Dolly Parton, who sadly died about two weeks ago, was referred to as an “icon” in every single news report of her death that I read.
Wonderful in so many ways, both as a singer and a great character (I loved her quotation: “It costs a lot to look this cheap”), she was the “undisputed queen of country music,” and she was loved and cherished by her fans for 60 years.
She met every part of the definition of “icon.”
Meanwhile, in the same week as Dolly passed away, the Sussexes, the royals formerly known as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, with their children, were passing from a celebrity life in California back to the UK, with the express intention of putting their children through school.
If they think they will be greeted as icons by an adoring public, they had better think again. Not only will they never be regarded as iconic, but all the good money will wager that they will be regarded as annoying, entitled, and expensive nonentities.
However, their significance will go further. The public, having withdrawn their affection, raises the next question: Will their returning “home” cause irreparable damage to the monarchy of Great Britain?
When the public became aware that the late queen’s favorite grandson had “tilted his cap” at a glamorous actress, surely nothing but good could come of it?
Add to the equation that she is biracial, the idea that the oldest institution in Britain would have some much-needed diversity added to it only made the relationship more desirable.
And so 29 million of us in the UK alone were glued to our TV sets, watching the sumptuous wedding of the young couple about to embark on a glamorous life of royal service.
All that was required were numerous appearances before an adoring public in return for gilded carriages, attending pageants and horse racing, excessive security, and payments from the civil list.
Yet, it seemed like 10 minutes later that Harry and Meghan threw it all out and embarked instead on the public abuse of the royal family, known as “the firm.”
They manufactured rows with the senior royals, alleging racism. They gave interviews, including bleating to Whoopi Goldberg that Meghan had been mistreated by her in-laws.
Harry’s autobiography Spare showed how much he resented his life as a mere adjunct to his brother. It alleged a physical altercation with Prince William and his strained relationship with his father, who now has cancer.
Clearly, they preferred to set up in California and enjoy a life of the mega rich with little or nothing to contribute. And the British public thought that was that.
Mind you, the history amongst the kings and queens of England has always been a little fraught. Henry VIII, in the 16th century, tended to settle issues with the wrong sort of spouse with the use of an axe.
Most schoolchildren remember what he did to his six wives with the aid of the rhyme: “Divorced, beheaded, died. Divorced, beheaded, survived.”
Whilst the golden era of Henry’s daughter, Elizabeth I, saw her become the royal icon of the 16th century, 400 years later found them in the soup again.
In the 1930s, King Edward VIII ascended to the throne, but swiftly abdicated. The public soon realized that both Edward and his wife were active supporters of Adolf Hitler, whom they had met.
Though the late Queen Elizabeth II was a fine role model for good governance, her motherhood produced Prince Andrew, Harry’s uncle. He has brought disgrace to the monarchy by his associations with Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted pedophile.
The King removed him from royal duty and from the line of succession. His former wife, Sarah Ferguson, has likewise been linked to Epstein long after his conviction for child sex offenses.
Her financial hopes have turned to a former boyfriend, Paddy McNally, whom she trusts may have remembered her in his will.
Tricky future for Britain
And so it goes on, becoming more seedy, with more of the public asking, “What has the monarchy ever done for us?”
There are two answers to this question.
For the jurists and academics, the monarchy is an intrinsic part of the unwritten constitution that maintains stability.
The monarch is commander-in-chief of the armed forces and is part of the executive arm of the rule of law. Prosecutions are brought in the ruler’s name.
For the Jewish community of Britain, a select number of the monarchs have done enormous harm. In 1189, at the coronation of Richard I, there was a pogrom, and 100 years later Edward I expelled them from England.
They remained unwelcome until Oliver Cromwell, who led the move to execute Charles I, invited them back in the 1650s.
For Prince Harry and Meghan, the future in Britain is very tricky, as 33% are against their return. There is already the prevalent view that Meghan is simply trying to further her acting career, which has stalled in America.
Harry continues to moan about having to fund his family’s security details.
Prince William will do what he can to stop his brother and sister-in-law from tarnishing the royal image.
So how will they be viewed?
Icons certainly not; more likely irritants and a waste of the public purse. We are seeing the decline – if not the fall – of the UK royal family.
Get your tickets to see the Crown Jewels. It may not be long before the Tower of London, where they are on display, is closed for business.
The writer is a Senior Barrister and retired criminal judge and author of Nothing Like the Truth and co-host of the podcast Shalom from Tel Aviv. He lives between London and Zichron Ya’acov.