Talk:Elizabeth II

The statement "In none of these offices does she hold any formal political power." is not quite correct. At least in the UK, but also in Australia, there are some vestigial formal powers. As far as I recollect, the monarch in the UK invites a leader of a political party to form a governent, but she is not required to choose the party with the most seats. This discretion has yet to be misused, but remains as a formal power. In the case of Australia, unless it has changed without my noticing, the monarch appoints a Governor-General as her representative: presumably, s/he has a few roles to play and therefore has some limited powers.

Can we find someone who knows about constitutional issues to rephrase these things? Some Editors, maybe?--Martin Baldwin-Edwards 22:10, 23 July 2007 (CDT)

I will check this, but my understanding is she has no power - she appoints people on the advice of the prime minister or other figure, i.e. effectively these posts are filled by the governments. It is true that no law says she has to pick the biggest party to form a government - because the UK constitution works by precedent and convention - but she arguably has no authority to do so since the establishment of a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary sovereignty in the 17th century. John Stephenson 23:00, 24 July 2007 (CDT)

Further to this, I think the idea is that because parliament is supreme, the Sovereign is obligated to appoint whoever is most likely to command the support of the House of Commons - even if their party be in a minority. This happened with Harold Wilson in 1974. If she didn't appoint the PM with most support, parliament would be able to topple her choice through a no-confidence vote. Also, in the past it was technically possible for the Sovereign to sack a prime minister - apparently this last happened in the 1830s - but in practice it would be very unlikely to happen today, since there is so little precedent for it. The UK doesn't really work through laws written in stone; rather, there's a sort of collective expectation about what's 'the done thing'... John Stephenson 23:07, 24 July 2007 (CDT)

The problem is with the expression "formal political power". What you have described above is actual practice, but if the monarch chooses to part with recent precedent this departure would be lawful. In particular, the appointment of a prime minister is solely within the monarch's purview and in certain cases the evaluation of which party would command most support could be a subjective view. Even in other cases, the fact is that the monarch possesses "formal political power", however s/he should choose to exercise it. I suggest that you remove the phrase completely, and talk about the lack of a written constitution and reliance upon precedent, whilst formally and ceremonially the monarch has supreme political authority as Head of State.--Martin Baldwin-Edwards 06:32, 25 July 2007 (CDT)

There is one relatively recent semi-precedent for the Queen sacking a PM: the little unpleasantness in Australia in 1975, when the Governor-General, wielding the Head of State's power but apparently without having consulted the Queen at all on the matter, sacked Gough Whitlam. As I recall from news reports at the time, when the Queen did find out about it, she deliberately kept well away from the whole issue, and the action was so unpopular that the Governor-General had to retire from public service. Bruce M.Tindall 16:46, 28 August 2007 (CDT)

I think that does not apply in the UK [although I am not 100% sure]. The Oz incident is because the Governor General [representing the Queen] actually has more power there than the Queen does in the UK...--Martin Baldwin-Edwards 17:20, 28 August 2007 (CDT)

Purpose of this article

Hi, regarding Martin's edit: ""...Nevertheless, there remain doubts in some quarters about specific discretions, such as choosing a prime minister, which are not necessarily constrained by precedent or constitutional limitations..." I don't object to the content, but I think we may be digressing here. Maybe such detail belongs on an article such as Monarchy of the United Kingdom or constitutional monarchy, as this article should really focus on Liz's life. John Stephenson 21:46, 25 July 2007 (CDT)

If you want to remove that part completely, that is fine by me. Perhaps when there is an actual article to refer to, such as Monarchy of the UK or const. monarchy you could link to them. My only complaint was that the summary was potentially misleading, and you can solve that by giving the detail as I did, or omitting it completely. If you feel it is irrelevant to the article, just remove it! --Martin Baldwin-Edwards 21:56, 25 July 2007 (CDT)

Christian

I deleted: "The Queen is known to be a practising Christian, regularly attending Anglican church services." This is obvious, because she's the head of the Anglican church. Indeed, if she were not, she couldn't be monarch. Perhaps an allusion to her Christianity can be added somewhere? John Stephenson 22:58, 20 September 2007 (CDT)

Quick question: that's obvious to you and me--is it equally obvious to everyone? Lots of people in the secular world end up heading institutions they might not be otherwise be members of or part of. Still, if you think it is obvious, that's fine. Aleta Curry 19:43, 13 November 2007 (CST)

Hmm, it's like asking if the Pope has to be Catholic! If people can't work it out, then they won't find much use for an encyclopedia anyway.--Martin Baldwin-Edwards 19:49, 13 November 2007 (CST)

No it isn't--stop picking on me!! The Pope has to be a priest, a priest has to be RC. The Queen's not a priest, and the head of the NY Yankees doesn't have to be a ball player. That's all I'm saying. "If people can't work it out.." oh, jeepers, Martin--like, if you're a royal watcher, you know how much people work out about them that's just wrong! Aleta Curry 20:03, 13 November 2007 (CST)

Not picking on you:-( How can anyone be the Head of a Church without belonging to that Church? It doesnt make sense! --Martin Baldwin-Edwards 10:00, 14 November 2007 (CST)

The text in question says she is a PRACTICING member of the Church--something rather rare in England these days when attendance at rituals is 2%. Richard Jensen 06:31, 15 November 2007 (CST)

Again, I repeat that this is a requirement of the position. Hwoever, if everyone insists that it is not obvious, I will allow you to state the "bleeding obvious"--Martin Baldwin-Edwards 06:43, 15 November 2007 (CST)

the point is that she goes well beyond what is required because she beleives and follows the religion; that is NOT required. Richard Jensen 06:49, 15 November 2007 (CST)

She APPEARS to beleive and follow the religion, which is part of her job. I cannot imagine otherwise. --Martin Baldwin-Edwards 07:33, 15 November 2007 (CST)

well I can imagine otherwise: "Paris is worth a Mass" is what Henry IV, a Protestant said on becoming king of France and having to become a Catholic. Richard Jensen 16:54, 15 November 2007 (CST)

Okay, I inadvertently started this because I confused two separate issues--I think. I was speaking to John's statement above, when I asked what was "obvious"--because to me "Supreme Governor" is not the same as "chief priest", which is obviously a practitioner, hence the NY Yankee boss comparison. John said "indeed, if she were not, she could not be monarch" and I was asking would people know that the monarch of the UK *had* to be an Anglican, not "would people know that the head of the Anglican church was an Anglican". Still, Richard's point is well-taken, there's a difference between someone who actually follows a faith and someone who was initiated in babyhood and never follows any of the tenants of that faith. Psst...Martin...I know you're not really picking on me :) Aleta Curry 19:00, 15 November 2007 (CST)

well to mess it up a little more: Is it in fact true that she is a devout person? There is no mention of that whatever in Pimlott's long and detailed bio. Richard Jensen 19:10, 15 November 2007 (CST)

Haha, you are impossible, Richard! I really have no idea, and this was my point. We should have no idea, because the Queen's personal opinion does not obtrude [this is partly her own character, and partly her perception of the role of Monarch]. It is also important to bear in mind why the Church of England exists: it was created by Henry VIII after his excommunication by Rome. Even if the Monarch thinks God is a waste of time, the role of joint head of the Church does not allow any room for personal opinion. It is very different from being King of France and being expected to be a Catholic.--Martin Baldwin-Edwards 19:20, 15 November 2007 (CST)

Just had an edit conflict with Martin--what was I saying? I don't know if I can answer that--if your question (Richard) is, "well, Elizabeth may go to church, but is she *really* a Christian?" Certainly, Ingrid Majesty Magazine Seward is always going on about the Queen's faith getting her through things. Some Diana fans|fanatics raked the poor old girl over the coals for "taking/dragging/forcing Wm & Harry to go" to church following the death of their mother. (Where was she supposed to take them, for Mercy's sake--Disneyland?) Or is your question "does Elizabeth go to church'? Aleta Curry 20:31, 15 November 2007 (CST)

Wha...?

Surely HRH The Duchess of York became HM immediately her husband ascended to the throne? Aleta Curry 18:16, 18 December 2007 (CST)

No. Just as Prince Philip is not a king, she was never Queen and remained with the title she took from her husband before his accession to the throne. The only change after George VI was crowned is that she was given the additional title Her Royal Highness [HRH] in front of the previous title. --Martin Baldwin-Edwards 18:45, 18 December 2007 (CST)

I'm truly surprised, 'cause I'm good with titles. I would have blown the million-dollar question. In any case, that's not completely analogous, because in England female consorts are always called Queen, while male consorts are never called "King" (at least, not yet!) I think the note should speak to this in some manner. I'm amazed. I'm heading right to the official site to see if it's explained there. Aleta Curry 21:52, 18 December 2007 (CST)

"she was never queen" is contradicted by the official website at [1] which clearly calls her "Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother." The definitive Oxford Dictionary of National Biography calls her "queen of Great Britain, Ireland, and the British dominions beyond the seas, sometime empress of India, consort of George VI, later styled Queen Elizabeth the queen mother," and says "The new king and queen moved into Buckingham Palace in February 1937 and were crowned on 12 May in Westminster Abbey. Significantly, Elizabeth's throne on that occasion was placed level with the king's." After her husband died: "a visit to the former queen at Balmoral in the aftermath of her bereavement from Winston Churchill, prime minister again, may have assisted her in finding a new role in British life as the queen mother, a title she adopted at this point, and by which she was known universally for the next fifty years. (Courtiers in her own household referred to her as Queen Elizabeth, which she reportedly found more pleasing.)" Other books of course had the title: E. Longford, The queen mother (1981) · P. Mortimer, Queen Elizabeth: a life of the queen mother (1986) · A. Morrow, Without equal: her majesty Queen Elizabeth, the queen mother (2000) · G. Talbot, The Country Life book of Queen Elizabeth, the queen mother, 3rd edn (1989) · H. Montgomery-Massingberd, Her majesty Queen Elizabeth the queen mother (2001). So that seems to settle the issue: she was a Queen.Richard Jensen 22:47, 18 December 2007 (CST)

Not at all. If she had been Queen, her title would have been Queen Elizabeth II. And the current Queen would be Elizabeth III. Informally, she may have been seen as the Queen, but clearly that was never her title. She was later known as Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. She was a queen by virtue of being the consort of the King, but as far as I know she was called HRH The Duchess of York as her formal title, until the later one of the Queen Mother. --Martin Baldwin-Edwards 05:08, 19 December 2007 (CST)

Martin--please cite your sources. The standard reference work (Dict National Bio) in the very first line calls her "queen of Great Britain, Ireland, and the British dominions beyond the seas, sometime empress of India, consort of George VI, later styled Queen Elizabeth the queen mother," -- the multiple books cited call her Queen, as does the official UK Palace website, and no no one calls her Dutchess of York. 05:32, 19 December 2007 (CST)

OK, it is not correct that she remained hte Duchess of York, as she acceded to the throne jointly with the Duke of York. What is important is the difference between being Queen and Queen Consort. This is why she was not called Elizabeth II. Here is a useful citation:

When King Edward VIII abdicated on 11 December 1936 to marry an American divorcée, the accession of the Duke and Duchess was proclaimed and they assumed the responsibilities of the throne.

Their coronation took place on 12 May 1937. Queen Elizabeth became the first British-born Queen Consort since Tudor times.

Source: http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page4580.asp --Martin Baldwin-Edwards 06:28, 19 December 2007 (CST)

alas that source is wrong. DNB again: "Mary [Princess Mary of Teck] (1867–1953), queen of Great Britain and Ireland, and the British dominions beyond the seas, and empress of India, consort of George V, was born in Kensington Palace on 26 May 1867." Richard Jensen 07:14, 19 December 2007 (CST)

I am not sure if it matters anyway; the important thing for this article is that she was Queen Consort. --Martin Baldwin-Edwards 07:56, 19 December 2007 (CST)

agreed -- but it is a shock to see the Brits get their own royalty wrong. Richard Jensen 07:58, 19 December 2007 (CST)

Well, this royal watcher says it most certainly does matter;) and Richard, Brits get their own royalty wrong all the time, because titles and styles are so complicated. Re Mary of Teck, Richard, they may be referring to the fact that, since she took her title from her father, she was not "British-born"? (That's only a question, since I've no idea what the rules for citizenship would have been)--they may just be plain wrong.

Anyhow, back to the issue at hand. Martin, I'm going to change your last edit. A British queen is always HM these days, hasn't been HRH for centuries.

Aleta Curry 16:16, 19 December 2007 (CST)

OK. I give up with all this: if the government website cannot be relied upon, who can? Martin Baldwin-Edwards 17:12, 19 December 2007 (CST)

Rename

Following CZ naming policy for royals this article should be Elizabeth II (there is no other Elizabeth II and no disambig is needed; it there WAS another the policy would call for "Elizabeth II (Britain)"). Richard Jensen 12:35, 21 May 2008 (CDT)

I have discovered some page-moving stuff that can be activated from URL's, so I'm looking into doing a 'move cluster' function. I'll do this one when it's working. J. Noel Chiappa 19:57, 21 May 2008 (CDT)