During the 20th century British monarchy changed, as changed social political situation in the country. The accession to the throne of King George VI after the abdication of his uncle Edward caused a constitutional crisis, but it also showed that the representatives of the Royal Family are not icons, they are humans, with all their feelings and weaknesses. Till the rest of their lives Edward and his wife remained popular celebrities in Britain and their story was told as an example of the power of love.
King George VI established many traditions, which made monarchy closer to people and more popular — he started the traditions of attending the annual football Cup Final match at Wembley Stadium, of speaking to the people of Britain and the Commonwealth on the radio on Christmas day and of making the life of the Royal Family more open to the general public.
During World War II the members of the Royal Family took an active part in all events — they did not leave the country, which was constantly threatened by Germanic plane attacks and refused to leave Buckingham Palace even after it had been bombed. Both young Princesses — Elisabeth and Margaret visited military hospitals to raise the spirit of wounded soldiers.
Elizabeth became Queen in 1952 after the death of George VI. She is married to Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh and has four children — Charles, the Prince of Wales, Anne the Princess Royal, Andrew, the Duke of York and Edward, the Duke of Wessex. Elizabeth and her family are the most popular celebrities in Britain; the Queen has done much to the image of modern monarchy. She regularly visits the Commonwealth countries and she also stated a tradition of the "walkabout" — an informal feature of every formal visit, when she walks among the public crowds and stops to talk to some people. The life of the Royal family today is full of problems typical to any ordinary family — many members of the family are divorced, they often have problems and scandals which are widely discussed in Britain. At the same time the Crown is rather popular among the British and still remains a potent symbol of British life.
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Sit back, relax, close your eyes and come with me on a journey to a strange and different world. Imagine taking a walk down a street on a warm summer day. Everything looks pretty and fresh. Overhead, leafy trees are giving you plenty of nice, cool shade. You hear birds happily chirping high in the branches. The air smells fresh and clean. Off in the distance you see gently rolling green hills. A sparkling stream runs near you. You think you will go fishing later. People are setting up tables in a nearby park to enjoy a picnic.
The neighbourhood is quiet and peaceful today.
But wait! Something strange is happening. You turn round a corner, and a whole different scene appears. The air is hot, and you cannot find a spot of shade anywhere. Chirping birds and scurrying squirrels are fleeing, because they have no place to live.
The ground looks sunbaked and dry. The neighbourhood doesn't look very pretty because everything is bare. Dust and soil fly through the air and make it hard to breathe. The wind blows all the time.
You look at the hillsides in the distance. They are brown and bare, and covered with gullies. When it rains, water rushes down these hillsides, carrying lots of soil with it. The soil ends up everywhere, much of it collecting in streams and lakes. You wonder if the soil buildup is what has been killing fish and making the little stream in you neighbourhood flood its banks.
People in the parks are putting beach umbrellas over their tables to shade their picnics. You hear humming noises everywhere. Air conditioners are working overtime as people try to keep cool.
What has made such a difference in your world? You have the feeling something important is missing — something that used to prevent and correct some of these problems. What is it? What do you think?