Forgotten Hollywood

Manny P. here…

“`The torch has passed from the monarchy of Queen Elizabeth II to King Charles III.  Though expected, the monarch’s passing shocked her nation, commonwealth and the globe for people who only knew one leader of Great Britain for the entirety of their lives.

“`Continuity for the country has been upended in already turbulent times. Just two days before,  Elizabeth met with her fifteenth prime minister during her reign.  She had also witnessed the inauguration of fourteen presidents across the pond. The queen, who traveled on more than 271 state visits, engaged in a career of soft diplomancy; a policy that served her for seventy years. QUEEN ELIZABETH II –>

“`Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary was born in London on April 21, 1926, granddaughter of King George V and the first child of Prince Albert, the Duke of York, and wife, Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, a daughter of the Scottish nobility. She was just ten-years-old when her father became King George VI, having adopted his father’s name.

“`In 1940, during World War II, Princess Elizabeth made her first broadcast, addressing the children of Britain, especially wartime evacuees. In 1946, Lt. Philip Mountbatten, then in his mid-twenties, was given permission by King George VI to marry his daughter, on a condition that they wait until Elizabeth was twenty-one. Prince Charles was born in 1948. She became Queen Elizabeth II at the age of twenty-five. Philip gave up his service to the Royal Navy to support his wife. Her coronation on June 2, 1953 was broadcast on radio and television.

“`Her reign navigated through a very changing world. When she ascended to the throne, she relied on Prime Minister Winston Churchill to advise her on how to retain a relevent monarchy during the Cold War. The 1960s were a culturally turbulant times and Elizabeth was willing to see her country modernize.

“`Family troubles created personal chaos just as broadcast media became a formidable way to document affairs of state. Her sister Margaret was a social butterfly and son Charles proved to be quite bitter as he grew up in a world where he had to submit to a life of service. His broken union to Diana Spencer almost derailed the monarchy when she became a global phenomenon and then, after she died so tragically. More recently, Harry’s marriage put a fresh coat of paint on the troublesome protocol of the crown and the trouble it has caused the family, particularly on his mother and wife.

“`Elizabeth stuck to her instincts  and stayed stoic in the face of political and personal issues that became more relevent to her royal subjects. In 1992, a fire ravaged Windsor Castle, the medieval fortress where Elizabeth had spent so much of her childhood. The royal family faced backlash from British taxpayers who learned they were expected to help pay for the repairs.

“`The queen had links, either as royal patron or president, to well over six hundred charities, military associations, professional bodies and public service organizations.  She continued to attend royal engagements, from Buckingham Palace garden parties and knighting ceremony receptions, state banquets and travels throughout the commonwealth.

“`She has been portrayed in film with mostly flattering characterizations, even if her personal drama was written into the scripts. Helen Mirren earned an Oscar for her performance in The Queen. Claire Foy, Olivia Coleman and Imelda Staunton guided Elizabeth from young adult to her senior years on the Netflix mini-series, The Crown.

“`She was not afraid to keep up with the times, including sending her initial tweet in 2014  and publishing her first Instagram post in 2019. During the coronavirus pandemic, Queen Elizabeth began doing video calls so that she could continue to connect with people while working from home. She retained a lifelong interest in horses and her beloved corgis.

“`She lost her husband in 2021. Just this year, Elizabeth became the first British monarch to reach a Platinum Jubilee — seventy years on the throne. In June, the public celebrated the queen with a four-day celebration. She professed a re-commitment to service and called for support when Charles would eventually ascend to the throne.

“`Queen Elizabeth II was ninety-six. Long live the King!

Until next time>                               “never forget”

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 8th, 2022 at 3:37 pm and is filed under Blog by Manny Pacheco. You can follow any comments to this post through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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