Prince William ‘takes his style’ from his grandmother, which is why he’s not ‘soft’

The Royal Family thank Key Workers at Windsor Castle

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are consistently infantilized by the British media and the royal establishment. Partly because William and Kate act like children, and partly because there doesn’t seem to be any move to force them out of their extended adolescence. Both Will and Kate turn 40 years old next year and the energy around them is so patronizing. It’s like “oh, Kate threw herself a party, what a big girl!” Or “William can’t be expected to do anything, he’s just a lad who loves football!” The Queen is to be blamed for some of this, especially when you consider the fact that she’s had private meetings with William for years, all part of her effort to “prepare” him for the throne. I don’t think the lessons “took.”

Following the divorce of his parents Prince Charles and Princess Diana, Queen Elizabeth started a new tradition: Sunday lunches with her grandson Prince William.

“The prince takes his style from his royal grandmother, who intervened as the marriage of William’s parents dissolved in 1995,” Robert Lacey, a veteran royal historian and author of the best-selling book Battle of the Brothers, writes in an exclusive cover story for PEOPLE. “The 13-year-old was in a fragile place — alone and just starting boarding at the elite Eton College across the river from Windsor. Concerned for her grandson’s emotional state, the Queen invited William up to join her when Eton boys went home for the weekend. ”

Lacey adds that Queen Elizabeth also modeled herself after her grandmother, Queen Mary, rather than her “too soft and cuddly” mother.

Lacey previously said that the lunches between the Queen and Prince William, who is second in line to the British throne, were Prince Philip’s idea.

“Philip was crucial in helping coach William as a future King,” he said. “It was Philip’s idea to set up the lunches between William and his grandmother. When the time came for the Queen to talk business with William, Philip would quietly excuse himself because he didn’t feel that the constitutional side of the Queen’s job was something he wanted to interfere in.”

“The British throne has survived beheading, exile and enough scandal to stock entire libraries. Now a new leader — William, not Charles — is paving the way forward,” writes Lacey. And the future king is doing so with a vivid example in mind: “At this crucial inflection point, William, 39, continues to model his leadership on the style he learned from his grandmother.”

[From People]

They can’t have it both ways – they can’t promote Baldemort as a “modern future king” while also talking about how he learned everything about how to behave as a royal from his grandmother who was born in 1926. I always say that William and Kate are a pair of throwbacks, and this is one of the reasons why. William in particular has been schooled in what amounts to Victorian-era royalty, not modern European royalty. And besides all that, Lacey is really overselling this idea that Liz and William spent so much time together during his formative years. On weekends at Eton, he was being shuffled back and forth between his parents. Then there was “Club H” at Highgrove, his father’s home, where William partied and did drugs.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II (L) looks on as Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (R) asks a question about forensics work as they visit the Energetics Analysis Centre as they visit the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) at Porton Down science park near Salisbury, southern England, on October 15, 2020. - The Queen and the Duke of Cambridge visited the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) where they were to view displays of weaponry and tactics used in counter intelligence, a demonstration of a Forensic Explosives Investigation and meet staff who were involved in the Salisbury Novichok incident. Her Majesty and His Royal Highness also formally opened the new Energetics Analysis Centre.

The Queen And Prince William attend the ceremony of the Keys in Edinburgh

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.

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97 Responses to “Prince William ‘takes his style’ from his grandmother, which is why he’s not ‘soft’”

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  1. Eurydice says:

    Well, she did such a great job with Charles and Andrew…

  2. BayTampaBay says:

    Willian is not soft. William is work-shy and lazy.

    QEII has no leadership style as she left all that up to Prince Philip which “The Crown” clearly dramatizes.

    • Lilibetp says:

      The Queen Mother wasn’t soft, either; she just looked soft. She was called an iron butterfly and was the strength behind George VI.

  3. atorontogal says:

    So granny is a whiny incandescent filled with rage bully too?

    • Layla says:

      No. She’s a constantly gobsmacked, flabbergasted psychopath according to “insider sources”

  4. Nina says:

    Queen Mother was soft and cuddly?? First time I’m hearing about it

    • Seraphina says:

      From all I have read and watched, the Queen Mum was bitter, petty and vengeful. Hmmmmm, I think maybe Wills may be like his great grandmum in some ways after all.

    • Becks1 says:

      I don’t think I’d want to model myself after either the Queen mother or Queen Mary.

      • aftershocks says:

        👍 Right @Becks, neither one of these married-in Queens should anyone be wishing to model themselves after. Queen Mary was a rigid, old, stuffy formerly poor German princess who enjoyed ‘taking’ things from the homes of aristocrats she visited, as supposed voluntary gifts!

        Despite reportedly having love for her children, Queen Mary was incapable of demonstrating her love. All of her children were messed up emotionally and psychologically. Plus, the older two boys (David & Bertie) were badly abused by their nannies as babies for awhile before it was discovered. The nannies were subsequently sacked, but the damage was done.

        Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon grew up in a big, happy aristocratic landowning family in Scotland. Her mother was English and her father was Scottish, which makes the current Queen a bit less German. However, as Queen Mother, EBL, became infected with the Windsor toxicity, plus she was already spoiled, snooty and xenophobic when she married the stutteringly insecure and rage-prone Bertie.

        The fact that Bertie and EBL were so clueless and shortsighted as to neglect their daughters’ educations, is unforgivable. They also both thought it was a good idea to indulge and over-spoil Princess Margaret in order to compensate for her being the spare, rather than the heir. 😕

    • Emily says:

      If she’s the soft and cuddly one in the family then YIKES!

    • notasugarhere says:

      Definitely not. Manipulative and jealous to the core. Wanted the elder brother, he wasn’t interested, so she finally settled for Bertie. That’s really why she hated Wallis so much, not because the abdication. Manipulated her grandson to marry one of her besties granddaughters, she didn’t care which one.

      ‘a marshmallow made on a welding machine’ – Cecil Beaton

      ‘She looked everything that she was not: gentle, gullible, tenderness mingled with dispassionate serenity, cool, well-bred, remote. Behind this veil she schemed and vacillated, hard as nails.’ – Stephen Tennant

      • NCWoman says:

        She could have been all these things, but we also need to start seriously questioning the ways that men frame women. Their perceptions are often highly misogynistic.

      • notasugarhere says:

        Elisabeth Bowes-Lyon was ones of the biggest misogynists in the BRF. Whether it was a man or woman writing about her, the fact are the facts. Cannot erase that with any attempts to view her and her descriptions through a modern lens. See A’s comment below.

      • L84Tea says:

        If I understand it correctly, the Queen Mum is a huge reason why (not all, but a large part) the RF are as dysfunctional as they are. She was notoriously petty and set Liz up for some really crappy ways to deal with issues. Rather than actually handling the problems, she so eloquently coined the phrase “never complain, never explain”. I sort of feel as if her rearing of QEII set up some really unhealthy dynamics in that family. Trust me, I know that family has always been pretty horrible, but she directly had a hand in the shenanigans that we see playing out today.

      • notasugarhere says:

        She definitely had a hand in the dysfunction, and there was a lot of anger and tension between her and her eldest daughter. When she retired to Castle of Mey for a few years, it was a clear weight off QEII’s shoulders.

      • BayTampaBay says:

        I read that even after QEII became the heir apparent upon the abdication, the Queen Mum did want QEII to attend a proper school because she did not feel traditional academic learning was important let alone necessary.

      • aftershocks says:

        @Notasugarhere said:
        “Wanted the elder brother, he wasn’t interested, so she finally settled for Bertie…”

        ^^ This has been claimed by none other than Colin Campbell in recent years, so I’m suspicious of the veracity. From documentary accounts and biographies, the young Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was charming and carefree, with lots of suitors. There was a particular young man who was interested in her whose affections she may have reciprocated. But it was arranged by royal sources for this beau to be sent away for military training, so that Bertie would have a clearer path to courting EBL and winning her heart.

        EBL is said to have turned Bertie down at least three times before she agreed to marry him. Possibly, the marriage was also encouraged by her own parents, along with the Windsor cabal.

        I tend to think that EBL wasn’t interested in either David or Bertie, but pressure was brought to bear on both sides of the family. It’s been said that EBL ultimately grew fond of Bertie since he was so smitten with her.

        Regarding David, probably EBL sensed his selfish failings and his numerous character flaws. I doubt she was attracted by the supposed charm David had in his youth. I’m not convinced that she was necessarily eager to marry into royalty, nor that she was especially attracted to either of the elder Windsor brothers.

        But perhaps once she became royal, EBL enjoyed her queenly status and her worst traits settled in. It couldn’t have been easy either, married to rage-prone Bertie.

      • Agreatreckoning says:

        There are a lot of references to the Queen Mother wanting Edward before LCC bringing it up. This article is from 2009. Reading it – sounds like William is more like his gread grandmother than grandmother. Ruthless, snobbish, lazy, willingness to throw people under the bus if things didn’t go as planned- though most of them seem guilty of that, etc.,..
        (check out stuff about the nanny Crawfie & the Queen Mother)

        6th paragraph down in the article.
        https://www.huffpost.com/entry/can-we-finally-tell-the-t_b_299297

  5. Woke says:

    Please what is this fanfiction ? The Queen never rocks the boat she does as she told she us the incarnation of softness. She has made herself such a blanck canvas that anyone project whatever personality they want on her that’s why her reign has been somewhat successful till recent years. That’s what Kate is doing but William is doing the opposite.

    • Pao says:

      Actually i think that until recently both william and kate were doing it. But since harry met meghan (and has been making serious boss moves) he’s been trying to be like his baby brother.

      U know how charles was always told not to be like his great uncle? I think william has similarly been told not to be too much like either of his parents, especially his mother. As a result he IS emulating himself like the queen (to be whatever people want him to be). But william has the jealousy and temper of his father and being like the queen is simply not going to cut it for younger generations if his unpopularity under millennials and gen z is anything to go by. And thats why we are now getting eco warrior william who says a bunch of stuff without really saying anything.

      • notasugarhere says:

        William got jealousy, temper, manipulation, and selfishness from both his parents.

      • Quaint Louise says:

        Interested in if Chuck will try this approach to mold George. Not with the affection of a grandfather, but as a way to enact vengeance on his son.

      • teecee says:

        People will also accept blankness from a woman, no matter her rank, more easily than a man.

    • Eurydice says:

      I think the only way the Queen is soft is with regard to Andrew – with him, she lets her emotions take over. With everything and everyone else, she’s “by the book,” whether it makes sense or not. Maybe that’s considered “hard” – others might call it “pig-headed.”

      • notasugarhere says:

        I don’t think she’s soft with Andrew; she’s stubborn, hard, and refusing to accept her precious baby boy is a rapist. She’s abusing her position to protect him from prosecution. That isn’t soft, that’s hard as nails.

      • Eurydice says:

        I agree with you about her actions – I just have a different definition of hard and soft. With Andrew, I think she’s letting her emotions rule her actions and she’s indulged him in ways she hasn’t with her other children – determined, stubborn and delusional, but still soft on Andrew.

      • notasugarhere says:

        I think she’d be the same with any of them accused of a crime. Assume the peasants were lying and defend her ROYAL child via any channels.

    • Lorelei says:

      @Woke, please show some respect for their beloved Queen! She’s just a lovely little old granny who’s managed to…not die for 95 years, making her magnificent “reign” some sort of breaking record, and because of that we should spend no less than a full year discussing The Jubilee on a daily basis.

      How dare anyone insult the Queen no matter how she atrociously she might behave. She’s as pure as the driven snow!

      🙄

  6. OriginalLala says:

    Omg these people make no sense – one cannot be “Modern” while modeling themselves after a near-centenarian.

    • Betsy says:

      I quibble with this. I think there are frequently parts that we can take from defunct systems.

      What William is totally missing is the need to work. He just does not do it.

    • Amy Too says:

      And that near 100 year old woman is modeling herself—and apparently shaping her grandson— after *her* grandmother! William has been trained to act like his great-great Grandma!? A literal Victorian woman?

      But also, if you’re the monarch and you’re teaching another monarch how to monarch—to the point where your consort steps out of the room during these conversations because it’s all just so specially monarchical—then why are you using a Victorian consort as your template? Why not an actual monarch?

  7. Feebee says:

    William is still Billy the Basher*, a bully and a bit of an asshole.

    *Officially may have been Billy Basher – same diff.

    • Persephone says:

      a bit? more like full blown asshole.

      • SnoodleDumpling says:

        I think it’s ‘a bit of an asshole’ in the English sense, where it means ‘the platonic ideal of assholishness, it is LITERALLY IMPOSSIBLE to be more assholey than this because all other assholes are merely poor imitations of the one true SUPREME ASSHOLE’.

  8. Harper says:

    Except for the fact that William was 15 when Diana died. It must have been Harry that the Queen was mothering on Sundays, and Lacey forgot to proof his usual twist the truth moves.

    • Becks1 says:

      No, most of the stories about the lunches (that’s not anything new) are about William – the excerpt mentions it started around the divorce, not her death. this is often used as an example of how Harry was left out and always treated differently – William went to sunday lunches at Windsor Castle, Harry was not invited.

      • Eurydice says:

        Yes, that’s the problem with following the book, there’s no guarantee everyone else will, too. Maybe it was procedurally correct to focus only on the FFK, but at some point the little brother would be necessary – except, he decided to write a new book.

      • Harper says:

        You’re right. I missed the part where they were talking about the divorce and not her death. However, I do think that Harry still lunched with the Queen once he got older more than William did. We know Harry took Meghan to meet the Queen at Royal Lodge for Sunday lunch. I find it interesting that the Keens never bothered to create a narrative of both Will and Kate lunching with the Queen on Sundays.

      • notasugarhere says:

        Adding to timeline. C&D separated in 1992, divorced in 1996, she died in 1997.

        William was at Ludgrove (Berkshire) starting 1990
        Eton 1995-2000

        Harry followed to both two years later. I could see him invited to lunches with granny too. Odd if he wouldn’t have been even though the stories of ‘training teas’ with the Queen centre on William.

      • Becks1 says:

        @Harper oh its clear now that Harry feels he has a close relationship with his grandmother, I don’t think the lack of Sunday lunches ruined their relationship, lol. But it’s been a very specific story that’s been repeated for decades now – that William was special so he was singled out for these weekly visits. That’s harsh on a young boy like Harry whose parents were also divorcing (and then in the future whose mother also died.) I think it just goes to the overall pattern of how Harry was always always the spare.

      • notasugarhere says:

        Becks1, it may have been once William left Eton, Harry got two solid years of granny time right when he was having a terrible time at Eton. It could have been the forging of more closeless with her without his awful older brother around.

  9. Pao says:

    I keep saying this but: by the time william is king he cannot be the same type of monarch that his grandma is.

    • Lorelei says:

      @Pao, forget William, the Queen herself can’t even be the type of monarch that she is now!

  10. Izzy says:

    Whew. That’s a lot of words to say “his grandmother taught him to be an uncaring racist ahole like her.”

  11. Becks1 says:

    So william was taught how to be king by a woman who buries her head in the sand, enables and protects her sex offender son, and allowed her oldest son to withdraw security from her grandson and his family?

    Great, I’m sure he’ll be a real asset .

    • Over it says:

      This sounds about right. I don’t know why people think she is so great. The woman been sitting on that throne for years and I have yet to see what she has done that will be remembered as helping those less fortunate. You know the ones she is supposed to be caring about but really doesn’t. I have always thought she is a cold fish

      • L84Tea says:

        I believe a large part of it is that they’re simply used to her always having been there. Even if they aren’t paying direct attention to her, no matter what they do, old Liz has always been around for either the majority of their lives or their entire lives, depending on their age. She’s basically woven into the fabric of the furniture. I get it. My father passed away just a few weeks ago. My mom died when I was 16, but my dad has always been there, whether I saw him or not. Even when I was busy, I still knew he was there. Now I am suddenly dealing with the oddness of knowing he’s not here anymore. It’s a really strange feeling because he’s just always been there. I predict when Liz passes, it’s going to jolt a lot of people in a huge way. I mean, she’s been the queen for decades upon decades. End of an era will be a huge understatement for her. But it will be interesting to see what happens afterwards, because I believe a lot of people put up with them out of their nostalgia for her. But when she’s gone, hmmm…

      • notasugarhere says:

        I am so sorry for your loss.

      • Lady D says:

        I’m starting to think she’s Kate og. She wears pretty clothes, makes chitchat, smiles pleasantly, and gives the country a good name, just like Kate.

  12. Lizzie says:

    Queens lesson to Bill. ‘So no matter what happens do nothing and for god’s sake say nothing’
    End lesson.

  13. Lorelei says:

    So now we’re referring to a selfish, lying, disloyal, arrogant, racist bully who regularly throws temper tantrums, is driven only by envy, and treats even his closest family members like trash as “soft?” Sure, why not.

    Also, there’s a gulf the size of Texas in between “too soft and cuddly” and…whateverTF the Queen is. Lots of middle ground there that the BRF might want to take a look at.

    KP’s brain trust continues to show us that they’re not called the “Gold Standards” of PR for nothing!

    • Becks1 says:

      No, they’re saying he’s not soft because he’s modeling himself after the Queen, who modeled herself after Queen Mary, not the soft and cuddly (lol) QM.

      • Lorelei says:

        @Becks, you are right! I typed my comment before having any caffeine and as a result it makes absolutely no sense! Nor does it make my point; in fact, it does the opposite! Well done, me.

        *I stand by my description of William’s character, however.

  14. Merricat says:

    No one seriously believes that William will engender the same affection and respect as the queen, which is just ONE of many reasons the British monarchy is doomed. Those who support Elizabeth are old, and young people don’t want to send their taxes to support this entitled, arrogant wipe and his know-nothing wife-wipe.

  15. RoyalBlue says:

    Advice from her Majesty: Just let the Men in Grey handle it.

  16. Harla says:

    Wow, what a cruel way to leave out D&C’s other child, Harry, who was also struggling with his parents divorce. The queen really is a cold, unintelligent, and petty woman who should have stepped down 20+ years ago.

  17. Amy Bee says:

    I’m yet to see what William learned from those Sunday except he’s destined to be King and that he’s superior to his brother.

    • A says:

      That’s all he was going to learn, and all that he needs to learn, as far the Queen and others are concerned. There’s a hierarchy, not only within the royal family, but within society himself. He’s going to be at the top, and he should preserve that hierarchy at all costs if he can. Even if it comes at the expense of his brother.

    • Over it says:

      I actually think it’s a blessing she was mentoring william the bald and not Harry because Harry has a heart of gold and william just like his granny queen petty, has a black hole where their heart should be

  18. jferber says:

    He’s not soft because he takes his style from Granny? I’d rather style him as asinine, not soft. There, I fixed it for them.

  19. A says:

    “Lacey adds that Queen Elizabeth also modeled herself after her grandmother, Queen Mary, rather than her “too soft and cuddly” mother.”

    This is honestly how I know for a fact that Lacey is a hack whose only interest in royal history is for the gossip. I am in no way a fan of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and it’s precisely because she was not “too soft and cuddly”. Hell, even her public image was not one of a soft and cuddly person.

    As has been REPEATEDLY stated, in various sources, the Queen Mother was a ruthless, cutthroat b-tch. There’s been an anecdote that I’ve heard for years that Hitler privately referred to her as “the most dangerous woman in Europe” because of how instrumental she was in boosting the people’s morale during WW2. She schemed, needled and hacked her way around her daughter’s court during QE2’s reign because she couldn’t stand being out of the spotlight and having no influence. Hell, even the Tatler article on Kate from last year tried to make a ham-fisted comparison between Kate and the Queen Mother (lol) by quoting someone who once referred to the Queen Mother was a “marshmallow wrapped around steel” or something.

    If anything, it’s the Queen who’s a wishy-washy weak-willed ruler. In her earliest years, she got yanked and manipulated by her mother and Winston Churchill bc she lacked experience. In the middle years, she barely did anything of significance. In the later years of her reign, the only consistent thing people have said about her is that she “ostriches” and is incapable of confronting people, and had to use Philip as her enforcer. Her whole life, she’s relied on other people and been led by them, often badly. If this is the person from whom William is getting his guidance, particularly on freaking CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS (which is serious f-cking business, and SHOULD be ringing alarm bells for people), then that is a cause for immense concern.

    William is not, and will never be the sort of monarch who is capable of unifying the country behind his bitchiness being used for good like the QM did. If he becomes monarch at all, I strongly predict he’s going to be dealing with issues like the break up of the UK as NI and Scotland make bids for independence, as well as major constitutional reforms brought on as the extended, decades long aftermath of Brexit. This is also a member of the royal family who has the right wing establishment, both in politics and journalism, firmly in his corner. The reason he’s being referred to as the future of the monarchy is bc that’s who the Little England Brexiteer crowds are favourable to. They are trashing Charles not because they like William for his personality, but bc they know William is a huge piece of the future wrt constitutional matters, and they need him on their side. They see him as a future monarch who will be supportive and amenable to a right wing politics, and that is a massive problem.

    The monarchy in the UK is not a neutral institution. It is a deeply political, polarized institution, that is and always has been firmly set against the working class of the country. It exists to preserve and defend the interests of the richest and most influential in the UK. The stuff about it being a neutral institution is propaganda intended to make people unaware of the reality.

    • Eurydice says:

      If William is taking lessons from TQ, then there’s either something wrong with William or something wrong with the lessons (probably both) because William hasn’t shown any capabilities so far for leadership and diplomacy.

      But, for all his shortcomings, I don’t think it’s fair to saddle him (or Kate, if she becomes Queen) with the responsibility for unifying the country; that ship sailed long ago. Most likely, it will be as you say – he’ll be a puppet for the right – but I don’t think it will last.

      • Charm says:

        There you go, continuing the infantilization of BudgetValdemort. Havent we been told, ad infinitum that the signal role of the Monarch and the BRF is to “unite the nation”…..offer comfort to the nation in times of trouble/stress/hardship….etc. So if you excuse Baldi from this critical role, whats he for?

      • A says:

        But it IS fair though. Every time the argument for abolishing the monarchy comes up, one of the most prominent arguments that gets toted around is that it’s nice to have a unifying head of state that is, supposedly, above politics, who doesn’t have to get voted in (and therefore won’t be a cause of divisiveness among the people), who can reliably behave as a figurehead around whom people can rally around when the politicians can’t be trusted. That is constantly what I’m being told is the point of the monarchy, and not only that, I’m constantly being told this is a good and positive thing.

        The monarch has a constitutional role to play in the affairs of the govt–they are, constitutionally, THE supreme head of state. They are not an elected head of state, in which case a reasonable argument *could* be made that they only have to represent the interests of their voters, and therefore don’t need to be a rallying point to unify the country. They are the head of state, in a country where the govt isn’t even formed under the name of the people, the govt is formed under the auspices of the monarch (His/Her Majesty’s govt and His/Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition).

        If THIS figure can’t serve as a unifying rallying point for the people over whom they preside and lord over and rule, then who the f-ck does?

      • Eurydice says:

        @A – I was actually agreeing with you. I guess what I’m saying is that I don’t think the monarchy is apolitical (Charles is definitely not apolitical) or any more of a “unifying force” than one of custom and habit. When the politicians can’t be trusted, what exactly does the Queen do to make people rally? And around what would they be rallying, anyway? And who is it the monarchy is supposed to be unifying, and for what purpose? It seems this argument is self-serving for the monarchy – keep us, or everything will fall apart.

        I just think it’s a fiction to expect William, even if he were an empathetic genius instead of a slothful lightweight, to do anything about the issues facing the UK in the 21st century. And it’s kind of idolatrous to look at him and Kate as some kind of saviors of the empire. I’m not sure what to say about your point that an hereditary clan has the voters interests more to heart than do elected officials – it seems in direct contradiction to your original post.

      • notasugarhere says:

        They are *supposed* to have the people’s interests above the interests of the politicians. That’s part of the modern royal job, to navigate through, under, around the political interests and make them see reason. An umpire or referee if you will.

      • A says:

        I think you misunderstood me in the same way I misunderstood you, which makes it a double whammy, LOL. I’m not saying that a hereditary clan has the voter’s interests more to heart. I’m saying, if they are going to put themselves in the position that they are in right now, which is where one unelected individual, without any public consensus and through nothing but an accident of birth, is the constitutional head of state, then yes, they LEAST they can do is do their job better than an elected politician could. They had better provide a good reason for why they’re afforded all of those privileges without having earned them.

        Because otherwise, there is simply no justification for such a system at all. Of course, at the end of the day, there is no justification for a monarchy, even if the monarch is nice. The system itself is not one worth preserving. But people like QE2, the Queen Mother, and those before them at least understood that you need to create the image of your own utility, even if it’s not true in reality. William won’t even bother with the act of keeping up appearances adequately. He intends to be a monarch that represents a small segment of the population in the UK, and to hell with the rest of them.

        He is not a right wing puppet btw–he is someone who I believe is actively involved in right wing politics behind the scenes in ways that haven’t come to light yet, and he’s been described as someone with surprisingly reactionary views on a great deal of things. He is not a puppet, he is an active participant and ascribes to such politics, likely because the right wing political establishment is one under which the monarchy will continue to thrive. He’s not an uneducated or powerless on this, and I do think he’s going to become an alarming threat at some point in the future if he becomes monarch.

      • Eurydice says:

        @A – This is such an interesting take. I wouldn’t have described William as “active” about anything, except maybe sport, tantrums and the avoidance of work. Given the monarchy, it seems the path of least resistance to be reactionary, but he may very well rouse himself once he’s on the throne. It will be interesting to see if the UK and Commonwealth nations accept this as we move further into the 21st century.

    • Merricat says:

      Dead on, A.

    • C says:

      Have just been reading the 1938-43 diaries of Chips Channon, the ultimate insider. Fascinating stuff. None of the tension is new. The Duke of Kent hated his brother, the King and the Queen (Queen Mother). He also resented the Duke of Gloucester. The King was called ‘RS’ in the early days of the war – short for Rubber Stamp because he did everything that Churchill told him too. Channon writes in 1942 of how Phillip was being lined up to be Elizabeth’s consort. He has a lot to say about how most of the Windsors (Marina, Duchess of Kent excluded) were dull, stupid, petty and lazy.

    • Nic919 says:

      It remains ridiculous that the head of a constitutional monarchy isn’t required to get specific training on the actual UK constitution, which right now is an amalgamation of conventions and tradition and not a document as they exist in other common law jurisdictions. If William was smart enough he should have had to take the LLB, which is an undergrad program in the UK. How can one provide advice about the constitution if you don’t actually know what it is.

  20. Margaret says:

    Look. he is a bore, full stop. You can add a temper tantrum throwing bully. Also to call him dumb, and inadequate would not be out of line. I can’t stand him, something about him makes me think of a verbal and physical abusive man. My personal opinion.

  21. nina says:

    Still trying to compete with Harry. What this tells me is that he knows that with him the queen was doing her duty, training the future monarch. With Harry she spent time because she enjoyed Harry’s company.
    She obviously enjoyed her time with Harry because why would she make the effort to drive herself to see him the last time he was over there.
    You’ve never heard her doing that to see William

  22. Lizzie says:

    TOB has a style? Is that what the kids are calling incandescent rage these days?

  23. Rapunzel says:

    Wasn’t Wills suppose to have been close to the Queen Mother? I’ve often thought that accounted for a lot of the attitude.

  24. Catherine says:

    I think over the years during these lunches the Queen saw how lazy and inadequate William was. That’s why they allowed him to forgo full time royal duties for so long. That’s why they allowed him to use Harry as a prop. lol at Charles and his siblings. They each over the years have had their own things. They were not presented as being critical for the survival of the monarchy. Also the solo lunches weren’t just with the Queen. The Queen mother would also single William out for special attention.

    • notasugarhere says:

      They didn’t ‘allow’ anything. In the face of William’s petulance, threats, and Diana-style whiplash temperament? Neither QEII nor Charles knows how to deal with William, never have.

      • BayTampaBay says:

        Tin Foil Tiara Time: Maybe the reason William was shipped off to Anglesey, Wales then given a “two year break” to settle into his marriage is because QEII and Charles really did not want him around under their feet and did not want to deal with him????

      • notasugarhere says:

        They weren’t given a two year break. WEII didn’t live in Malta for two straight years, she didn’t give them two years off out of sentimentality. That was all tabloid speculation and stan excuses for their laziness.

        After a decade of dating, what was there to settle in to? Other than the business arrangement William now regrets and never really wanted. He continues to cheat, she continues to spend more of her time with mummy, shopping, working out, or grooming.

        Maybe QEII and Charles expected the marriage to fail quickly, so Kate being the non-entity she’s always been and will always be didn’t matter.

      • BayTampaBay says:

        @nota – This story has been highly past around and repeated. I read in two different books that QEII gave the Keenbridges the first two years of their marriage off from any work and/or royal duties as she did not want a repeat of the Chuck & Di marriage. QEII wanted time for any marriage problems to be worked out BEFORE the Keenbridges started having children and started full-time royal duties.

        All I have stated in this post may be completely false but I have read this version of events for their time in Anglesey, Wales more than twice but from only what I would call two reliable sources.

        Also, who do you think Baldy really wanted to marry? Who do you think was his first choice?

      • notasugarhere says:

        All of that BS was made up by tabloids and stans, repeated ad nauseum for 10 years until now people take it as fact instead of fiction. None of that is reliable.

        QEII didn’t live in Malta, she visited four times in two years. She didn’t give any other working royals years off to adjust to marriage, when all of them had dated their partners less than W&K. Just like the lies about HG, W&K ran with the fan fiction about ‘two years off’ and used it as an excuse for their laziness.

        These are the same people who insisted Harry and Meghan wouldn’t be allowed to marry for five years, repeating a lie that QEII requires people to live together for five years before marrying to avoid divorce. Which is also patently false. Edward and Sophie weren’t required to wait; Edward shied off marrying her every time the tabloids hinted about their marriage. QEII had nothing to do with it.

        I think he settled for Kate, when the pressure from the Middletons and tabloids to marry Kate got too much for him. Charles gave him an out, instead William ran in to the fire with the Middletons. William was too weak to stand up, walk away from the easy sex and coddling Middletons, and become someone deserving of a better partner.

      • Tessa says:

        It’s William’s issues not Charles not Diana. William is responsible for his own temper tantrums and petulance. Charles I think is using William for his own interests, he thinks Will is more “useful” to him than Harry. The Queen just ignores problems and avoids them. Charles never blamed himself for his choices, he blamed his parents. I think Will does not like to accept blame for his own actions. There also may have been a lot of problems with William and this was kept from the public. Charles even had to apologize for William when he trespassed on someone else’s estate, speeding through it in his car.

      • Dilettante says:

        Nota, what’s the out Charles gave him?

    • Tessa says:

      Yes, that Malta story was another excuse made for Kate who seemed to be protected by the media. Plus she was not seen while she “researched” her charities. The Queen worked a lot during the Malta years and was not t here for two consecutive years. She was in London for her pregnancies and she pinch hit for her father on some tours.

  25. Charm says:

    “The British throne has survived beheading, exile and enough scandal to stock entire libraries……” writes Lacey. “At this crucial inflection point, William… continues to model his leadership on the style he learned from his grandmother.”

    ^ And that, right there, is where these dinosaurs like Lacey and the little grey men who manage betty and run the monarchy, show that they cant see the forest for the trees. Because back in the days of beheadings and exile and other scandals within the monarchy, THE. PEOPLE. were not just literal subjects (unlike the hybrid whatevertheyaretoday) but they were literally subjugated. There was no freedom….no way was there even the THOUGHT of “leaving the BRF and forging one’s own way” a la Prince Harry…….look how everyone of them is running around like a chicken without a head because of what H has done.

    So Harry has removed one of their pillars from the equation.

    Theres nothing in their wheelhouse to deal with the phenom of what H has done……theyve practically admitted as much. So old bwoy Lacey and the rest of them can spin all they want. If theyre being guided by the fact that “The British throne has survived beheading, exile and enough scandal to stock entire libraries …” then, to their peril, theyre looking in the wrong direction. LMFAO

  26. Lala11_7 says:

    I think the private lessons Queen Elizabeth gave to Prince William took…

    She is utterly useless & so is he.

  27. Nievie says:

    ‘not soft’ unless where it counts xD

  28. Well Wisher says:

    The Queen remains the most respected,ergo, “I am the Queen”.

  29. Likeyoucare says:

    If meghan and harry didnt work so hard and affectively.

    Non of the BM will try to embiggening willie and khate.
    The FFK need be praise even when he barely work and the british will be satisfied.

    Unfortunately, H&M karisma and work ethic were like a beacon that show the BRF is useless.

    Poor willie he was set to be king, his grandmother said so and he believe it. But H&M threw a monkey wrench to his life.

    • Tessa says:

      It seems to me that the critics who keep bringing up Wallis and Edward want to believe this, because Wallis and Edward for most of their lives were in essence “socialites” who hosted lavish dinner parties and mingled with the rich and famous. They did not have children. Harry and Meghan OTOH are continuing with charity work and not drifting around and living a life of leisure of the Windsors. ANd they have two children to raise. It seems it bothers the critics that Harry and Meghan are continuing charity work and espousing causes.

  30. ChattyCath says:

    Queen Mary? The one who visited people, coveted what they had and practically demanded it was gifted to her?