What Happens to The British Empire Now?
“The Queen is dead. Long live the King,” was a phrase that was last uttered in 1901 after the death of Queen Victoria, when her son Edward ascended to the English throne. However on September 8, Buckingham Palace announced the death of Queen Elizabeth II and the succession of the Prince of Wales, now King Charles III. The proclamation, mostly figuratively used for 121 years, once again seeped through the press and pop culture.
The syntactic construction of the expression has clear intentions, both confirming the death of one king and the resurrection of another. Blunt, of course. But it soon cuts to the point that while the monarchy has shifted, the crown’s power structure remains very much intact.
In the turbulent Middle Ages, when succession challenges could spark wars in which heads would literally roll over, quickly moving on after the death of a king was an important peacekeeping method. That may be true even today. While the monarchy has little governmental power in Britain—making violent conflict over any change impossible—republicism is on the rise. Most recently, Barbados removed the queen as head of state, while a recent YouGov survey found support for the monarchy has fallen dramatically among 18- to 24-year-olds in the UK. So a quick statement is, and, is necessary.
In the near future, Prince Charles will officially declare himself king and head of the Commonwealth in front of more than 100 British civil servants and dignitaries. For her mother, it happened two days after her father’s death. But the timing was just right as the queen had to travel back to England from Kenya, which was a fairly long journey in 1953. Delay was impossible for Charles: According to Politico, he would take the oath at 10 a.m. the day after. mother’s departure. Two days later, Charles will tour the UK including Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The queen’s funeral will likely take place almost 10 days after her death. (For comparison: King George VI died on February 6, and his funeral took place on February 15.) Delaying coronavirus restrictions, it will be a state funeral at Westminster Abbey. Queen Elizabeth will be buried with her husband, Prince Philip, at Windsor Castle.
Charles will likely not be crowned for at least a few months: The Queen, however, was crowned a year and a half later in June 1953. When the coronation takes place, Charles’ wife, Camilla, will be named Empress after Her Majesty’s wishes. Then, the two would continue as King and Queen, Head of the Commonwealth and Defender of the Faith, as the kings of England have done for thousands of years.