THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, October 27, 1994 TAG: 9410270008
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A20 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 32 lines
I am thoroughly disgusted by the disclosure that the Prince of Wales never loved his wife, and that she, in turn, has had a five-year affair. As Mammy of Gone with the Wind would say, ``Trash! They ain't nothin' but trash!''
The English royal family has been, since the invasion in 1066, a bit earthy. Certainly as early as Henry II, there were royal mistresses. But royal adultery - that is, when the king's consort committed it, not when the king did - has been tantamount to treason. Ann Boelyn died for it.
Queen Victoria, a Hanoverian through whose veins only the most thinly diluted royal Plantagenet blood flowed, demanded such strict adherence to the appearance of an ethical code that an era has taken her name, meaning straightlaced, even stuffy. While her son, Edward, certainly did not conform to her standards, most of the remainder of her progeny have, at least publicly. Until now.
Perhaps the way to reconcile one's love for the English with disgust for the antics of the modern royals is to conclude that England has given us yet another gift: Democracy is right. People should be judged on their own merits, and not on those of their ancestors. Bad news for monarchy.
J. RILEY JOHNSON JR.
Norfolk, Oct. 19, 1994 by CNB