There could be aid to have been an element of hypocrisy in the chorus of disapproval about the Royal Family’s reaction to Diana’s death, a chorus which seemed to spring from nowhere, and which puzzled and distressed them. Loyal courtiers were outraged by the criticism which alleged that the Queen was unfeeling. Those who had in the past accused her of putting duty before family, now pointed the finger at her for not rushing to join in the people’s catharsis, when all she and Philip were doing was giving precedence to the grief of the two stricken young princes. The miasma which clouded the issue of the Queen’s role as sovereign in the traumatic days following August 31 that year has now largely faded.
In its outpouring of grief the country temporarily lost sight of the value of a hard-working, practical monarch, personified by a stoical Queen who, in her long reign, has not put a foot wrong on any really important issue affecting the welfare of her people.
In this century, reference points for certainty are rare, but Her Majesty is without doubt one of them. Loyalty and service have been her priorities throughout her reign. She has never been the cause of a constitutional crisis, and, above all, has kept a level head and sense of perspective.
An elderly peer, observing her at her father’s funeral, in St George’s Chapel, Windsor, was heard to mutter solicitously: ‘Charming little creature. I hope they don’t work her too hard.’ Well perhaps they have, but Her Majesty appears to have thrived on her destiny ■
See also: The Queen on Her Platinum Jubilee: Her Reign, Part 1
