A ROYAL wedding is as capable a time as any to conduct an audit of the British structure. Walter Bagehot,the editor of The Economist in 1860-77, argued that the structure was divided into two branches. The monarchy represents the “dignified” branch. Its job is to symbolise the state through pomp and ceremony. The government—Parliament, and the cabinet and the civil service—represents the “efficient branch. Its job is to run the country by passing laws and providing public services. The dignified branch governs through poetry,and the efficient branch through prose. Today, the dignified branch is adapting to an age of populism much better than the efficient branch.
Twenty-odd years ago it looked as whether the monarchy was in an advanced state of decomposition. The ill-starred marriage of Prince Charles and Diana Spencer undermined the monarchy’s claim to unify the country through dignity. The couple’s squabbles divided supporters of Diana from a much smaller group...
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Source: economist.com