Congratulations to His Majesty on the occasion of his Coronation yesterday. I enjoyed the service, the razzmatazz, and (in particular) seeing those who were there enjoying being part of a memorable experience. I also welcomed the declaration of service made by the King to his peoples. Right at the beginning of the service, almost certainly at his personal instigation, the King said “I come not to be served but to serve.” Furthermore, the sermon of the Archbishop of Canterbury was, possibly with the connivance of the King, on the theme of service and included “with the privilege of power comes the duty to serve”. I liked that.
I am truly pleased to live in a country where the Head of State has pledged to serve his peoples and, as far as I could tell, actually meant it. I am not impressed by the vanity shown by many leading politicians around the world. I’d rather have a Head of State who has been groomed for the job, and possibly does not actually want it, than someone who seeks power or influence for egotistical reasons. Yes, in many ways retaining a monarchy is somewhat anachronistic. However, when one looks at what other countries experience with the main alternative form of Head of State, that of an elected President, our having a constitutional monarchy alongside an elected Parliament seems a good idea. Our form of democracy is far from perfect but, whilst there is plenty of scope for fine-tuning it in various ways, it does seem to work quite well. Part of that is that we have just had 70 years of excellent service by Queen Elizabeth II and she has been followed by a son who does seem to appreciate the responsibilities of his position. Good luck to him. God Save The King!