Royalty’s human face

SIR – James Dixon (Letters, November 28) asks whether anyone can justify the “public’s glassy-eyed obsession” with the monarchy.

He should look no further than the late Archbishop Runcie’s sermon in honour of the late Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother’s 80th birthday. Runcie stated that “royalty puts a human face on the operations of government”, with which a nation can easily identify. It allows a head of state to remain above politics. This is reflected in Britain’s Armed Forces, where its members swear loyalty to the Crown and not to any partisan government.

The Queen and her family have been an exemplar of how this can work to the benefit and advancement of all people, regardless of age, background, gender or ethnicity. It is certain that the latest royal engagement will reinforce that bond between Crown and people. Iain D Bailey

London N5