This article by Ray Spitzenberger first appeared in Images for East Bernard Express, 15 September 2022.
Queen Elizabeth’s death has touched the hearts of people all over the world. She has always been one of my favorite people, as I have admired her integrity, kindness, strength of character, dedication to duty, sense of humor, strong Christian faith, — and the list of virtues goes on. She set a good example for the people of the United Kingdom and elsewhere.
Although we as a country declared our Independence from England in 1776, and replaced King George III with our own George, President George Washington, I think most of us have not felt any hostility toward the British monarchy. As a former teacher of British literature (which also involves British history), I have come to know the British kings and queens and the way the monarchy system has evolved.
The first Queen Elizabeth ruled during the time of Shakespeare and was also an extraordinary monarch, though without as many high moral values as Elizabeth II. Both Elizabeth’s were superb horsewomen, and both had a great sense of duty to their people.
In my view of British history, I like some monarchs better than others. My favorite Queens were Elizabeth II and Queen Victoria. My favorite Kings were Henry V and James I, — Henry V because he had most of the good qualities a King should have, and James I, because of his deep Christian faith and his incredible Biblical knowledge.
James I knew Hebrew and Greek as well as, and, in some cases, even better than the Bishops in the Church of England. So, it’s not surprising that he himself contributed most of what came to be called “the King James Version” of the Bible. He had the final say on each English translation of each and every Scriptural passage.
Last week, King Charles III was declared the new monarch of the United Kingdom. I must admit that Charles I and Charles II were not favorites of mine, but I believe Charles III is going to be.
Charles I, believing in the Divine Right of Kings, dissolved Parliament a number of times, started a civil war, married a Roman Catholic, was tried for treason, and was decapitated. But the monarchy did not end, as his son, Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660. In my opinion, he did not become a good King.
Although Kings and Queens have never ruled the United States of America, nor served even in symbolic ways, we Americans seem to admire the idealized concept of royalty, from our fascination with fairytales like Cinderella, movies like My Fair Lady, and current Netflix shows like The Crown. The Cinderella story was every girl’s dream come true!
And that’s not to mention our choosing high school prom “Kings” and “Queens”, homecoming “Queens,” county fair “Queens,” etc. We preserve a type of monarchy that is fun and “safe.”
When I was in the First Grade in Dime Box Rural School, we presented a Valentine’s Day play that was a Cinderella story in reverse. Entitled “The Princess Chooses the Pauper,” the plot involved the King, played by my brother, decreeing that the young man giving his daughter, the Princess, the most beautiful Valentine, would be given his daughter’s hand in marriage. A pauper in the Realm, played by me with patches on my britches, made a beautiful homemade Valentine for the Princess, who chose it as the most beautiful, and she then married the pauper, patches and all!
For the pauper, it was an impossible dream come true! God save the King! God save the dream!
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Ray Spitzenberger is a retired Wharton County Junior College teacher, a retired Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod pastor, and author of three books, It Must Be the Noodles, Open Prairies, and Tanka Schoen.