Peter Jones: Jubilee may make Scots think again
Might the Diamond jubilee cause Scots to think again? Picture: AFP/Getty
The celebration of the Queen’s 60 years on the throne could have an impact on the independence debate, writes Peter Jones
The Queen, as you may have noticed, has been on the throne for 60 years. This June, there will be all sorts of pageants, processions and parties to celebrate this fact.
I daresay that I will be out there, entirely hypocritically, enjoying the pomp and the partying with everyone else. And I will be wondering whether there will be a political effect of this which will impact on the Scottish independence debate.
I confess I am not a monarchist. Given a free hand to design a constitution, there would be no place in my blueprint for a constitutional monarchy. I much prefer the democracy of a republic. I dislike the notion of class – that someone is superior to me just by accident of birth – that is epitomised by the Royal Family.
So would I join a campaign to abolish the monarchy? No, and not because I do have respect for the way the Queen does her job carrying out an enormous programme of public engagements. Simply, it would be a complete waste of time because the monarchy is just not going to go away.
It has long been something of a mystery to me why the great British public, whether they count themselves Scottish, English, Welsh or Northern Irish first and British second or not at all, have such affection for the Queen and her family.
My own, and very brief, encounters with royalty have not inspired loyalty or even liking for them, with the exception of Prince Philip, who struck me as a lot sharper and wittier than his portrayal in the public prints. Indeed, he seemed to be the sort of guy you could enjoy a pint and a chat with down in the local.
But the rest of them I found to be haughty and arrogant. Indeed, it occurred to me after one quite absurd conversation with Prince Charles that the best thing a republican campaign could do would be to get every voter to meet them and watch the scales slipping from their eyes.
Perhaps because that isn’t possible, the eyes of the majority of the public remain scaled and their spectacles rose-tinted.
This becomes most obvious when you are abroad. Last summer, I was in France when Prince William married Kate Middleton. Expatriates living in the French village where we were staying threw an enormous party.
We went along in our best smart casuals to find women in high fashion and huge hats and men who had dragged out morning suits from somewhere. Oh dear. Remembering similar high pomp from Charles and Diana’s wedding, and the low EastEnders-style scandals and tragedy that followed, I was completely cynical about the whole thing. But I was pretty much on my own. Everyone else found it marvellous, thrilling, glorious, uplifting, etc.
What struck me was how the event seemed to generate pride in the assembled expats. A lot of them live in France not just because of the weather, but because they think Britain has gone to the dogs. And yet the wedding somehow seemed to reaffirm their basic belief that Britain does deserve the word “Great” in front of it, and that to be British (although a lot of them irritatingly conflate that with “English”) is a wonderful thing.
This self-generated pride is mirrored by admiration from foreigners. French newspapers gushed with accounts of the wedding and the French news magazines were filled cover-to-cover with photographs and interminable (adulatory) detail about Kate’s dress. France may be a republic, but it swoons when faced with the British monarchy.
The same seems to be true in that other great republic, the United States. Last year, I was in Boston, a city intensely proud to be where the flame of American revolt against British colonial rule was lit. On State Street (which replaced the previous name of King Street for obvious reasons) I noticed a plaque screwed to a low wall. It recorded that on a particular date in 1976, “Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth and His Royal Highness Prince Philip passed by this spot” on their way to some event in the bicentennial celebrations of American independence. What? Passed by this spot? Didn’t even stop to shake a few hands or plant a tree? And these staunch Bostonian republicans put up a plaque to commemorate this royal passing by?
The lesson I draw from these and other such instances is that the Queen and the Royal Family have a place in people’s imaginations which defies rational analysis. Their’s is an emotional appeal which over-rides questions of cost, efficiency and modernity and somehow manages to make people feel good about themselves.
I don’t quite understand how this works, but it seems to me that an essential aspect of this is the way the Queen conducts herself with complete dignity, impeccable behaviour, and with admirable energy to quite a heavy programme of civic engagements which is in complete contrast to the activities of political leaders.
This, plus the undoubted romance of royalty (has there ever been a little boy or girl who didn’t want to be a prince or a princess) makes royal people (despite other evidence to the contrary) special. And because the Queen is the British head of state, it makes being British special too.
That, I think, is the essential emotional link between the Queen and the people – that she and the people (though many readers will disagree) can share their Britishness, and because the Queen and the monarchy are believed to be special and better, people can transfer that to themselves by association to enhance their pride in their Britishness.
All nations like to think of themselves as exceptional – unique in some blessed way – and to other nations, this aspect of British exceptionalism is both an object of curiosity because it is an ancient anachronism and an object of affection because it is romantic and harmless.
This may yet have profound implications for the Scottish political debate. Just as Alex Salmond and the SNP are telling Scots that Britain is a clapped-out political relic to be left behind, along comes the diamond jubilee which, at a subliminal level at least, is saying the exact opposite.
While the Queen is studiously and correctly non-political, this year she cannot avoid being political, just by being the Queen.
Join the debate. A Question of Independence: How will the referendum work?, 9th March, Edinburgh.
Book now for a highly charged and thought provoking event.
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Comments
There are 71 comments to this article
Page 1 of 5
mikem64
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 11:33 PMI think one of the most telling phrases in this article is that "every boy and girl dreams of being a prince or princess". Very true but of course in a republic such as the US or France that dream can be realised whereas here we are left in some infantile state where we can never realise that. I submit that is unhealthy for a modern society and we should take the plunge and finally grow up!
Anagach
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 08:36 PM68 Tartancult Everything I didn't want to know about history, I learned on this site - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Then you should have paid attention at school, oh I forgot its un-Unionist to teach the history of Scotland to pupils in Scotland, well read a book then.
Libra Personified
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 07:51 PM67 Gibbo. I'll agree with you on that one. I was in the army between 1966 and 1973. It opened my eyes to the "Union".
Tartancult
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 07:45 PMEverything I didn't want to know about history, I learned on this site - you lot must be soooooooooooooo much fun at a party.
Gibbo
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 07:08 PMMallus 12. I dont know where you are coming from, I am sure I made no reference to you in my post, however if I did and I cannot find the post please accept my apologies, my main point was it took me until 1974 to get the Union out of my system being as I had been all these years overseas in the army, when I arrived back in aberdeen 1974 and started working with the oil companies I soon learened the truth about the Devious union from all sides of the political specturm. I am very much a confirmed Nationlist (SNP) and it is indpendence for me.
Libra Personified
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 07:00 PMMr Jones. The Queen's coronation was on 2 June 1953. On 2 June 2013, the First Minister may well have something to do with any of the Jubilee celebrations but it will only impact Scotland with a Scotsman opinion poll.
Thormod
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 05:50 PMWhat a patronising article and completely out of touch with the depth of feeling in a substantial proportion of the Scottish community. Like we were all disillusioned children only waiting for a party to bring us back to our senses. The 'union' has had more than enough time. Labour governments too lazy to do anything for the good of this country and Conservative governments we never vote in. And we are expected to embrace this failure of an arrangement as soon as a few flags are waved. In the photo that accompanies this article it shows only the flag of St George. That says it all.
Anagach
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 05:49 PM49 Taigh na Croiche Will the Jubilee also have Ireland, Canada, the US, New Zealand, Australia etc all clamouring to be ruled from London again? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Your not allowed to mention them. The very idea that a country can be Independent, succesful and have the Queen as head of state is just anti-Unionist propoganda.
Anagach
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 05:46 PM50 Biscuit McVittie The SNP policy of retaining the monarchy is absurd. Firstly as there is no longer a Kingdom of Scotland we cannot aromatically assume that the present monarch or her successors will be ‘King of Scots’. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I guess the Union of the Crowns passed you by. I blame the lack of history taught at School.
Anagach
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 05:43 PM58 Buford Van Stomm inexplicably stupid. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Indeed.
The West Awake
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 04:25 PMTo me it was really significant just how much a recent poll measured how much the Scots value the union - 500 quid, or, the price of a set of curtains. How much would it take for us to dump the monarchy? I reckon about £15, maybe less.
mallus12
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 04:23 PMGibbo-Nowhere in my many postings will you find where I say Scotland cannot become Independent if it wishes or that it cannot survive--both England and Scotland did before 1707did they not? I am curious to know that during your 23 years in the Army were you aware that to quote the SNP"you were serving an aberation"?
mallus12
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 04:16 PMPoor Queen Liz! She and her family have made it plain how much they love Scotland and the Scots but alas not as much as they love themselves!
Buford Van Stomm
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 03:45 PMIf ST Andrew had really been looking at a Scottish sky ==================================================== inexplicably stupid.
Roky
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 03:33 PMThe silent majority do love our Queen & Royal family....Its the yappy lefty media types (usually working for Ch4) and other layabouts (mostly students I expect) who constantly knock our Royals....Personally Im looking forward to the Jubilee celebrations.
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