The word pontiff comes from pontifex, which means bridge builder in Latin. The popes took it from the Roman emperors and, like them, have made a link between the divine and the human. But also among humans themselves in each historical context and throughout history.
Yesterday the key expression with which the British system had planned the transfer of Elizabeth II finally rang on the phone: "London Bridge has fallen." The country of pragmatism, discretion and phlegm had everything ready. To the rest of the world, although it was possible, the death of the oldest sovereign of her country and the oldest in the world seemed unlikely. This morning it seemed to us as if our world, mired in uncertainties, was missing one of its landmarks.
Practically almost nothing of the world in which little Lilibeth was born remains. The estate society, which had really ended with the First World War, has given way to the liberal society. The British Empire has been transformed into the Commonwealth of Nations. It ceded and recovered part of its sovereignty to the European Union. The unity of the kingdom itself has been called into question by Scotland. She has declared war and proclaimed peace. The economic system of her country has changed from the production of goods to the distribution of services. She lived through a countercultural revolution and a conservative one. The Anglo-Saxon cultural monopoly in her country has given way to a multicultural society. She has connected two eras. But all this lived with stability.
Responsibility, intuition and discretion are the three keys to understanding Elizabeth II. Before the corpse of her father, who was king unexpectedly, she promised to consecrate herself to her people and overcome both the parsimony of George V and the excesses of Edward VIII. She was only 26 years old. Since then, she has worked imperceptibly but constantly so that the basket has the same shape, even though the wickers are different. Behind all this is the character of a shy and mischievous girl, with a lot of backlash. She only allowed herself the license to marry in love with her with whom she knew how to discreetly support her all her life, first to bring the institution closer and then to face her adversities.
The monarchy is actually a one-person institution. In addition to neutrality, it is based on exemplary character or, better said, on what citizens perceive as such at all times. Hence, he has not hesitated to make as many family sacrifices, from the sweetness behind closed doors, as have been necessary to guarantee the stability of his country. Today the Commonwealth groups 56 countries and 2.5 billion people: a third of the world's population. Its universities are among the top ten in the world, maintaining technological leadership in many sectors. And the city of London is one of the centers of the world economy. Nowadays, thanks to a good and stable educational system, the British permeates, in a healthy patriotism, every social sphere.
This adaptability to the context, knowing how to maintain the essentials of the institution, has been the key to the success of the United Kingdom, a state that feels fascinated by its sovereignty precisely because it is perceived as a guarantor of unity (the country lacks a Constitution), of sovereignty (symbolized in her role as governor of the Church of England) and welfare (harmonizing government and "loyal opposition"). Her role has always been the same: symbol in the solemn, sign in the everyday. A mother who sends her son off to war but later publicly reproves him, a neighbor who walks her dogs but solemnly opens Parliament, a unifying queen who presents herself in each territory as its sovereign and a person who governs her country remembering to each government that not only represents its voters.
Throughout that period everything has changed except her, because in order to appear immovable she has known how to adapt. When one moves at the speed of the context it gives the sensation of being immobile. Like when on the highway we notice the tires of the vehicle next to us, which seem static in the dynamism of their speed. And that gives security to those who face these changes as turbulence. Be a lighthouse in the storm, be a rower in the calm. Most Britons have known no other sovereign.
Monarchy makes sense as long as it is meaningful. Symbol and sign, from a semiotic point of view, are not incompatible. Even more, if they complement each other, the meaning is complete. If not, it becomes insignificant and, as such, suppressible. It must be perceived by citizens as a neutral space of power that, precisely because it has not been elected, represents the entire citizenry. A neutral head of state is essential to democracy. For this reason, among the countries with the greatest stability, with what it entails in economic terms, are above all those governed by monarchs.
Feeling dying, Elizabeth II chose a private, Scottish property to die. Balmoral has always represented for her the moments of rest outside her institutional responsibilities. There lived the love of her Victoria and Albert; also Elizabeth and Philip. With this she wanted to underline her dimension as a wife, mother, grandmother. But it is in Scotland, one of the two signatories of the Act of Union of 1707, which gave rise to the creation of the Kingdom of Great Britain, where a part of the population has wanted to undo that treaty for years. It has been her last service to her family and her country.
London Bridge is made up of a walkway and two towers. The bridge has fallen, but the towers are still next to it. Elizabeth had a son, grandson and great-grandson. In fact, from the very moment of her death, the reign of Carlos III began. That is the role of the monarchy: stability. And the system, after more than 70 years of reign, is fully stable thanks to Elizabeth II.
