Jack Linthicum
2007-07-01 22:53:25 UTC
I don't know we missed this very significant article and its
application to the study of WI. In that sense it is a pitiful attempt
to combine the actual history with what a journalist is able to
imagine a British Empire that not only included the American states,
but had British states too. I would like to see this clown's
idea of how Parliament functions with a President and a Vice-
President. Freedom of the press, within limits.
What would have happen if Britain still did rule America?
By ANDREW ROBERTS - t 08:20am on 9th May 2007
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is in her 81st year, and it is
perfectly understandable that she should want to take life a little
easier.
Happiest on her Windsor, Balmoral and Sandringham estates, she travels
much less nowadays to her realm's more far-flung western states, such
as Vancouver, Texas and California.
It was a gross error of political protocol, therefore, that President
Tony Blair was not in Washington, District of Columbia, when she came
to visit, but instead handed over the duty to his Vice-President,
George W. Bush.
Of course, Mr Blair has been globe-trotting ever since his presidency
entered its ' lameduck' phase last autumn, but it might have been
expected that when his monarch came to visit her White House residence
- the American home of British monarchs ever since 1812 - he would
have cut short his transatlantic job-seeking to welcome her
personally.
The forthcoming elections to succeed Blair, between the Tory nominee,
Vice-President Bush, and his Democratic challenger, Governor Gordon
Brown of South Scotland, are entering their final phase, and the
Queen's visit will be closely watched for any indication of her
personal preferences.
Needless to say, after half a century on the throne, Her Majesty was
far too professional to let slip any hint of whom she would like to
win.
Although he is considered one of the most successful state governors
in the entire 75-state Union, Brown is facing one of the most
formidable electionwinning machines of recent years.
"It is good to be back in Washington," the Queen started her speech to
the state banquet in the White House last night, attended by both
contenders.
"Sometimes I am asked why the name of a man who was, after all, hanged
for treason should have been retained as the name of this great city.
"I answer that although George Washington was indeed a rebel, he was
nonetheless a courageous and far-sighted man. For a short period, he
believed he had achieved an independent America, and signed a
declaration to that effect in 1776.
"If it had not been for my great-great-great-great-grandfather George
III's reinvasion and subsequent victory in the War of 1812, I might be
coming here as a guest from Britain, rather than as your sovereign
Queen."
There were titters in the audience at the mere mention of such an
absurdity.
The rest of her speech touched on various international issues before
she made the surprise announcement that caught the attention of the
evening news channels,
"In the light of my ever-advancing age, I will be spending more time
at my residences in Kentucky and Florida than hitherto, enjoying the
horse-breeding and racing opportunities of the former and the mild
climate of the latter.
"The Prince of Wales will be taking on many of my more onerous duties,
such asc investitures and state visits, and will be dividing his time
between his present home in New York and Clarence House in London."
All eyes turned to the Prince, who fiddled with his cuff-links, but
looked pleased.
"There were many moments in history when the world has had cause to
look back with satisfaction on my ancestor's victory in 1812,"
Her Majesty continued, "and the subsequent reincorporation of his
American colonies into the British Empire.
"We are reminded, for example, of August 1914 when the German Empire
came perilously close to invading France and Belgium, and stepped back
only when President Woodrow Wilson and Vice-President Herbert Asquith
sent 20 American and 15 British divisions to the South Coast of
England ready to embark on the outbreak of war.
"In my own lifetime, Adolf Hitler might not have been overthrown by
the German generals in March 1936 if the Roosevelt-Churchill
inistration had not given orders to fire on any German troops crossing
into the Rhineland.
"The success of the League of Nations in keeping peace in the 20th
century was also largely due to the great Anglo-American commitment to
its success, and willingness to
back up its words with the threat of force."
The Queen then said that, although her transatlantic crossing in the
new Royal Yacht Atlantia - a gift of the BP-Exxon conglomerat - had
been enjoyable, "henceforth it will be my son and the Duchess of
Cornwall who will embark on the next three state visits, to President
Sarkozy in Paris, Tsar Alexander IV in St Petersburg and, of course,
the Sultan Mehmed VII in Constantinople.
"Fortunately," the Queen continued, "the fact that no European or
world war broke out in 1914 meant that certain dangerous movements,
such as those who followed the creed known to history as Marxism-
Leninism, and those who wished to split up the territories of our long-
standing ally the Ottoman Empire, were never able to impose their
malign will upon the 20th century, which was instead dominated by the
munificence and decency of the English-speaking peoples.
"Had there been a devastating war when that century was in its teens,
it is perfectly possible, for example, that Vladimir Lenin might not
have committed suicide in despair in Zurich in 1916."
She went on to say how much she enjoyed her foreign tours, "I have
happy memories of visiting, especially, my first cousins the Romanovs
in their beautiful palaces such as Tsarskoe Selo and the Winter
Palace."
Her Majesty ended by emphasising how the northern seven states in what
used to be Canada needed to integrate more wholeheartedly into the
life of the 52 American and 16 British states.
The affection ordinary Americans have for the monarchy might seem
surprising considering that it originated from across the Atlantic,
but members of the British Royal Family were always very good at
adapting themselves to new circumstances.
Above all, their support for Protestant mercantilism, democratic
reforms and anti-French military adventures endeared them to their
American subjects.
As constitutional monarchs they went along with the progressive mood
of the people and were in the forefront of the abolition of slavery in
the reign of Queen Victoria of UGBA (the Union of Great Britain and
America).
Indeed, many historians now feel that without Victoria's common sense
in supporting abolition in the early 1860s, Americans might even have
fought a civil war over the issue.
The overwhelming power that the Anglo-American Empire, stretching from
Australia to the Philippines and across India to the Atlantic, enjoyed
throughout the 19th and 20th centuries meant that from the time of the
defeat of Napoleon, the world has been spared the regular devastating
wars that so scarred the history of Europe after the fall of the Roman
Empire.
The truth is that constitutional monarchy seems to have worked well in
the American context.
Except for the Queen's brave decision to dismiss the Nixon
administration over the Watergate scandal in 1973 - long before the
issue managed to poison Washington politics - there has been no need
in recent years for her to exercise the great powers that she retains
under the constitution.
The Royal Family has been an institution around which all aspects of
American society have been able to coalesce over the past two
centuries.
That is principally why everyone is looking forward so much to the
bicentennial celebrations of 2012, which are set to dwarf the London
Olympics.
For that is the time when Americans and Britons will come together to
celebrate the reestablishment of monarchy on the American continent.
application to the study of WI. In that sense it is a pitiful attempt
to combine the actual history with what a journalist is able to
imagine a British Empire that not only included the American states,
but had British states too. I would like to see this clown's
idea of how Parliament functions with a President and a Vice-
President. Freedom of the press, within limits.
What would have happen if Britain still did rule America?
By ANDREW ROBERTS - t 08:20am on 9th May 2007
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is in her 81st year, and it is
perfectly understandable that she should want to take life a little
easier.
Happiest on her Windsor, Balmoral and Sandringham estates, she travels
much less nowadays to her realm's more far-flung western states, such
as Vancouver, Texas and California.
It was a gross error of political protocol, therefore, that President
Tony Blair was not in Washington, District of Columbia, when she came
to visit, but instead handed over the duty to his Vice-President,
George W. Bush.
Of course, Mr Blair has been globe-trotting ever since his presidency
entered its ' lameduck' phase last autumn, but it might have been
expected that when his monarch came to visit her White House residence
- the American home of British monarchs ever since 1812 - he would
have cut short his transatlantic job-seeking to welcome her
personally.
The forthcoming elections to succeed Blair, between the Tory nominee,
Vice-President Bush, and his Democratic challenger, Governor Gordon
Brown of South Scotland, are entering their final phase, and the
Queen's visit will be closely watched for any indication of her
personal preferences.
Needless to say, after half a century on the throne, Her Majesty was
far too professional to let slip any hint of whom she would like to
win.
Although he is considered one of the most successful state governors
in the entire 75-state Union, Brown is facing one of the most
formidable electionwinning machines of recent years.
"It is good to be back in Washington," the Queen started her speech to
the state banquet in the White House last night, attended by both
contenders.
"Sometimes I am asked why the name of a man who was, after all, hanged
for treason should have been retained as the name of this great city.
"I answer that although George Washington was indeed a rebel, he was
nonetheless a courageous and far-sighted man. For a short period, he
believed he had achieved an independent America, and signed a
declaration to that effect in 1776.
"If it had not been for my great-great-great-great-grandfather George
III's reinvasion and subsequent victory in the War of 1812, I might be
coming here as a guest from Britain, rather than as your sovereign
Queen."
There were titters in the audience at the mere mention of such an
absurdity.
The rest of her speech touched on various international issues before
she made the surprise announcement that caught the attention of the
evening news channels,
"In the light of my ever-advancing age, I will be spending more time
at my residences in Kentucky and Florida than hitherto, enjoying the
horse-breeding and racing opportunities of the former and the mild
climate of the latter.
"The Prince of Wales will be taking on many of my more onerous duties,
such asc investitures and state visits, and will be dividing his time
between his present home in New York and Clarence House in London."
All eyes turned to the Prince, who fiddled with his cuff-links, but
looked pleased.
"There were many moments in history when the world has had cause to
look back with satisfaction on my ancestor's victory in 1812,"
Her Majesty continued, "and the subsequent reincorporation of his
American colonies into the British Empire.
"We are reminded, for example, of August 1914 when the German Empire
came perilously close to invading France and Belgium, and stepped back
only when President Woodrow Wilson and Vice-President Herbert Asquith
sent 20 American and 15 British divisions to the South Coast of
England ready to embark on the outbreak of war.
"In my own lifetime, Adolf Hitler might not have been overthrown by
the German generals in March 1936 if the Roosevelt-Churchill
inistration had not given orders to fire on any German troops crossing
into the Rhineland.
"The success of the League of Nations in keeping peace in the 20th
century was also largely due to the great Anglo-American commitment to
its success, and willingness to
back up its words with the threat of force."
The Queen then said that, although her transatlantic crossing in the
new Royal Yacht Atlantia - a gift of the BP-Exxon conglomerat - had
been enjoyable, "henceforth it will be my son and the Duchess of
Cornwall who will embark on the next three state visits, to President
Sarkozy in Paris, Tsar Alexander IV in St Petersburg and, of course,
the Sultan Mehmed VII in Constantinople.
"Fortunately," the Queen continued, "the fact that no European or
world war broke out in 1914 meant that certain dangerous movements,
such as those who followed the creed known to history as Marxism-
Leninism, and those who wished to split up the territories of our long-
standing ally the Ottoman Empire, were never able to impose their
malign will upon the 20th century, which was instead dominated by the
munificence and decency of the English-speaking peoples.
"Had there been a devastating war when that century was in its teens,
it is perfectly possible, for example, that Vladimir Lenin might not
have committed suicide in despair in Zurich in 1916."
She went on to say how much she enjoyed her foreign tours, "I have
happy memories of visiting, especially, my first cousins the Romanovs
in their beautiful palaces such as Tsarskoe Selo and the Winter
Palace."
Her Majesty ended by emphasising how the northern seven states in what
used to be Canada needed to integrate more wholeheartedly into the
life of the 52 American and 16 British states.
The affection ordinary Americans have for the monarchy might seem
surprising considering that it originated from across the Atlantic,
but members of the British Royal Family were always very good at
adapting themselves to new circumstances.
Above all, their support for Protestant mercantilism, democratic
reforms and anti-French military adventures endeared them to their
American subjects.
As constitutional monarchs they went along with the progressive mood
of the people and were in the forefront of the abolition of slavery in
the reign of Queen Victoria of UGBA (the Union of Great Britain and
America).
Indeed, many historians now feel that without Victoria's common sense
in supporting abolition in the early 1860s, Americans might even have
fought a civil war over the issue.
The overwhelming power that the Anglo-American Empire, stretching from
Australia to the Philippines and across India to the Atlantic, enjoyed
throughout the 19th and 20th centuries meant that from the time of the
defeat of Napoleon, the world has been spared the regular devastating
wars that so scarred the history of Europe after the fall of the Roman
Empire.
The truth is that constitutional monarchy seems to have worked well in
the American context.
Except for the Queen's brave decision to dismiss the Nixon
administration over the Watergate scandal in 1973 - long before the
issue managed to poison Washington politics - there has been no need
in recent years for her to exercise the great powers that she retains
under the constitution.
The Royal Family has been an institution around which all aspects of
American society have been able to coalesce over the past two
centuries.
That is principally why everyone is looking forward so much to the
bicentennial celebrations of 2012, which are set to dwarf the London
Olympics.
For that is the time when Americans and Britons will come together to
celebrate the reestablishment of monarchy on the American continent.
From Los Angeles to Brighton, from San Francisco to Thanet, we shall
all cry, God Save The Queen!