On September 8, 2022, the world gasped at the news that Queen Elizabeth II had died. Queen Elizabeth was the longest reigning monarch in history, ruling the British commonwealth for 70 years. As people processed her death, questions emerged about the countries that England colonized during her reign, ownership of the queen’s precious corgis, and the future of the monarchy. After a lengthy funeral procession, the queen was lowered into the ground. But was the monarchy buried with her?
The moment that Queen Elizabeth died, Prince Charles of Wales became King Charles III. But the new head of the commonwealth may not be as powerful as previous kings have been.
The monarchy has changed tremendously since the rule of Athelstan, the first King of England. In the past few hundred years, Great Britain has colonized countries including Antigua, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands. Monarchs have also made the transitions from rulers to social figures. But this begs the question, what’s next?
According to the BBC, “The King is the UK head of state. However, his powers are symbolic and ceremonial, and he remains politically neutral.”
The institution of the monarchy is widely debated, and, in younger generations, often disliked. Nyack students were asked and responded anonymously to two questions: What do you think will happen to the monarchy? What do you think should happen to the monarchy?
Sophomore Sami Kono said, “I think the monarchy will probably continue in a symbolic sense, but will probably lose even more power.” They “do think it should continue, but [the royal family] shouldn’t have any more power or rights than the average citizen.” Freshman Bella Patuto expressed a similar view: “I think that a lot of the Royal Family has done unethical things…and praising them isn’t a great model for society,”
Sophomore Emma Van Dorpe said that “abolishing the monarchy and replacing it with a democracy can result in a more fair environment.” A 2021 poll by YouGov suggested that only 61% of British citizens over the age of 18 support the monarchy. [Ed. Note: The government of the U.K. is technically a Constitutional Monarchy, which means that, although the king is the head of state, he does not make any political decisions and is a mere figurehead. All government decisions are made by Parliament, who are elected by the citizens of Great Britain. Commonwealths of Great Britain have their own similar systems of government.]
Even with opinions and predictions, the future of the commonwealth is unknown. More attention, awareness, and criticism has been drawn to the Royal Family with the passing of Queen Elizabeth II. She will be remembered for much, and her legacy will include introducing revolutionary structural changes to the United Kingdom and its government.