The emotion of funerals will dissipate like the London fog when the west wind pushes it towards the sea. Little by little, the discreet charm of the deceased queen will become a void that the new monarchs must fill. It will then be seen if Carlos III and the queen consort can be a mirror in which the majority of British people want to see themselves reflected.
Without Elizabeth II, what remains on stage is an opaque king and a prince who shines behind the throne. How long will it take for that brightness to outshine the figure without glare?
Talal bin Abdullah’s shadow seems to sweep across the British Isles. That prince of the then called Emirate of Transjordan inherited the throne in 1951 when his father, King Adbdala bin Hussein, was shot in the head while praying the twilight prayer in the Al Aqsa mosque. But the new monarch was considered unsuitable to lead the Hashemite kingdom in such a volatile setting as the Middle East. For some Bedouin sheikhs he lacked intelligence and for others he lacked emotional balance. The fact is that, shortly after sitting on the throne, Talal had to get up to be occupied by his son, Hussein, who was only 16 years old and, since then, reigned in Jordan for half a century and did so with cunning, intelligence and courage required to govern in that troubled region.
Like those Bedouin sheikhs, there will be many in Westminster and in the British ruling class thinking that the best thing for the United Kingdom is that the scepter that Charles III received passes as soon as possible to the new Prince of Wales: William Arthur Philip Louis. They will also think that the attraction that the British crown generates in the world and that Queen Elizabeth II achieved by far (proof of which is even the tourist phenomenon that caused her funeral), the radiant and glamorous Kate Middleton would contribute more than the current one. queen consort. The opacity of the new kings contrasts with the brilliance of the new princes of Wales. It happens that the European monarchies today have obligations that they did not have before. Now they live, as in a reality show, under the gaze of societies that must approve them, because yesterday’s subjects are citizens today. And European citizens demand irreproachable conduct and attitudes from this anachronistic and genetically unequal institution.
Kings no longer have the luxury of displaying aristocratic sneers, frivolities, and caprices. Although they are not at risk of happening to them like Charles I in 1649, when he was overthrown and beheaded for attempting absolute powers like the Louises of France, if they do not obtain the majority respect in society they will be the target of pressure to abdicate.
Juan Carlos de Borbón was appreciated by most of the Spaniards, but when decrepitude showed unacceptable weaknesses, the pressure made him pass the crown to his eldest son, who had a good image.
Like Felipe VI, the new Prince of Wales shows an image of balance and capacity. He radiates confidence in being able to fulfill the stabilizing role of institutions and governance that democracy requires of monarchs. In addition, William is the son of the “sad princess” who had captivated the British, while her father, the new king, was the one who saddened her with her indifference.
The queen with the halo of a lovable grandmother no longer travels the valleys and hills of Balmoral in her Land Rover, nor rests in Buckingham’s chambers. In her place are those who had been “the bad guys” in the melodrama starring Diana Spencer. The British were enthralled with Lady Di. That rapture turned into resentment towards Carlos and his lover, Camila Parker Bowles, when Diana sank into visible sadness at the heartbreak and mistreatment of her cold and distant husband.
The “villains” of the drama in which the suffering beauty died escaping from paparazzi in Paris, are the ones who became kings due to the death of the queen. That adds a somber touch to the reign that began at Elizabeth’s funeral. This shadow is increased by the doubts that exist about whether the new monarch possesses the self-sacrifice and the psychological and emotional balance that characterized his grandfather George VI and his recently deceased mother.
On the one hand, there is what has been done in recent years in favor of the fight against climate change; positive role that showed a profile of a statesman that Carlos had never exhibited. But on the other hand there are the stories of servants who had to suffer his unbearable aristocratic whims, describing what seem to be symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) with traits of social supremacism. Unfriendly defects that were also perceived in his unscrupulous treatment of the mother of his children.
In parliamentary monarchies, the kings must have a behavior, a charisma and a personality in which society wants to see itself reflected. It is an identification that may be superfluous, even wrong, but without it, society is limited to supporting the monarchs and they lose the ability to fulfill the function of institutional stabilizer.
Another role of kings in democracies is to look good in the “country brand”, strengthening it and making the image of the State and the nation they represent more attractive in the world.
The British leadership will soon realize how much more attractive the image of the Prince and Princess of Wales is than that of the King and Queen Consort. William is the son of the princess who had charmed the British. Carlos and Camila are the cause of the sadness that that beautiful woman showed like an uncontrollable tear. The prince is the heir to the popular affection that turned into antipathy towards the man and woman who now reign.
It won’t be long before Scottish nationalism wants to stop having the English king as head of state. With the queen loving to spend time at Scotland’s Balmoral, they seemed keen to keep the crown as a symbol of her status, even while leaving the UK. But they will not maintain that disposition with Carlos III, whose opacity will also increase republicanism in the Commonwealth countries. Perhaps three or four years of Carlos III is enough to take care of the forms in the succession order. If the British crown takes too long to go from the opaque king to the shining prince, that monarchy could result in “a democratic deficit that is suffered by inheritance”, as Joaquín Sabina says.
