I’ve never been a royals watcher, but I do have a lot of respect for Queen Elizabeth II and the fact that she devoted 70 years of her life to the service of her country. As someone who retired from her job at 55, I find that absolutely amazing. Yes, she and I had very different jobs, but it’s hard to believe she didn’t occasionally want to throw in the towel and hand off the monarchy to her son, or she could have made him her deputy and handed some of her work off to him. Instead, she saw it as her duty and persevered. She’d been the queen for my whole life. I can’t picture the British monarchy without her.
In my books I have now reached the final year of Queen Victoria’s life and reign. Like Elizabeth, she gave all of her adult life to the service of her country—in her case almost 64 years. There are similarities in their heirs to the throne too. Both were the eldest sons. They were sometimes chastised for their behavior, and both were tied to a scandal. And neither of them was privy to their mother’s work.
There was some question about what kind of King Edward would make, just as people are now wondering about Charles. But upon his ascension, Edward VII, the former wild-child Prince of Wales everyone called Bertie, became an immensely popular and beloved king. Hopefully, Charles III will enjoy the same success.
My husband and I are heading to London in a few weeks, so we’ll see for ourselves how the public receives the new king. This is definitely a research trip though. I think you know that I am always working two books ahead of the one you’re reading. Here’s a little hint about what’s coming up in book 7—we’re also going to be visiting Paris! And if I need to do research in Paris, it’s very likely Frances and George will visit too.
