Sunday April 5, 2020 ~ ENGLAND
by Mary Brooke ~ West Shore Voice News
Queen Elizabeth II today addressed Britons, the Commonwealth and the world.
During a time when the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic has already claimed the lives of over 5,000 people in her country and to date more than 62,784 around the world (World Health Organization tally at April 5), her calm demeanor was likely a salve to millions today.
Produced by the BBC on Thursday April 2 and broadcast or livestreamed on most TV networks or websites today April 5, the action of the monarch to deliver an address on a concern that reaches beyond all borders was considered in itself an indication of the severity of the pandemic.
Buckingham Palace called it “a special broadcast to the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth in relation to the coronavirus outbreak”.
Visuals included recent video of health care workers, delivery efforts, and volunteers helping out, as well as a noisy image capture of the ‘banging of pots and pans’ of people showing their gratitude for frontline health care workers. (In Canadian cities we are out at 7 pm each evening, clapping in our neighbourhoods for the support of our public health care workers, as noted by Premier John Horgan in his address to British Columbians on March 31.)
Queen Elizabeth rose far above reminders to self-isolate or practice physical distancing. Her message was intended to inspire courage and resolve, to help people get through these next weeks, months or beyond.
Here is the text of the Queen’s COVID-19 address (April 5, 2020):
- “I’m speaking to you at what I know is an increasingly challenging time, a time of disruption in the life of our country, a disruption that has brought grief to some, financial difficulties to many, and enormous changes to the daily lives of us all. I want to thank everyone on the NHS frontline, as well as care workers and those carrying out essential roles who selflessly continue their day-to-day duties outside the home in support of us all. I’m sure the nation will join me in assuring you that what you do is appreciated, and every hour of your hard work brings us closer to a return to more normal times. I also want to thank those of you who are staying at home, thereby helping to protect the vulnerable, and sparing many families the pain already felt by those who have lost loved ones.
- Together we are tackling this disease, and I want to reassure you that if we remain united and resolute, then we will overcome it. I hope in the years to come everyone will be able to take pride in how they responded to this challenge, and those who come after us will say the Britons of this generation were as strong as any, that the attributes of self-discipline, of quiet, good-humored resolve, and of fellow feeling still characterize this country. The pride in who we are is not a part of our past, it defines our present and our future.
- The moments when the United Kingdom has come together to applaud its care and essential workers will be remembered as an expression of our national spirit, and its symbol will be the rainbows drawn by children. Across the Commonwealth and around the world, we have seen heartwarming stories of people coming together to help others, be it through delivering food parcels and medicines, checking on neighbors, or converting businesses to help the relief effort. And though self-isolating may at times be hard, many people of all faiths and of none are discovering that it presents an opportunity to slow down, pause and reflect in prayer or meditation.
- It reminds me of the very first broadcast I made in 1940, helped by my sister. We as children spoke from here at Windsor to children who had been evacuated from their homes and sent away for their own safety. Today, once again, many will feel a painful sense of separation from their loved ones, but now as then, we know deep down that it is the right thing to do. While we have faced challenges before, this one is different. This time we join with all nations across the globe in a common endeavor. Using the great advances of science and our instinctive compassion to heal, we will succeed, and that success will belong to every one of us. We should take comfort that while we may have more still to endure, better days will return. We will be with our friends again. We will be with our families again. We will meet again. But for now, I send my thanks and warmest good wishes to you all.”
The Queen’s annual addresses once a year on Christmas have a solid following, but this one has very likely breached beyond that threshold. While her Christmas addresses always include a religious component or thread and always includes family photos and mentions, today’s COVID-19 address specifically noted that humanity is now in a time where people ‘religious or not’ will want to engage in “prayer or meditation” and there were no framed family photos presented on the table next to her, or mention of her own family. She clearly broadened her message to the world.
At age 93, Queen Elizabeth has ‘seen it all’ during her long life as a royal and in the public eye. At age 14 she delivered a radio address to British children who were relocated to Canada (away from their families in Britain) to be safe during World War II. At age 21 on her birthday she delivered her famous line: “I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.” [Read the full text from 1947]
Other such addresses as intended to show leadership and provide calm, were delivered at the beginning of the 1991 Persian Gulf War; several days after the death of her daughter-in-law, Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997; and after her mother’s death in 2002. She also addressed her nation and the Commonwealth upon the occasion of her Diamond Jubilee in 2012.
The Queen has ruled for longer than any other Monarch in British history, becoming a much loved and respected figure across the globe (as stated on the www.royal.uk website).
======= LINKS
Queen Elizabeth to address her country, Commonwealth and the world about the COVID-19 pandemic (April 4, 2020)
Every day is a moment within the COVID-19 marathon ~ Editorial by Mary Brooke, editor, West Shore Voice News (April 4, 2020)
Premier Horgan addresses all of BC about COVID-19: We are in this together ~ by West Shore Voice News (March 30, 2020)
Adjusting to COVID-19 is no easy feat and commands humility ~ Editorial by Mary Brooke, West Shore Voice News (March 30, 2020)