The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee has kept me very busy over the last few days……. and that is not to do with the two lots of visitors. I have found myself going down memory lane, fascinated by the celebrations and images and stories of other people.
She became Queen in 1952 but the Coronation took place in June 1953 so I guess we are in the throes of a whole year of Jubilee celebrations. However, the main events took place over the past weekend amid typical summer weather….. rain, winds, cold….. and engendered a kind of “let’s do it” attitude that we Brits are quite good at.
In 1953 I was nine years old. I remember the excitement of getting a television for the first time – it was a nine inch screen. Friends and neighbours were treated to a day-long Coronation Party with sandwiches and sherry being handed round. When I got fed up staring at the screen, I rushed outside with my friends into the street and played at coronation-service and knights and dragons. A night or two before the big day, my parents took me up to London to see the decorations and rows of seats lining the Mall. In one respect I wondered what all the fuss was about, and yet at the same time I was thrilled to be a part of the hustle and bustle. It felt as if London was the centre of the world. Therein lies the secret to my ongoing fascination with royalty.
Although I am half Scottish, my Father was English and I grew up in South-East London, where I went to a rather posh Guild Grammar School. I point that out because it has seemed to me that the Jubilee-Excitement of this weekend has been centred mainly in England, the Scots have been much more low-key. It’s difficult to fathom out what it means, though worth noting that the First Minister, Alex Salmond, called the Queen, Elizabeth Queen of Scots.
These past few years of austerity have been troubling, to say the least, and like many others, I have ongoing worries for those who have little, or are unemployed or disabled. I’ve ranted enough about the “two posh boys who don’t even know the price of a pint of milk….…” So it has been nice to feel part of a nation who can come through hard times and flourish again.
Let’s hope so anyway.
There’ll always be an England and England will be free….
I had thought I was 10 when I witnessed the coronation via my ViewMaster, but now I think I must have been 11 and received it the Christmas I was 11.5.
We have difficulties all over the world, and we in the West should always remember our worst days are probably better than those of others in some places. At least we are not a war with nightly raids and bombings. My friend Nash just took off for a family wedding in Lebanon.
How interesting it has been to be travelling through Scotland during the Jubilee! It’s fun to see evidence of the festive atmosphere although we have not been a part of it. Won’t be long and we will be upon you.
When my mother reached the age of 100 she got a birthday card from “The Queen of New Zealand.” I’m sure my cousin there is following all of this. She and her husband are very devoted to the Queen and her family.
I don’t have much of an opinion on the Queen and Royalty, as heads of the establishment they have been there and always will be I suppose, but there is a nagging doubt at the back of my mind that the “Two Posh Boys” must think it’s a Godsend of a distraction to bury bad news and dodgy deals.
Just a thought..
I enjoyed the glimpses whenever I would light momentarily in front of the TV. A trip to London has been on my wish list for years, but since encountering the blogs of you, Freda and some other bloggers from the British Isles, my travel wish list has expanded considerably.