech celebrated “free speech and respect for the rights of minorities”. All imperfectly adhered to, but ideals most Britons revere to this day. Equally, no longer will our Monarch praise the “majesty” of “Empire”. Now, he expresses “personal sorrow” at the slave trade and backs studies into the Monarchy’s slavery links.
Change and continuity. That is why we should care.
Get me a carriage frst
Zoe
No, we shouldn’t care at all. Monarchy proves that this country values bloodline, ancestry, and class as central to its existence, the opposite of what a civic democracy should aim to be. I don’t get why I should celebrate that the King gets to prance about in a carriage from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Place when I don’t have one taking me from college to my lectures. That being said, nothing is going to change any time soon, so I guess I’ll keep my complaints about the coronation to myself and enjoy my bank holiday.
Fork in the road?
Adam
The upcoming cor onation feels like quite a fork in the road moment for the UK. It will be a strong measure of the role that Charles will be expected to play as he formally takes charge. I personally won’t be “celebrating” - not that the rigours of an Oxford term will allow me much time to anyway. I respect Charles’ views on the environment and see the positives of the role the monarchy plays in our diplomatic ties and tourism industry. However, it feels more than slightly in bad taste to spend public money on a party for a pampered head of state in the middle of a costof-living crisis where many are struggling to get by.
