From our special correspondent in the future,
The Starbucks Coffee Palace stands in all its splendor in front of the Miran family, who came as tourists to London in May 2050. “Being able to buy coffee there is crazy. In my time, it was the home of Elizabeth II, ”says François, the father, a little nostalgic for what has become of the former Buckingham Palace. On hearing this Frenchie evoke the former Queen of England, customers stop their purchases and order her to “shut up”, sharp with the usual British phlegm. Not that the English have become rude in three decades. But the subject of the monarchy, which died out here fifteen years, remains very sensitive to the country.
Who could have believed in 2023, during the coronation of King Charles III, that he would be the last sovereign of the Kingdom? “The monarchy is deeply rooted in the hearts of the British,” recalled at the time * Christian Lequesne, professor at Sciences Po and specialist in European issues. Except for a parenthesis of eleven years in the 17th century, after the beheading of Charles I – definitely a cursed first name – the Britons had always known a monarch for more than a thousand years.
An economic, social and food crisis
Sure, there were a few signs of etiolation here and there. A YouGov poll, a few days before Charles III’s coronation, showed that “only” 58% of Britons believed that a monarch was preferable to an elected head of state, compared to 74% in 2012. Mistrust was even more marked among the younger generation, with more 18-24 year olds in favor of an elected head of state (38%) than a monarch (32%, and 30% without an opinion). And three-quarters of young people said they were “not interested” in the royal family. Figures, however, quite insufficient, at the time, to think of making the crown flinch: “To imagine that the British monarchy would be deposed, it would take an event or a major crisis”, predicted * Laëtitia Langlois, lecturer in British civilization at the University of Angers.
The major crisis also had warning signs. The week of the coronation of this good old Charles III, May 6, 2023, the charitable association Trussell Trust, which manages food aid in the country, announced record figures due to the economic and social crisis which raged in the kingdom. : 3 million food parcels delivered in 12 months, an increase of 28% to 54% depending on the region.
Victory of the “no” in the referendum on the monarchy
Admittedly, as Christian Lequesne reminded us, “the working classes are the most favorable to the monarchy, decorrelating it from the economic question”. But, as good Frenchmen that we are, we know that a people who are hungry have what it takes to dethrone kings. On the death of Charles III, in 2035, as the economic crisis worsens and stomachs empty, a referendum takes place in the United Kingdom: the monarchy, stop or again? “The referendum is the only way to abolish the regime in place and to change it”, indicated in 2023 * Alterhis, videographer specializing in alternate history and whose Youtube channel has 350,000 subscribers.
Short victory of the “no” to the maintenance of the crown, in the hope of a better redistribution of wealth. “If royalty also brought money to the State, it should be remembered that it cost taxpayers a lot, in addition to possessing a considerable fortune”, explained Laëtitia Langlois. The exact sum of the royal loot will remain a bigger mystery than the Mona Lisa’s smile, but Charles III had some 42 billion in assets in 2022, according to Forbes. However, “many British public services would really need more money, and that could be one of the positive consequences of the end of the monarchy: the improvement of the healthcare system, more social assistance…”, continued the teacher-researcher.
Record budgets for health and food aid
After the victory of the “no”, charge the government to return the loot to the people. Palace, possession and collection of works of art are resold, in order to finance public aid. “Apart from two castles which remain in the possession of the Windsor family, all the rest belongs to the State”, indicates AlterHis. Gone also are the taxes paid by the British to meet the needs of the crown, estimated, according to the cost and benefits of the monarchy, at one pound per year and per head. Always saving money.
And this case is not unique in history across the Channel. After the execution of this famous Charles I in 1649, the sovereign’s possessions were put up for auction. The Richmond Palace had notably been sold for 13,000 pounds sterling (1.8 million dollars in our time) before being demolished, and the royal collection of paintings had spun for 35,000 pounds (five million dollars today).
A year after the death of Charles III, the year 2036 therefore sees record budgets for health, education and food aid. Finally. If the belly of the English is better filled, all is not rosy for all that. “It is certainly a revolution, the word is not too strong, developed Laetitia Langlois. A millennial system to which the people are very attached. If he abolishes the monarchy, it would necessarily be reluctantly. There is an almost emotional connection with the crown”. Same idea of changeover with Christian Lequesne: “The United Kingdom does not even have a Constitution. The end of the corona would lead to a total change of system, Nation and geopolitics. »
Birth of the Disunited Republic
Let’s go to the consequences. Who says kings and queens are over, says the kingdom is over, “technically linked”, recalls AlterHis. So welcome to the United Republic? Well not really either, since “it is possible that the alliance will not resist this political change”, continues Laetitia Langlois. Between 2036 and 2040, Scotland, with strong desires for independence, packs its bags, just like Northern Ireland, which took the opportunity to reunite with the Southerners in joy. The misfortune of some… Remained head-to-head, England and Wales form the Disunited Republic.
The Commonwealth, some 56 states and fifteen kingdoms affiliated to the king, is also coming to an end. “Bad economic news for many countries, as trade partnerships are important for some of these Nations”, supports Laetitia Langlois. Far from the old empire where the sun never sets, the Disunited Republic, quite alone, now lives in the shadow of the great Nations. “The monarchy, as symbolic as it was, was part of Britain’s soft power and was an important diplomatic weapon,” continues Christian Lequesne.
Identity crisis
On the domestic political side, little change on the other hand. Yet a fan of the craziest uchronic scenarios on his Youtube channel, Alterhis agrees: “It wouldn’t change much in the way England works. Long before the death of Charles III, the monarchy had lost over the centuries a very large part of its political influence on the internal life of the kingdom. “England could be run like Germany, with an elected president with no real power and a prime minister who is a real head of state,” imagined Laetitia Langlois. Much like 2023, except you replace the king with a cheaper president. A parliamentary political system, “to which the people are very attached”, pleads the specialist. The English have already lost the thousand-year-old monarchy, and we are not going to take Parliament away from them.
It is therefore this good old Boris Johnson, author of a 37th return to politics, who leads this much weakened Disunited Republic. And bruised in the heart. “The monarchy is part of the country’s identity. Without it, a whole section of the social base collapses, as well as the symbol of the country, ”predicted Christian Lequesne. This is why private collections and other crown jewels have been auctioned off to fill various museums around the world; the palaces bought up and transformed into McDonald’s, Starbucks or Apple store; land used by the government to build social housing. Enough to fill the state coffers of course, but also to draw a definitive line on this too painful past, as one deletes the photos of his ex after a hard separation.
The wound still alive
“The end of the monarchy could bring good things, but after a period of unrest and mourning,” said Laetitia Langlois. Between 2035 and 2045, it is the black decade in the Disunited Republic, between depression, erosion of geopolitical alliances and major identity crisis. Things are starting to get back in place in this month of May 2050, but the subject is a huge taboo, because the wound is still raw.
We are a few weeks away from the 2050 World Cup, and the Starbucks Coffee Palace is naturally broadcasting the England-Brazil warm-up match. In front of the national anthem, “God saves the Republic and the people”, François sees it well: “It has nothing to do with the country I visited when I was a kid. By dispensing with the crown, England has partly saved itself. But got a little lost too.
* As you will have understood, these interviews were made in 2023 to document this fiction.