How are European monarchies adapting to the times?

• Queen Elizabeth II celebrates the 70th anniversary of her accession to the throne of England this Sunday.

• Between decolonization, women's rights and the geopolitical situation, the world has largely changed in 70 years, establishing democracy as a norm.

  However, several monarchs still reign over the Old Continent.

• Between reduced political role, modest lifestyle and locked communication, how have European monarchies adapted to survive?

  20 Minutes

  asked the question to three experts.

They only knew her.

After 70 years of the reign of Elizabeth II, some Britons were born, went to school, got married, had children, a career, and are now living a peaceful retirement, all without having changed the head of the country. 'State.

In the meantime, the English colonial empire ceased to exist, women gained considerable rights, color television and then the Internet radically changed our modes of communication, the Berlin Wall rose and then fell.

In France, the Fifth Republic was born, before becoming the regime that lasted the longest since the Revolution, to the point of being sometimes considered too old, giving too much pride to the "republican monarch".

However, in this Europe, the cradle of a democracy now seen as the norm, a guarantee of peace and civility, several monarchies remain, and are not called into question.

So at

, we decided to take a look back.

How do these diets, and the royal families at their head, reinvent themselves and adapt to stay up to date?

Is the English monarchy of the 1950s really the same as today?

Are other monarchies following the same path?

Embody the Nation

The problem of the adaptation of monarchies to democracy is not new, and arises from the 19th century for Lisa Castro, a doctoral student in the Framespa laboratory at the University of Toulouse and a specialist in the Swedish monarchy.

"How to make a sclerotic institution modern and glamorous", the answer is simple: to step aside from power.

The sovereigns then take on the role of symbol of the nation, by "embodying the history of the country", she says.

The most symbolic case being that of Elizabeth II, “an icon” who almost confuses her image with that of Great Britain, explains historian David Feutry.

"Unlike democracy, which brings its share of rapid changes, the monarchy is stable and has a reassuring side," he continues.

In a Spain plagued by passions for independence, the Crown is thus a "cement of unity" for the professor emeritus of the University of Aix-Marseille Bernard Bessiere.

With a role all the more important as the monarchy was set up by Franco, at the end of his life, and that Juan Carlos "trained and raised" by the dictator, "succeeded in the feat of dismantling Francoism" quickly, while keeping the country in peace.

But this status as the figurehead of the country has its downside: intransigence towards bad apples.

The end of impunity

Juan Carlos himself paid the price: accused of having a “tumultuous” private life, of having “installed his mistress near the royal palace”, he was above all guilty of money laundering and fraud. , exposes the specialist of a “Spanish monarchy which has been endangered”.

In 2014, Juan Carlos finally abdicated in favor of his son, Felipe VI, who "cut the dead branches": deprived of any role of representation, the former king went into exile in the United Arab Emirates and did not have the authorization to return to Spain, even for Christmas.

Same fate for the sister of Felipe VI, married to a man sentenced to 6 years in prison.

In England, Prince Andrew recently suffered the same fate.

No more impunity for crowned heads, sovereigns are citizens like the others, who also pay taxes.

“Above all, we must not make a scandal,” warns Lisa Castro, citing the Dutch royal family “who wanted to go on vacation to Greece during the pandemic” or Princess Victoria of Sweden “who went on their honeymoon on the boat from a rich friend", pranks that may seem "indecent".

A family like the others

These last examples illustrate two strong axes of the adaptation of monarchies to their time: the consideration of contemporary subjects "such as ecology in the Scandinavian countries or the fight against violence against women for the Queen of Spain", details the Toulouse researcher, and the importance of being close to the people. Thus, Felipe VI "married a well-known and divorced journalist" rather than a rich noble heiress and "lives in a decorum inferior to that of the Elysée", notes Bernard Bessiere. A major detail, to popularize the image that "the monarchy does not cost an arm and a leg", otherwise the question of the usefulness of the monarchy would quickly be called into question. In Spain and England, the financing of police protection for certain family members has thus been called into question.

In the English royal family, the most publicized, "we entered the 21st century with William and Harry," says David Feutry.

"It wouldn't pass if the whole family was like the queen", whose communication is much more locked.

The historian even argues that "the English are waiting for the prince of the 21st century, who will make the link between a traditional aspect" and reality, even if it means reducing Charles to the rank of "transitional king".

For Lisa Castro, this media prominence of the youngest members of the royal family also aims to "seduce the youngest subjects", thus perpetuating the popularity of the Crown.

Other trends are observed, such as the distribution of photos “taken by the mother” during an event, reinforcing the side “close to you and me”, but in reality this communication is very framed.

The Toulouse doctoral student finally notes the transition of the royal incarnation, going from a single person to a family.

The example of the Windsors, who have redistributed responsibilities in recent years almost solely between the hands of Prince Charles and his descendants, thus fulfills the two objectives of having a tight and less expensive royal family, which "acts as a team". .

In Spain, where the monarchy does not have the same popularity, Felipe IV is well aware of this according to Bernard Bessiere: “the sustainability of the monarchy depends on its behavior”.

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• Sweden

• UK

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• Monarchy

• Queen Elizabeth II

• World

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