On April 21, 1947, the then-Princess Elizabeth was celebrating her 21st birthday in Cape Town together with her father, King George VI, her mother, Queen Elizabeth, and her sister, Princess Margaret.
Sitting in Cape Town’s Government House garden, the young princess addressed the empire and the Commonwealth, then still recovering from the terrible devastation of World War II. She addressed those of her generation and augured that they work to create a Commonwealth which is “more free, more prosperous, more happy and a more powerful influence for good in the world”.
The zeitgeist against the empire could, undoubtedly, be felt; just four months after the address, India was to be partitioned and granted its independence. Other countries would follow. Not all transitions were peaceful and unbloodied. Yet, re-reading her speech, one is struck by how selfless yet modern and relevant it was.
She acknowledges that she is different from several of her predecessors. Since she is a woman, she could not have the title of ‘Prince of Wales’, traditionally given to the heirs to the throne. Nonetheless, she is inspired by the traditional motto, ‘I serve’. Though she is not accorded this privilege, technology allows her to do something her predecessors could not.
She uses the radio to make one of her most famous pronouncements: “I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.”
She kept her word. Her life is, indeed, a very long and fruitful one. During this long life, she saw that great imperial family disintegrate. Despite this, people’s affection and respect for the monarch remained intact.
She has managed to keep her reserve regardless of what was taking place. This has sometimes been the subject of much criticism, such as when her former daughter-in-law Diana Spencer died in a car crash in Paris. Nonetheless, this cool reserve has allowed her to remain above the political fray without getting involved in over-emotional responses.
There was much during her reign which would have broken any other constitutional leader. Her reign coincided with the anti-establishment revolutions in the late 1960s, the troubles in Northern Ireland in the 1970s, the entire process of decolonisation, the strikes in the 1980s and the profound social changes in the 1990s, not to mention the Scottish independence referendum which could have irrevocably changed the nature of the United Kingdom.
Nevertheless, the queen has never expressed a political opinion. Instead, she remained above the political fray and allowed the Crown to continue to be the backbone of the British constitutional system. Quiet reserve and emotional restraint are two things most politicians would do well to embrace.
Her public persona, on her admission, was nurtured by a profound inner Christian faith. This goes beyond her official role as ‘Supreme Governor of the Church of England’ and the inherited title ‘Defender of the Faith’.
There was much during her reign which would have broken any other constitutional leader- André DeBattista
Throughout her life, she has often returned to the parable of the Good Samaritan. This parable, found in the Gospel of St Luke, tells of a Jewish traveller who was left beaten and bruised by the wayside after being robbed. A Jewish priest and a Levite leave him by the wayside but a Samaritan helps the injured man and sees to his needs. This happens even though Samaritans and Jews did not like each other much.
The queen has referenced this parable on at least four traditional Christmas broadcasts. She spoke of the role of duty towards neighbours, be that those living closest to us and those in different parts of the globe suffering from tragedies and sadness. At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, she paid tribute to the many health workers and “kind Samaritans” who emerged from the shadows to engage in extraordinary selflessness and kindness.
Her 1985 Christmas broadcast ends with a beautiful thought: “We should never forget our obligation to make our own individual contributions, however small, towards the sum of human goodness. The story of the Good Samaritan reminds us of our duty to our neighbour. We should try to follow Christ’s clear instruction at the end of that story: ‘Go and do thou likewise’.”
Though widely lauded for her selfless sense of duty and service – often, it seems, at the expense of her own family – the role that her faith plays is often downplayed. Nonetheless, her sense of dedication, her unimpeachable sense of duty and her tireless service can only be explained by their rootedness in something greater than the self. This message is even more poignant in an age where the idea of service seems only to be understood in relation to the individual benefit it can reap.
As a member of the Commonwealth, Malta will commemorate this event in some small way. Malta remains the only country that the queen could call home other than the United Kingdom. She has referred to Malta as her “isle of happy memories”. Many Maltese undoubtedly share similar happy memories of the royal couple, both through their various visits along the years and other, more personal memories from their extended stays between 1949 and 1951. In addition, the queen held the constitutional role of Queen of Malta between 1964 and 1974.
Her years of service also speak to a country which seems to discard the contribution that can be given by the elderly and one which often seems oblivious to the concept of service and duty. The increasingly frail 96-year-old queen, attending to her duties in a quiet and dignified way, seems to speak volumes to a society that appears to fetishise youth, vulgar showiness and is hell-bent on lining private pockets with cash.
For this, and much more, the world looks on with great awe and admiration.
André DeBattista, political scientist