Inside U.K. Birthdays Focus Attention on Royal Family Again By STEVE HILL	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
王族の誕生日にわく英国 エリザベス皇太后は、8月に100歳の誕生日を迎えます。毅然としながらも優雅な皇太后は国民に人気が高く、誕生日のイベントは盛り上がることが予想されます。ウィリアム王子も最近18歳の誕生日を迎え、英王室に再び世間とマスコミの注目が集まっています。

The spotlight is back on the British Royal Family as celebrations to mark the Queen Mother's 100th birthday continue. Preceding her birthday on Aug. 4, a special pageant will be held in London July 19. It will be attended by dozens of fellow royals, thousands of guests and broadcast live to a nation that continues to hold the centenarian close to its heart.

The popularity of our most famous family may have dipped in recent years but the Queen Mum, as she is affectionately known, has remained a constant and true reminder of how royalty can remain relevant in the 21st century.

Graceful, dignified and resolutely nonpolitical, she has remained above controversy for a century, watching Britain come through two world wars and witnessing changes and developments that a science fiction writer could not have predicted.

She has also been a figurehead, rising above small problems and incidents, to maintain the status of the Royal Family and remain popular with millions of ordinary people.

Older people will never forget that the Queen Mother, the wife of the King George VI, refused to leave London during World War II when the capital was being bombed daily by Germany.

The decision left the royals in danger and Buckingham Palace actually suffered minor damage from one raid. But the Queen Mother remained and continued with her duties, which included visiting other areas of London flattened during "The Blitz."

One of the most enduring images of that time is a photograph of the two of them with their daughters Elizabeth-- the current Queen--and Margaret, plus Prime Minister Winston Churchill waving to the crowds from the balcony of Buckingham Palace during celebrations to mark the end of the war.

The popularity of the Royal Family was probably at its peak as the nation rejoiced at the Allies' victory. One wonders what type of monarchy we will have in another 100 years, and what kind of kings Prince Charles and his eldest son, Prince William, will make.

William's recent 18th birthday and the Queen Mother's landmark certainly provide plenty of scope for comparison and analysis, and it's a topic our media will certainly jump at.

William is fast filling the gap left by his mother with his coming of age at 18, the latest excuse for many newspapers to print page after page of photograph-led articles focusing on our future king.

He hopes to study art history at university in the fall, probably in Scotland, and has expressed the desire to have the freedom to enjoy the experience. Intelligent, articulate and handsome, he appears destined to be front-page news for many years to come.

Even without the birthdays of William and the Queen Mother to focus on, hardly a day goes by without some kind of royal story hitting the headlines.

Away from birthday parties, the latest topic for debate has been the amount of money the royal family costs the British taxpayers. In the interests of greater efficiency and a drive to be more transparent, full details of royal spending were recently showed, including details about expenditure on items such as flowers ( 25,643 or 4.3 million for 1999) and alcohol ( 57,470 or 9.5 million).

The government makes an annual payment to cover the cost of the monarchy and it has been announced that this is to be frozen at 7.9 million ( 1.31 billion) for 10 years. Royal finances are rarely debated in the House of Commons, and a minority of members of parliament- labeled "Labor's Republican Tendency" - grabbed the opportunity to criticize the amount being spent.

One veteran left-winger, Dennis Skinner, was direct and unflinching in his attack. "What is so special about this family that they qualify for 7.9 million instead of 75 pence (125)?" he asked, pointing to the ruling Labor Party's increase in the pension millions of retired people receive.

Others took the chance to attack the monarchy but the majority of MPs reflect the general feelings of the population and support this national institution.

Members of the Royal Family will certainly draw attention during the next two years with a series of landmarks looming.

Princess Margaret will be 70 Aug. 21 while the Queen's only daughter, the Princess Royal, will be 50 on Aug. 15.

Her second son, the Duke of York, will be 40 on Feb. 19 while the Queen's Golden Jubilee (50th anniversary of her coronation), in 2002, will be another occasion to reflect on the past and think about what the future holds for one of the world's most famous institutions.

Birthdays focus attention on Royal Family again

Shukan ST: July 21, 2000

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