Queen Elizabeth II Knew the Virtues of Being Vanilla

Not Offering an Opinion Was Key to the Monarch’s Success—A Strategy Her Son Would Do Well to Embrace

If the British monarchy is to survive, it needs someone who is as bland as Queen Elizabeth II.

You would look in vain for any controversial statements made by the queen during her lifetime. Sure, in the internet age, she, too, acquiesced to having a Twitter account, and a team of press people would post things on Instagram in her name. But they were all bland, uncontroversial—and, frankly, dull.

In an age when everyone has an opinion—when everyone in public life feels an urge to tell all and sundry about their grumbles, …

An Open Letter to California’s Future Queen | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

An Open Letter to California’s Future Queen

How Meghan and Harry’s Expected Daughter Could Inspire a New Royal Dynasty—And a Golden State Rebirth

To Your Unborn Royal Majesty,

Please forgive me for the protocol breach of writing you in utero.

But after watching your parents—Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex—tell their …

In Liechtenstein, Power to the People—And the Prince | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

In Liechtenstein, Power to the People—And the Prince

For Nearly a Century, the Small European Nation Has Fused Monarchy and Direct Democracy Into a Government That Works

Liechtenstein, the nation of 38,500 in the heart of Europe, has for nearly a century deftly governed itself by combining two seemingly contradictory elements: direct democracy and monarchy. Rather than …

Don’t You Dare Speak Ill of Thailand’s King

Even a Facebook Joke About the Monarch, Entering His Eighth Decade of Rule, Could Send You to Prison for Decades

Since the military coup of 2006, the Thai government has prosecuted hundreds of Thai citizens who made comments about the monarchy, under the authority of Thailand’s lèse-majesté laws. The sentences …