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10 Things Americans Get Horribly Wrong About the UK Monarchy

No I’m definitely not done yet on this theme

Madelaine Lucy Hanson
7 min readMay 18, 2021

Okay, I’m not a monarchist. I’m a teeny, tiny, bit extremely biased against the idea of inherited power because I vehemently oppose everything that means to a society. But- and I will die on this hill- there’s a lot Americans get very wrong about the monarchy in the UK, and that’s an easy way to annoy us. So I made a quick list. You’re welcome.

1. Don’t say the ‘The Queen of England’ unless you want to tread on some seriously sore toes.

We say the British royal family, or, if you’re being super accurate, the monarchy of the United Kingdom and various islands and small overseas territories you’ve never heard of. Why? Because Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland definitely exist and don’t like it when Americans erase them into ‘England’. Wales even has a widely spoken language, and Scotland and Northern Ireland have strong local cultures and dialects. You’ll really piss off a Welsh or Scottish monarchist by calling Liz ‘The Queen of England’.

2. The Queen isn’t in charge of the UK, or even able to vote.

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Madelaine Lucy Hanson
Madelaine Lucy Hanson

Written by Madelaine Lucy Hanson

The girl who still knows everything. Opinions entirely my own. Usually. Enquiries: madelaine@madelainehanson.co.uk

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