Prologue: The performance of the British Royal Family in the face of major battles
On March 15, 2020, according to media reports, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom has withdrawn from Buckingham Palace and retreated to Windsor Castle because of the danger of the new coronavirus. But then the British royal family issued a statement saying that the queen was just a normal weekend trip and would return to London in a few days. It is unclear why the Queen left, but as people who lived through World War II, we might as well look at how the Queen's parents, and even the entire British Royal Family, did before another major battle, World War II.
The current Queen Elizabeth II
Bombers over Buckingham Palace, the King's most dangerous moment
At about 11:00 a.m. on September 13, 1940, a German bomber, using the cover of clouds, flew over the British capital at a low altitude, suddenly appeared over Buckingham Palace, the King's residence, and quickly dropped five high-explosive bombs.
At that time, King George VI and his queen Elizabeth, the parents of the current Queen Elizabeth II, were drinking tea. However, when the whistle of the plane reached their eardrums, the two moved relatively quickly. Just as they rushed into the corridor to escape the blast wave of the explosion, two bombs had landed in the courtyard of Buckingham Palace and exploded just a few meters from where the two of them had been drinking tea. The other three bombs, while not so dangerous, also blew up a church and blew up several huge pits.
Although buckingham Palace was bombed as many as 9 times throughout world war, this time was undoubtedly the most dangerous one, and if the British couple's reaction was slower, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Buckingham Palace in London, England
Germany was self-defeating, and the British royal family regained the hearts and minds of the people
It is understood that this bombing was not an accident, but one of the plans of the German High Command. They intended to put pressure on the British by bombing Buckingham Palace to feel hopeless and surrender. However, after a detailed understanding of the beginning and end of this period of history, Ji Yijun wanted to say that Germany really stole chicken this time and did not eat rice, lifted a stone and dropped it on its own feet, directly self-defeating. Because of this bombing, not only did not sow the seeds of despair and failure in Britain, but on the contrary aroused the hatred of the British up to the king and down to the common people.
Four years ago, the abdication of the British king caused by the abdication of Edward VIII, who loved beauty and did not love the country, not only triggered an earthquake within the British royal family, but also affected the British people's impression of the British royal family. For the next four years, George VI tried to improve the British people's perception of the British royal family, but with little success. However, this experience of being nearly killed by a bomb opened a window of empathy between the British royal family and ordinary British people.
Edward VIII and his wife
In the eyes of the British people, His Majesty the King almost died in the German bombardment, is this not the royal family, with whom they suffer and share? After experiencing the danger of nine deaths, the British king and his wife seem to have found a pro-people route on how to close the feelings of the British royal family and the British people, and then regain the hearts of the people.
The British government's crisis management, the role of reverse propaganda
It is understood that after buckingham Palace was bombed, the British government at that time not only did not try to cover up the matter, but invited 40 journalists to enter Buckingham Palace in one go, showing them the tragic situation after the German bombing. Ji Yijun believes that the Reason why the British government did this is that they recognized the propaganda potential behind this matter.
Buckingham Palace
Imagine that when the king's main residence was bombed by the Germans, the British people might have two reactions, one of fear and the other of anger. If the British people were frightened by the German bombing, then the conspiracy of the German High Command was achieved. But if the British people are provoked by this German behavior, can Churchill and the British government under the leadership of the wartime cabinet just reverse the propaganda and arouse the people's hatred and make them support the government's stubborn resistance policy?
Sure enough, through news reports, the British people saw the following scene: the king and his wife, who had just escaped from death, not only were not frightened by the explosion of the bomb at close range, but they were generally patrolling the palace without doing anything, and the workers invited by the government were cleaning up the ruins after the bombing and repairing the potholes in the palace floor. Through these, the British people saw that although they were bombed by extreme danger, the king was not frightened, and the royal family was not frightened, which undoubtedly gave the British people confidence and alleviated their fear of the sky.
German bombers during World War II
After the interview, in a short newsreel broadcast of Britain's only image broadcast during wartime, a tit-for-tat cry rang out into the air: One day, we will make Berlin pay 100 times the price for this premeditated assassination.
Crisis, opportunity in danger for the British Royal Family
Crises are both dangers and opportunities. Ji Yijun believes that the encounter of the British royal family in World War II can be said to be very suitable for this sentence. As mentioned earlier, in the German bombing, King George VI almost died, but this danger also allowed the British royal family to find a pro-people route, helping it win the respect of the people and maintain the popularity of the royal family.
Because of the German bombing, the British royal family and the British people, who were originally far apart, instantly became "comrades-in-arms" who suffered and shared. Thereafter, throughout the war, the concept of the British royal family and the people was repeatedly emphasized. At the same time, the British royal family also led by example to join the British wartime rations, together with the ordinary people to receive wartime rations and clothing coupons.
Ruins after German bombing
In addition, the king and queen often went out of the palace and went deep into the people to comfort the people who were bombed. To a large extent, these public acts of the British Royal Family have greatly encouraged the confidence of the British people. They argue that the king's presence shows that they still care about the masses and still uphold their commitment to "be with the people." However, these actions of the British Royal Family have also been questioned, and social surveys at the time have recorded some complaints from the masses, such as their belief that their King's Majesty always wears a uniform in public and sometimes behaves nervously.
To some extent, however, george VI's problems are understandable, though, for he is so visibly and painfully trying to fulfill his duties as king. His stuttering was well known and could hardly be hidden, and before he ascended the throne, stuttering was seen as a manifestation of his mental and physical vulnerability.
However, Ji Yijun believed that in the public place of wartime, this shortcoming of his became a symbol of cordiality. In terms of ideas or opinions, George VI may not have been an original man, but it is clear that he was sincerely and diligently playing his duties as king. At the time, that was exactly what an undeterred public leader needed.
King George VI
Perhaps the words of one of the editors at the time, Reginald Simpson, were the most summative, so the translator intended to conclude the article with this article: "When the smoke of war has cleared, we can find that our king and queen have always been with us, defying hardships and sufferings." I firmly believe that this will become our most precious memory.