Definitely have mixed feelings about the late monarch but she has had a role in many historic moments. She definitely has had an immense life, one that she certainly would not have had but for her uncle’s abdication. Is that chance? Is it fate? I find the whole history of the British monarchy to be immensely interesting. In the Queen’s lifetime, the empire has fallen somewhat like Rome. It’s been a descent that has happened over the last few centuries but I find her role interesting. She balanced being present, poised and metered in her responses with an understanding that her family and people in positions like her were an entirely dying breed. I wonder what she actually thought as she rose to “power” at 25 and how she balanced staying true to tradition and trying to move with the times.
We only have books like these written by outsiders to report and speculate. I would love if they discovered some hidden memoir or published her private diaries. I know that won’t happen but I would find being in her head very interesting. This book was far too misogynistic and gossipy for my taste. It focused on Elizabeth and Margaret as if they were in an episode of Gossip Girl. Just because they were women, the author has focused on matters of the heart. While that is a part of their lives for sure, I wanted more meat. More insight on the politics of the time and some insider details on why or how royal stances were made.
Either way, today is a reverent day to send her off in peace. I think the future of the royal family should be selling off (or returning) their jewels, gold and property to benefit those who were impacted by their ancestors’ choices. The new generations can be present in British life but should be focused more on charitable pursuits rather than pomp and circumstance. Just my two cents…
RIP Lizzie!
openmypages 