ARD mourning talk for the Queen?

Lobo intervenes early – and reprimands royal “mass murderers”

Created: 09/20/2022, 11:36 am

Sascha Lobo, columnist and author, Katarina Barley, Vice President of the European Parliament and moderator Frank Plasberg at "Hart aber fair" on September 19th, 2022.

© WDR/Thomas Kierok

After the Queen's state funeral, Frank Plasberg discusses the meaning and purpose of royal houses.

One guest becomes explicit - another defends Charles' tantrum.

Berlin – “The Queen is dead!

Long live the king?” The world mourns a woman who died in England at the age of 96.

Normally not a sensation, but the woman in question was Queen Elizabeth II, the record-breaking queen - none had been in office as long as the head of the Windsors, born in 1926.

And she was the first queen whose reign and life were covered throughout by the media.

Now the new King Charles III.

assume a difficult position.

At an age when other people have long since retired.

The "Hard but fair" talk in the first runs directly after the ARD extra for the Queen's funeral in London.

But it's not a cheering show for the queen.

Moderator Frank Plasberg has the critic's glasses on, he asks his guests: "The Queen's farewell: Why is the cult of royal houses still there?"

Lobo practices drastic criticism of monarchy: positive reference to "mass murderers"

Author Sascha Lobo finds drastic words right at the beginning of the program: "In my view, monarchy always means that you relate positively to mass murderers!" Lobo refers to the atrocities that emanated from the former world power Great Britain in the age of imperialism - but also took place in their own country, for example in the Northern Ireland conflict.

Lobo further explains: "Among Queen Elizabeth's ancestors there were a whole series of people who committed terrible crimes." They had enriched themselves from the slave trade and colonialism and established a racism with which these atrocities were justified for centuries.

"The Queen," says Lobo firmly, "has not managed in seventy years" to make "authoritative apologies for the crimes committed by the system she represents."

"Hard but fair" - these guests discussed with:

• Katarina Barley (SPD) -

  German-British

  Vice President of the European Parliament

• Mareile Höppner -

  moderator of the ARD magazine "Brisant"

• Bertram Graf von Quadt zu Wykradt and Isny ​​-

  hunting expert and author, switched on

• Sascha Lobo -

  columnist and author

• James Hawes -

  British

  author

The German aristocrat Bertram Graf von Quadt zu Wykradt und Isny ​​is not so strict and refers to the British constitution, which gives the royal family little leeway: "Ultimately, the Queen can only do what the government tells her to do." He refers to the 2011 speech in Dublin, in which the Queen "in fluent Gaelic" called for reconciliation.

Despite the expectations placed on her at the time, no apology was forthcoming.

The Queen was considered the "richest woman in the world" at the time of her coronation in 1953 and also in the decades that followed.

But in the meantime the wealth of the Crown, the Commonwealth and also that of their country has clearly faded.

"Most Britons" are not yet "ready to face the truth," says British author James Hawes.

"The Queen was the last thread that linked us to our glorious past," he says, analyzing his countrymen's loyalty to the royal family.

There is still a need to be “what we once were”.

But "the old days are over," Hawes states matter-of-factly.

Lobo sees a danger for democracy in sticking to the old and analyses: "By exaggerating the past" one stops "looking closely at the present".

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Hawes is certain that most English people would not have understood the meaning and consequences of Brexit either: "We are like the Russians," he compares, very generalizing for German standards.

"Very many believe that their special rights were unjustly taken away from them by some conspiracy." MEP Katarina Barley can't help but interject: "From the EU - if you want to know for sure!" The daughter of a Brit, but he is , according to Barley, "has a certain distance to the system and also to the royal family", admits that her family was "emotionally touched" by the news of his death.

She has admiration for the Queen's discipline, which "held a backbreaking job for seventy years".

Moderator Plasberg has an idea on the subject of Brexit: "Wouldn't that be a historic opportunity for King Charles to go ahead, maybe put the royal house on red or black and lead this country back to Europe?" But the group quickly put an end to wishful thinking .

“A historic achievement”, which also represents “a historically unique breach of the constitution”, according to Quadt.

In short: “He's not allowed to do that!” Barley agrees: “He doesn't have the legitimacy.

He is not elected.”

Little sympathy in the round for King Charles III: Arrogant expression

For King Charles III.

the group shows little sympathy.

Hawes recalls the bugged phone calls with Camilla, who has since risen to the rank of king's wife, in which tampons played a role.

The lack of "self-control", as moderator Plasberg calls it, which his mother so distinguished, has already caused a media stir for Charles in the past few days.

Among other things, he had become angry because of a leaked pen.

While Lobo wants to recognize "toxic elements" in the behavior, Barley sees a disconcerting "arrogance expressed".

Quadt judges more graciously about the 73-year-old.

"This is a man who just lost his mother," he interjects from the screen.

The royals are always accused of being "so unapproachable, so cold, they don't humanely," says the Bavarian.

Then they do it, "and then it's not right either!" It's unfair to want to compare Charles to his mother.

Nobody could stand up to this comparison.

Nevertheless, Plasberg tries to compare and shows a street survey from Bochum.

Topic: Leitfigure for the Germans.

Just Greta Thunberg did best in the spontaneous survey.

Quadt is: "Monarchy?

We tried that in the 20th century, with solitary leaders.

That did not work.

We shouldn't do that.” Presenter Mareile Höppner can still get something out of the monarchical spectacle of the country's neighbors: “There was a great sense of unity,” she thinks.

"Because someone survives in a society that is becoming more and more challenging." From punks to bankers - people were "unified" at least on the question of the Queen.

Conclusion of the "hard but fair" talk

The talk offered a critical counterpart to the spectacular events surrounding the Queen's funeral and lifted the pall a little.

It was not irreverent.

The criticism remained factual and was important for understanding the new king and his role.