Gransnet forums

AIBU

Empathy for Our Queen? ( As a Mother)

(282 Posts)
Bridgeit Wed 20-Nov-19 14:52:39

In the light of recent events, and as mothers & Grandmothers
How much empathy/ sympathy do we have for The Queen ?

She has always been so stoic, & has now been badly let down, will she / should she consider sending PA to the tower ( or the outer Hebrides) for a cooling off period. ?
She certainly does not deserve this at her time of life & dedication to her role.
I definitely feel for her, The Christmas speech should be interesting !

ReadyMeals Thu 21-Nov-19 11:13:10

Sorry that last post should have been addressed to Callistemon

Callistemon Thu 21-Nov-19 11:14:41

Yes, I got it! smile

HannahLoisLuke Thu 21-Nov-19 11:16:30

Whilst I do feel sorry for the Queen it is rather a case if chickens coming home to roost. We are told that Andrew has always been her favourite and is her blind spot.
The consequence is that he's arrogant, pompous and rather too much of a stickler for having his Royal status meticulously observed at all times, along with his daughters, always referred to as "the princesses," and his ex wife "the duchess"
This isn't his only fall from grace either, though somehow his other unwise associations (Gadaffi's son for one) seem to gave been brushed u dear the carpet, until now.

He rather reminds me of Princess Margaret, all privilege and no sense of duty.

I am a royalist by the way but despair at how certain members of the family let the whole establishment down.
The Queen needs to remove her rose tinted glasses and give Andrew a huge dressing down.

spabbygirl Thu 21-Nov-19 11:21:03

I just think we shouldn't expect so much of anyone, its crazy to say this family are special and must be given every privilege when they're clearly just ordinary folk in an non-ordinary position

merlotgran Thu 21-Nov-19 11:25:28

The Queen needs to remove her rose tinted glasses and give Andrew a huge dressing down.

She has!

About time!

deanswaydolly Thu 21-Nov-19 11:33:58

Camilla?

Lancslass1 Thu 21-Nov-19 11:34:05

Calendar Girl.
Charles and Diana did not divorce until 1996.
Had Charles known that he was to take over in 1991 they might have made a better fist of trying to save their marriage.
William was born in 1982 .
Charles was 65 in 2013
He would have been 31 years old when his father abdicated.
The Queen was in her twenties when she became Monach and was not expecting it to happen so soon so had no time to prepare .
Quite honestly I don’t think they know what to do with Princes William and Harry.
One minute William is a pilot and the next he wants to be a farmer.
It must be very frustrating for him.
His grandmother is over 90 and his father over 70 .
It may not be that long before he has to take over the reins .
As for Harry ,now that William and Kate have provided an heir and two spares let him and Meghan go to Africa and do their good works there.

Urmstongran Thu 21-Nov-19 11:34:34

Charles had a lot of personal problems and it's only really in the last 10 years he has restored his dignity and his emotional equilibrium

Since he’s been with Camilla it seems!

Regards HM the Queen, I do feel sorry for her as a mother. However she is made of sterner stuff than many. I don’t doubt she’ll have she’d a tear in private but then she’ll dry her eyes and be back to ‘business as usual’.

Daisyboots Thu 21-Nov-19 11:34:43

Yes I do feel sorry for the Queen.

Now most of us, I am sure, bring up our children to the best of our ability to be decent law abiding citizens. But are we really still responsible for our children's behaviour when they are in their 40s, 50s and 60s and have lived their adult lives away from us? Sorry but I don't think we are so I think it is unfair to blame the Queen for the behaviour of PA. He is a very weak man who thinks only of himself.

deanswaydolly Thu 21-Nov-19 11:37:46

I have the greatest respect for our Queen. Yes she has money and privilege but works so hard and no retirement. The spare to the heir is always the awkward one with no proper role. Never liked Andrew....arrogant and thinks the law doesnt apply to him. So yes i feel sorry for the Queen and his daughters. I also feel for Fergie as i believe the business scandal was sanctioned or even advised by Andrew himself.

Craftycat Thu 21-Nov-19 11:55:50

I've always felt sorry for the Queen. Both her older sons are a waste of space & I rarely hear about the youngest one.
Now Princess Anne is a different matter- I have a lot of respect for her,
Luckliy her eldest Grandson seems to have his head screwed on OK- I thought the younger one did until he married that American woman!

sarahellenwhitney Thu 21-Nov-19 12:00:22

I have sympathy for the queen. Regardless of her status she will have the feelings many mothers identify with from the actions of their own childrenI cannot however feel any sympathy for Charles, as one GN claims to have, how sad,?on looking at what he and Camilla subjected not only his mother but two innocent young boys.
By his actions,make no mistake,could have affected the whole country had it brought down what was a centuries old monarchy.

sarahellenwhitney Thu 21-Nov-19 12:05:54

Craftycat
With you 100%.

Callistemon Thu 21-Nov-19 12:12:43

Rather harsh Craftycat,
Charles seems to have redeemed himself and done a lot of good after his arranged marriage fell apart.

Andrew, yes, I agree.

Edward quietly gets on with the public duties he has taken over from his mother, as does his wife.

eazybee Thu 21-Nov-19 12:27:49

I think if it was your child/children in trouble, you would do everything you could to support them. That does not mean condoning their actions; it means helping them to cope with the chaos their actions have created.
I have a friend whose son- in-law committed a terrible offence for which he was imprisoned. Neither she nor her daughter (ex-wife) made any attempt to excuse what he did, (they couldn't understand it themselves) but they gave financial and moral support as far as they were able. He lost everything as a result of his actions; marriage, children, career and home with no prospect of retrieving them. Victim compensation wasn't an issue.
Don't condemn the Queen for supporting her son; equally, don't pity her.
And for goodness' sake, stop this witch-hunt.

Grammaretto Thu 21-Nov-19 12:55:48

Merlot have you already forgotten Camillagate?
She was once the evil other woman in the fairytale marriage. How short are public memories.
She has had an image transformation remake but some people will take a bit longer to accept adultery.
We are still paying their bills.

LuckyFour Thu 21-Nov-19 12:58:29

What a judgemental lot you are. Look at the people around you, are they all perfect, are you? I know he's a member of the royal family and I do admire and respect the queen but 'he who casts the first stone' etc. etc. The queen is a realist, she hasn't lived this long not to understand the frailties of the human race.

Newatthis Thu 21-Nov-19 12:59:26

So ...he has stood down from public duties. Does this mean his salary from the civil list won't be paid or will he just have more free time to spend it? Yes, we do support our children as best we can and it is hard on the Queen but let's face it I would rather be trying to sort out family problems in fantastic palaces around the world, surrounded by staff that wait on me hand and foot, oh and let's not forget the diamonds, expensive clothes and all the other nice things that go with the job. If she gets too distraught she can always get her stamp collection out and reminisce - oh and that's worth millions too..

absthame Thu 21-Nov-19 13:28:13

I'm definitely not a royalist, however the queen is after all a mother, grandmother etc as well as being a simple human. She must be pained by Andrew's antics and also pained by the lack of understanding for H&M. Not to feel sympathy for her pain shows a lack of humanity of those who cannot try to understand.

Saggi Thu 21-Nov-19 13:36:24

None.

Chardy Thu 21-Nov-19 13:36:55

GrandTante said 'The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were responsible for bringing their children up'. They went off to Australia for 6 months when Charles and Anne were young, leaving them to the nanny, the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret. Bearing in mind that we all know how to spoil our grandchildren, I find that an odd scenario.
The eldest 3 do all seem pretty arrogant, and unconnected to the real world, possibly because they were brought up as if in a bygone era, and ditto Andrew's children. Only Zara, Peter, William and Harry seem to belong in 21st century. (Edward's children aren't adult enough to count)

sylviann Thu 21-Nov-19 13:39:53

I feel for her as a mother even though you aren't responsible for your adult children you still feel to their actions but if it weren't a royal nobody would be talking about it and built hasn't been proven

4allweknow Thu 21-Nov-19 13:49:20

Summerlove. Not sure we have found out what kind of man PA is, yet! Still ongoing investigation. Of course PA could work in the Embassy and claim diplomatic immunity.

jannxxx Thu 21-Nov-19 13:55:01

feel sad she has devoted her whole life to us, and her family are acting like the cast of shameless, a lot of these so called royals need to get less cash, and grow up

Anniebach Thu 21-Nov-19 13:59:13

Chardy they did not go to Australia for six months , they did
a royal tour of Australia after she became queen ,she is their queen to, and was there 58 days. The tour had been planned for her father but he died.

Do read up on that tour, would you take two little ones on that tour ?