Not Wild About Harry
By Aaron Goldstein (01/18/05)
What could have Prince Harry been thinking right before he went to that costume party?
“Let’s see. I’m 20 years old and third in line to the throne of the British monarchy. I’ve been invited to this costume party. What do I wear? Hmmmm….let’s think. Oh wait, I know I’ve got this arm band I’ve been dying to use. It’s a private party. There shouldn’t be any photographers around.”
So what was going through Prince Harry’s head when he decided to wear Nazi insignia to a costume party? That I cannot answer. But I sure know what was going through my mind.
First, I hoped that his older brother Prince William would soon be married and have as many children as possible so as to move Prince Harry down the line of succession as rapidly as possible.
For his part, Prince William chose a costume far more rich in British tradition – he came as a lion. But then I had a second thought. Did William and Harry arrive at the party together? If so, why didn’t William tell Harry, “Your royal dudeness, that is not cool”?
Third, I thought about the reaction from the politicians. Conservative Party leader Michael Howard called upon Prince Harry to publicly apologize (as of this writing a written apology was issued through a spokesman). However, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said the episode was “a private matter.”
A private matter? My foot!!! And by that, I don’t mean Michael Foot.
The Royal Family is very, very generously subsidized by the British taxpayer. If the grandson of Queen Elizabeth II and son of Prince Charles is going around London wearing a swastika one must wonder how well these millions of British pounds have been spent.
I have no reason to believe that either the Queen, Prince Charles or for that matter, his mother, the late Diana, Princess of Wales, imparted any notion that Nazism was barrels of beer and fun for England. There are reports that Prince Charles is demanding that both Harry and William visit Auschwitz later this month. Their uncle, Prince Andrew, is leading a British delegation to visit Auschwitz the commemorate the 60th anniversary of its liberation.
I cannot help but wonder what Harry’s great-grandmother, the Queen Mother would have thought had she been alive to witness this shameful episode.
Now, I cannot say that I am really a monarchist. I don’t care much about it one way or the other. I think Britain could survive without it. Nonetheless one can hardly think of Britain without thinking of the Royal Family and its demise would affect the morale of Britons whether they wanted to admit it or not. Sure, the Royal Family over the past decade or so has been looked upon with disdain in Britain and abroad with all the assorted scandals that have taken place. But this wasn’t always so.
In 1995, I spent a half year in Britain. I worked as an intern for two British Members of Parliament (yes, they were both Labour as these were my socialist days after all). During my time there, Britain (much like the rest of the world) commemorated the 50th anniversary of V-E Day.
The British commemoration took place in London’s Hyde Park. I spent many a Sunday walking around Hyde Park and listening to the crazies at Speaker’s Corner. But on this particular Sunday, there were an estimated 2 million people gathered to celebrate this historical occasion. I remember it being a sunny day with scarcely a cloud in the sky. Most days at that time of the year were dreary accompanied by a heavy rain. But the weather reflected the jubilant mood of the large crowd. Now most large crowds – even on happy occasions such as Red Sox World Series victories and Super Bowl wins by the Patriots - can turn ugly. This one didn’t. How could it with Dame Vera Lynn singing, “We’ll Meet Again,”?
It seemed that the whole world came to celebrate. Although security was heavy one could make out the VIPs who attended the festivities. They included then British Prime Minister John Major; Tony Blair (then leader of Her Majesty’s Official Opposition), former Prime Minister Lord James Callaghan; then U.S. Vice President Al Gore and his wife, Tipper; then Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien as well as then Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. In less than seven months, Rabin’s life would be snuffed out by an assassin’s bullet.
And, of course, the Royal Family was in attendance. The Queen, her sisters, Princesses Margaret and Anne, the Queen Mother, Andrew and Fergie. Of course, Charles and Diana were there along with William and Harry. The British press made much of Charles and Diana appearing together because it was the first time that they had appeared together in public since their separation in 1992. Their divorce would be finalized in November of that year.
The British press also spoke to a lesser degree about the Queen Mother. For all the foibles of the Royal Family, the British public continued to admire the Queen Mother. Why? Well, call it a little event in world history called World War II.
Specifically, let’s recall the Battle of Britain in 1940. The Germans were bombing London almost on a daily basis. The Royal Family could have easily left Buckingham Palace and gone to one of their many castles in the countryside or could have gone overseas to Canada. But the Queen Mother would have none of it and made a firm decision that the family would remain in London. The British people were at war and if nothing else, the Royal Family could stand with them and stand up to Hitler.
Buckingham Palace was hit by aerial bombardment on nine separate occasions. The first bombing nearly killed the Queen Mother and her husband, King George VI. After this first bombing, the Queen Mother journeyed to the working class East End of London which had borne the brunt of the German bombings. She declared that she could “look the East End in the face.” This earned her the eternal endearment of the British public. One east ender Lily Lunn said, “She was wonderful, we went through a lot round here during the war, but whenever we saw Royalty it uplifted us. She never ran away.” The Queen Mother died in 2002 at the age of 101. She lived a full life.
Given his family’s history of standing against the Nazis one must wonder if the V-E Day commemoration that day at Hyde Park or anything in his formal education or travels made any impression with Prince Harry at all?
At twenty years of age, Prince Harry may yet mature into a respectable young man. Perhaps this visit to Auschwitz will do both Harry and William some good. Perhaps a tour of duty in Iraq might also wise up Harry. Of course, Prince Harry can be taken to waters of wisdom but only he can choose to drink those waters, absorb their lessons and pass them onto his children.
Will Prince Harry look the East End in the face or will he run away?
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