“The Queen was a role model for all of us. Among young people, we talk a lot about the monarchy. »
At the foot of Buckingham Palace on Friday afternoon, Jack Bayley made himself clear: British youth are firmly attached to the royal family. Her brother Danny and their friend Heamiona Holton nod enthusiastically. “The monarchy creates tourism, and everyone can rally behind it, which you can’t do with politicians”, asserts this fervent 18-year-old monarchist under the gray sky of London, bouquet of flowers in hand and black felt coat over the shoulders.
Like many other young people of his age, the trio comes today to pay a last tribute to Elizabeth II, who died on Thursday. Indeed, the crowd of thousands of people who flock to the foot of the royal palace is striking in its heterogeneous character: many young people are part of it, in particular.
Met as she heads for the place of meditation, the black fence of the palace, Florrie Dobell, in her early twenties, also assures that “the monarchy is very popular” among young people. “The queen taught everyone to be concerned about others,” she recalls, a sad smile on her face.
If several young people show up here with a dismayed face, others come rather to browse a bit, phone in hand to capture every moment of this great mobilization. “I don’t think it’s as important as it used to be,” says Azelea, accompanied by her friends Lia and Lisa. Dressed in their appropriately royal blue school uniforms, the three 15-year-old London students came to take a look at the action around the palace after their lessons.
They concede, however, that the monarchy is far from being an ignored subject among their circle of friends. “Yes, we talk about it from time to time at lunch with friends,” concedes Lia, sneering. “And the estrangement caused by the couple of Harry and Meghan Markle, we often talk about it,” she adds, arguing that the dissension that has arisen between the couple and the rest of the royal family in recent years has increased interest. brought to them by young people.
Declining popularity
Could the Queen’s death rekindle monarchist fervor among this age group in the UK? It must be said that this fervor has been undermined in recent years: a survey carried out by the firm YouGov in the spring of 2021 revealed that 41% of young people aged 18 to 24 would like their head of state to be elected, while only 31 % prefer to have a king or a queen. Among those over 65, more than 80% gave their preference to the monarchical system.
But despite this decline in enthusiasm, young people do not seem insensitive to the royal family: Friday evening, the hashtag #QueenElizabeth exceeded six billion views on TikTok, a social network that they particularly value.
“I wasn’t really interested in the monarchy, even if it’s true that I devoured the four seasons of The Crown “Admits with a smile Terry Pugh, met in front of Buckingham Palace. The popular series broadcast on Netflix, which chronicles the life of the now late Queen Elizabeth II, has achieved both critical and popular success and has certainly helped to revive interest in the royal family among many Britons.
Terry, eyes red with emotion on this day of national mourning, is one of them. Without however being passionate about monarchy, the young thirty-year-old was immensely touched by the announcement of the death of the queen. “It’s as if someone in my family had just died. She was a bit of everyone’s grandmother, ”he recalls with a smile.
Turning to the increasingly compact crowd, he adds: “This event gives me a kind of awakening to the royal family. »
Adorned with a bouquet of pretty pink flowers and an umbrella that must have been useful during the intermittent showers that marked the day, Claire Gridley notes for her part a great interest in the monarchy… in her daughter from barely 10 years. “She was born in the year of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee [marquant ses 60 ans de règne] and she turned 10 this year, during the platinum jubilee [70 ans de règne]. The queen is an inspiring person for my daughter, ”rejoices the mother of the family, her face despite everything marked with emotion. “My daughter was very sad to learn of the Queen’s passing. »
At the foot of Buckingham Palace, this Friday, some young people take a selfie. Others head calmly to the fence of the splendid building to lay a carefully chosen bouquet of flowers there. But all of them show a calm that transforms this crowd of thousands into a solemn wave. Mourning, here, seems to be without words.