Whether it was intended so or not, the decision by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to choose Australia as the place to announce that they are expecting their first child was a public relations triumph. For years the royal family was criticised for having a tin ear when it came to reading and dealing with the public, but no one could say this now. The tone of the younger royals’ tour to the southern hemisphere has been one of approachability, without compromising the dignity of the positions which Harry and Meghan hold.
Their visit also runs counter to the conventional wisdom of some republicans — in Britain as well as Australia — that support for the monarchy is dependent on personal affection for the Queen and that the institution will be doomed upon her death. Now that Elizabeth II is, for reasons of age, no longer able to conduct long-haul tours, her grandchildren have achieved what her children never quite managed: to show that they have the ability to follow on and capture the support of the public where she leaves off.
Royal marriages have long been about survival — many throughout history have been about ending wars, uniting kingdoms or resolving hostilities between warring families. While the unions of Harry and Meghan, and William and Kate, are about none of those things, they have in their own way obeyed the same principle: they are marriages which have been instrumental in restoring the reputation of a royal family which was deep in the doldrums just a few years ago.
First, we saw a middle-class woman whisked — and welcomed — into royalty. Now, with Meghan, the world has witnessed a mixed-race woman similarly join the world’s best-known royal family.
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