You gotta hand it to the British. They do pomp and ceremony better than anyone since the Romans (whose gaudy Triumphs and bloody coliseum games are still a source of comment and wonder today), and possibly even better than them. and certainly with less blood and horror.
There was an oddly almost electric sense of solemnity and celebration, to be oxymoronic, a delicate combination to pull off, as the Queen was carried in slow measured steps, with Big Ben sounding the last approach, to Westminster Hall, where she’ll lie in State for as many of her subjects to view as can be briskly moved thru between now and Monday.
Considering that the line to pay their respects is four across, and at last count, seven miles long (expected to grow to 10 miles very shortly, and may already have as I write this), there may not be enough time to accommodate everyone.
The solemnity, of course, was for the passing of an era, and the diminutive woman who created a good deal of it, and held the Commonwealth together for 70 years.
The celebration part was understated (another thing the English do infinitely better than almost anybody else) but unignorable …. the stability of her country as the baton of power passed seamlessly to the next in line. It wasn’t always so in England, but that’s a tale for another day.
WARNING .... Some totally nerdy historical information about Westminster Hall, where so much of England’s history has played out …..
Westminster Hall, which dates back to 1099, is the oldest building on the Parliamentary estate.
It was built by William II, who may have been tired of his father being called William the Bastard, tho by all contemporary accounts he really, really was, and built this impressive edifice presumably so he could get some respect ….
It carries the world’s largest unsupported roof, and it survived 12 direct hits in 1941 during the Battle of Britain, when London was peppered nightly by constant Nazi bombings …. this was its second narrow escape. The first was the fire of 1834, caused by a stove overheating which razed the rest of the Palace of Westminster to the ground, but left Westminster Hall more or less intact.
Richard II, son of Edward, the Black Prince, who most of
us remember from the movie A Knight's Tale
Originally, the hall roof was supported by rows of indoor pillars, but Richard II wanted something grander and more spacious, and ordered that they be removed. This created a tricky problem, since without them, the walls couldn't bear the weight of the roof, but a royal decree was a royal decree. The job fell to carpenter Hugh Herland and architect Henry Yevele, who solved the considerable problems by building huge hammer-shaped oak beams and strengthening the walls. Not sure if that includes flying buttresses, which I just love for their delicate tracery and incredible strength.
But I digress ....
In the 14th century the hall became a center of London life, housing the law courts and selling an odd host of legal paraphernalia from wigs and pens to law books, for barristers who needed to “brush up” …..
Fawkes now famous ANONYMOUS mask ....
It was also the scene of the trial of Guy Fawkes (who lives on in the instantly recognizable mask of Anonymous) and his fellow Gunpowder Plot conspirators in 1606, after their thwarted attempt to blow up both the Houses of Parliament. “Remember, remember / The 5th of November…”, is still celebrated today ….
Charles I, by Van Dyke, 1635
It was the setting for the first ever trail of a royal monarch, King Charles I, who was tried for treason found guilty, and beheaded in the 17th century. Next to the current King Charles, only Charles II had to wait almst as long to ascend to the throne, thru the Cromwell revolution and reign and other bits of messiness, before Britain decided that, yeah, maybe a king wasn’t such a bad idea …
Charles II, The Merry Monarch
Charles II was an intellectual, a hedonist, and a lover of women (“If a lady is kind enough to invite one to her bed, it would be churlish of one to decline”), except apparently, his wife. He had no legitimate heirs, but left so many Fitzroys behind that, for all you know, you could be one of his direct descendants. Get in line ....
A witty wag of the day wrote of Charles II …
“We have a pretty, witty king,
Whose word no man relies on,
He never said a foolish thing,
And never did a wise one"
Whose word no man relies on,
He never said a foolish thing,
And never did a wise one"
To which the pretty, witty king, who still lived in a time when he could have had that other witty tongue silenced forever, instead responded that “ …. the matter is easily accounted for: For that our discourse is our own, our actions were the ministry's".
Gladstone in Vanity Fair caricature, 1869
William Gladstone, called The People’s Prime Minister for his liberal views in support of the working man in spite of being a member of the Tory party, was a PM of Britain for 12 years, spread over 4 different non-consecutive terms under Queen Victoria, lay in state there in 1898.
Others who shared that honor were Edward VII, George V, George VI, and Queen Mary …
Winston Churchill in 1944
More recently, Churchill lay in state within those hallowed halls, as well as the Queen Mother, who lived to 102 or 103, so maybe a word to the wise to those smug pundits predicting a very short and inglorious reign for King Charles III.
Well there it is. Now you know way more than you ever wanted to about England and some of her traditions, which are a good reminder that it takes a lot to bring down a solid institution, what with so many on this side of the Pond bemoaning the death of democracy. Or in our case, the Constitutional Republic.
God bless Good Queen Bess II, and flights of angels sing her to her rest ….
