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Royal birth: welcome, Baby Cambridge Royal birth: welcome, Baby Cambridge
(2 months later)
Congratulations and all good wishes. A new baby is a very splendid thing. The duke and duchess of Cambridge along with maybe a thousand other mothers and fathers are about to embark on the ordeal of first parenthood – the exhilaration, the exhaustion, the wonder, and the worry. The grandparents, all new to the role, will no doubt dote from the wings, trying to help but not to overwhelm. The great grandparents, a role to which the Queen and Prince Philip are now accustomed, are presumably excused. A large, loving, extended family, parental stability and financial security: this baby is blessed indeed. But, of course, there is a not so good fairy by the cradle too. This is a child whose path is already mapped out, destined for a life never far from the centre of the public stage. Every parent gazes at their newborn infant wondering what kind of a world they will grow up in, and what they will grow up to inherit. This baby will be a mirror of that world, reflecting it, maybe shaping it.Congratulations and all good wishes. A new baby is a very splendid thing. The duke and duchess of Cambridge along with maybe a thousand other mothers and fathers are about to embark on the ordeal of first parenthood – the exhilaration, the exhaustion, the wonder, and the worry. The grandparents, all new to the role, will no doubt dote from the wings, trying to help but not to overwhelm. The great grandparents, a role to which the Queen and Prince Philip are now accustomed, are presumably excused. A large, loving, extended family, parental stability and financial security: this baby is blessed indeed. But, of course, there is a not so good fairy by the cradle too. This is a child whose path is already mapped out, destined for a life never far from the centre of the public stage. Every parent gazes at their newborn infant wondering what kind of a world they will grow up in, and what they will grow up to inherit. This baby will be a mirror of that world, reflecting it, maybe shaping it.
Any heir to the throne is a waymark, a point of reference in the history of the state and the monarchy. Already he is the first royal child to be born entitled to inherit regardless of gender. He may yet, Commonwealth leaders permitting, become the first heir able to marry someone of any faith or none. The world into which he has been born is truly a different place even to the world into which his father, Prince William, was delivered 31 years ago amid the early, angry years of Thatcherism. Today's society is more socially liberal, less racist, mostly better-off but also much less equal, much less radical and much less interested in politics.Any heir to the throne is a waymark, a point of reference in the history of the state and the monarchy. Already he is the first royal child to be born entitled to inherit regardless of gender. He may yet, Commonwealth leaders permitting, become the first heir able to marry someone of any faith or none. The world into which he has been born is truly a different place even to the world into which his father, Prince William, was delivered 31 years ago amid the early, angry years of Thatcherism. Today's society is more socially liberal, less racist, mostly better-off but also much less equal, much less radical and much less interested in politics.
All of these changes contribute to buoying up a monarchy that is itself transformed. At the time of the Queen's coronation in 1953, it is said a third of her subjects believed she was there by divine right. Now she has become the ultimate celebrity, crowd-puller, and national product endorser. Her great-grandchild can never escape the public gaze, however much he, and his parents, wish it, for he's part of the compact that preserves the monarchy.All of these changes contribute to buoying up a monarchy that is itself transformed. At the time of the Queen's coronation in 1953, it is said a third of her subjects believed she was there by divine right. Now she has become the ultimate celebrity, crowd-puller, and national product endorser. Her great-grandchild can never escape the public gaze, however much he, and his parents, wish it, for he's part of the compact that preserves the monarchy.
A royal birth is also a handy point on a thousand graphs, from medical fashion to republican sentiment. The monarchy as an institution is as popular as it has been at any time since the war, an almost incredible recovery from its dim decades at the end of the last century, when this level of support was almost unimaginable. That was the time of the Queen's annus horribilis, the year the serial infidelities of her children were exposed in titillating detail, Windsor castle caught fire and a mutinous public refused to pay for restoration. A crop of books predicted the end of monarchy and a republican reviewer optimistically observed that theoretical discussion of monarchism was bound to lead many to discover that they were republicans at heart.A royal birth is also a handy point on a thousand graphs, from medical fashion to republican sentiment. The monarchy as an institution is as popular as it has been at any time since the war, an almost incredible recovery from its dim decades at the end of the last century, when this level of support was almost unimaginable. That was the time of the Queen's annus horribilis, the year the serial infidelities of her children were exposed in titillating detail, Windsor castle caught fire and a mutinous public refused to pay for restoration. A crop of books predicted the end of monarchy and a republican reviewer optimistically observed that theoretical discussion of monarchism was bound to lead many to discover that they were republicans at heart.
The turning point came at the low point of Princess Diana's death: it owed something to the introduction of brand management to Buckingham Palace, and much to the way that the family was, as a result, made over by masters of the art. When the Queen Mother died in 2002, a million monarchists lined her funeral route.By the end of last year's jubilee celebrations, the Queen had a 90% approval rating and most thought the monarchy would last for at least another 50 years (although 60% also thought Britain would not be a monarchy by 2112). Now Prince Charles has married his long-term mistress, a move that once looked likely to trigger a revolution but now seems no bar to his succession. His son Prince William is the only member of the family who is even more popular than the Queen. The royals can rarely have seemed more secure.The turning point came at the low point of Princess Diana's death: it owed something to the introduction of brand management to Buckingham Palace, and much to the way that the family was, as a result, made over by masters of the art. When the Queen Mother died in 2002, a million monarchists lined her funeral route.By the end of last year's jubilee celebrations, the Queen had a 90% approval rating and most thought the monarchy would last for at least another 50 years (although 60% also thought Britain would not be a monarchy by 2112). Now Prince Charles has married his long-term mistress, a move that once looked likely to trigger a revolution but now seems no bar to his succession. His son Prince William is the only member of the family who is even more popular than the Queen. The royals can rarely have seemed more secure.
And yet. Baby Cambridge is unlikely to inherit for at least 50 years. However exemplary the reigns of his father and grandfather, however impeccable his own future behaviour, will Britain in 2065 still be a state that has at its apex one individual whose place is decided by birth? Since the one thing that we have learned in the last 50 years is that monarchy has a logic-defying resilience, it looks as if the answer could be yes.And yet. Baby Cambridge is unlikely to inherit for at least 50 years. However exemplary the reigns of his father and grandfather, however impeccable his own future behaviour, will Britain in 2065 still be a state that has at its apex one individual whose place is decided by birth? Since the one thing that we have learned in the last 50 years is that monarchy has a logic-defying resilience, it looks as if the answer could be yes.
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