Inside U.K.
Royal Wedding Ushers in a New Age for Britain
By STEVE HILL
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英王室の結婚も新時代へ
先月19日、エリザベス女王の末っ子、エドワード王子が、6年間の交際を経てソフィー・リースジョーンズさんと結婚しました。王室のほかの兄弟は幸せな結婚生活にあまり恵まれませんでしたが、エドワード王子夫妻の前途の見通しは明るいようです。
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With the new millennium fast approaching, the timing of the recent marriage
of the queen's youngest son, Edward, to commoner Sophie Rhys-Jones could not
have been better.
Here was the wedding of a modern couple aware of their responsibilities as
members of the royal family, but determined to learn from the recent past.
They would do things their way while still acknowledging tradition.
The ceremony at London's historic Windsor Castle was grand enough, attended
by some 550 guests, cheered on by thousands of well-wishers packing local
streets, and viewed by millions on television.
But there was little of the state pageantry, glitz and glamour that
surrounded the marriage of older brothers Charles, to Diana, and Andrew, to
Sarah. That was one of the first signs that times have changed — and will
continue to do so as the royal family adapts to the evolving mood of the
nation.
Edward, 35, is the last of the monarch's four children to wed. He looks
forward to a partnership that is happier than those enjoyed by his three
siblings.
The unhappy example of his older brothers and sister was one of the reasons,
publicly acknowledged by the pair, for their six-year courtship. They would
not be rushed into making a rash decision and asked — with success, mostly —
to be left alone by the intrusive British tabloid press. Finally, they
decided to marry.
It was hard not to look with irony at the pictures showing Edward striding
down the road to his wedding accompanied by his two older brothers, both of
whom suffered such unhappy marriages.
His only sister, Anne, also suffered the pain of a broken marriage before
finding happiness the second time around with Cmdr. Tim Lawrence. Even
Edward's aunt, the queen's sister Princess Margaret, was divorced.
On paper, therefore, the chances of a long and happy life together do not
appear good. But the reality, one hopes, will be different.
For a start, the couple are older and more world-wise, and are determined to
live lives as normal possible for people so close to the heart of such a long
and enduring monarchy.
There were several signs on the big day that things have changed. Gone were
the military uniforms, guards of honor, politicians and processions that
symbolized many royal weddings of the past. Celebrity guests could be
spotted — Lord Lloyd-Webber, who gave Edward his first job as an owner of a
television production company; Jackie Stewart, the former Formula One racing
car driver; and British television journalist Sir David Frost among them.
But it was basically a family wedding, even though the proceedings just
happened to be watched by an estimated 200 million people around the world on
television.
Another break with tradition was revealed the morning of the ceremony with the
announcement of new titles for the couple.
Edward is now known as the Earl of Wessex, reviving a title that died
with King Harold II in the year 1066 at the Battle of Hastings, as every
young schoolchild should be able to tell you. And Sophie will be known as Her
Royal Highness the Countess of Wessex, although any children the couple
have will not be called His or Her Royal Highness.
For anyone interested in these affairs of state, Edward will become the Duke
of Edinburgh when his father, who currently bears the title, dies.
As you can see, then, Edward is not ever likely to become a member of the
English middle class, but there is a definite down-to-earth impression
about the life he and his wife will lead.
Their honeymoon, to Balmoral in Scotland, lasted only a few days before the
couple got back to work and to supervising improvements to their new home in
Surrey.
They hope to be left alone, and there is a fair chance that the newspapers
will respect their appeals, particularly The Sun. Britain's biggest-selling
tabloid sparked great controversy in the weeks leading up to the wedding
when it printed a picture, taken several years previously, of a topless Sophie
on holiday with friends.
The newspaper made a great play of its world exclusive and confidently
expected sales to soar, but there was no public appetite for what many
ordinary people perceived to be needless humiliation. The picture was
roundly condemned and The Sun was forced to print a groveling apology
several days later.
In the long term, The Sun may have unwittingly helped the royal family,
which, finally, may once again be able to get on with life without tabloid
reporters and photographers dogging its every step.
Shukan ST: July 23, 1999
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