A little less than a month from the coronation which will finally consecrate Charles III as king already Camila as Queen consortthe positive image of the monarch seems to be at a low ebb.
The last few months – since he took the throne in September – have not been easy; on the contrary, the country is going through a cost of living crisiswhich was added to the political comings and goings who forced the change of prime minister twice in a short time.
In this context of anger and exhaustion of society, which also considers that the monarchy is very ostentatious and squander money and resources YougGov – a firm that conducts market research and analysis online – released a poll which found that more than half of the citizens consider that the event should not be financed by the State -or rather, through the taxes they pay-.
Specifically, of the 4,246 adults consulted, 51% refuse to finance it while almost a third – the 32%– this in favor that it be with the contributions of taxpayers. Meanwhile, the remaining 18% could not define their opinion on either side.
Among those who oppose the payment are the youthswho are they those most affected by the economic crisis and inflation that plagues the country. In that sense, they were close to the 62% the people in between 18 and 24 years who voted ‘no’ in the poll while 15% were in favour.
With regard to the adult sector, 43% of those over 65 years of age supported State financing against 44% who thought otherwise.
Although the Buckingham Palace has not yet released the exact figure of what the coronation will cost, it is estimated that all arrangements, concerts, ceremonies and acts secondary, as well as huge security device and his extension -a whole weekend- will cost at least a few tens of millions of pounds.
Graham Smith, chief executive of campaign group Republic, called the event an “expensive pantomime” and a “slap in the face of millions of people struggling with the cost of living crisis” while Home Secretary Oliver Dowden , defended the ceremony and assured that it is not an excessive expense.
We are “aware of the need to guarantee that the taxpayer obtains the maximum benefit” without “luxuries or excesses”said and stressed that “it is about a wonderful moment in our history and people wouldn’t want it to go to waste.”
But the truth is that, beyond the efforts and repeated attempts of Carlos III to demonstrate a more “austere” monarchy, these events have already proven to be very costly, without exception.
For example, the last coronation of the royal family, that of the late Queen isabel IIcost £912,000 in 1953which today would be some 20.5 million pounds. Meanwhile, his grandfather’s George VI had a value of £454,000 in 1937which is equivalent to about 24.8 million of today’s money.
The survey exposed, however, that it is not only a monetary question that confronts society with the King. On the contrary, it is their presence itself that generates disinterest in them.
From the outset it was known that Carlos was assuming the throne with great challenges ahead. Already if, support for the monarchy was at its lowest point in 30 years and this, added to the temporary problemsthey left it in a fragile scenario.
His low profile and his attempt to appear “more human” and less “unattainable” -as used to be the case with royalty- have not been enough to win over the people. Of the YouGov respondents, only 33% expressed attraction to the coronation while 35% showed little interest and 29% said they did not care one bit.
To this was added that almost half -48%- stated that they will not look at it or participate in the celebrations.
Once again, among those who dismiss the event are the youths between 18 and 24 years old, although there was strong support from the sector that includes 25 and 49 years. Meanwhile, those who look forward to the ceremony are mainly those over 65 years of age.
Lastly, when asked about the list of confirmed family members for the event, only 15% showed their support for the marriage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and would have preferred the presence of both while 12% were comfortable only with the presence of the duke. 27% opted for the absence of both and the remaining 46% stressed -again- not be interested in the subject.
Keep reading:
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More than 6,000 members of the Armed Forces will participate in the coronation of King Carlos III
Westminster Abbey’s long history of coronations and burials
Source-www.infobae.com