John Grigg (writer)

rdf:langString John Grigg (writer)

rdf:langString John Grigg

rdf:langString John Grigg

rdf:langString London, England

rdf:langString London, England

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rdf:langString John Grigg in 1957

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rdf:langString John Edward Poynder Grigg

rdf:langString Lord Altrincham in 1957

rdf:langString British

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rdf:langString Historian

rdf:langString journalist

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rdf:langString Patricia Campbell

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rdf:langString Biography

rdf:langString history

rdf:langString Like her mother, she appears to be unable to string even a few sentences together without a written text - a defect which is particularly regrettable when she can be seen by her audience... Phrases such as 'I am deeply moved' sound very hollow when they are read from a typescript. But even if the Queen feels compelled to read all her speeches, great and small, she must at least improve her method of reading them. With practice even a prepared speech can be given an air of spontaneity. The subject-matter must also be endowed with a more authentic quality. George V, for instance, did not write his own speeches, yet they were always in character; they seemed to be a natural emanation from and expression of the man. Not so the present Queen's. The personality conveyed by the utterances which are put into her mouth is that of a priggish schoolgirl, captain of the hockey team, a prefect, and a recent candidate for Confirmation. It is not thus that she will be enabled to come into her own as an independent and distinctive character.

rdf:langString There is much to admire in the Royal Family as we see them today, and they are indeed very widely admired. But it would be a disastrous mistake to feel anything like complacency about their hold upon the allegiance to the mass public... The Coronation induced a mood...which of its very nature was superficial and impermanent. Those who care for the Monarchy as an institution should look beyond the hideous coloured photographs of a glamorous young woman in sparkling attire to the more testing realities of twenty years hence. The Monarchy will not survive, let alone thrive, unless its leading figures exert themselves to the full and with all the imagination they and their advisers can command. At the same time the Monarchy cannot now rely, as it once could, upon the unquestioning support of those who effectively govern the country. The Whig magnates ignored or despised the Royal Family, but exalted the institution of monarchy. Nowadays the position is reversed. Many influential people, of varying political opinions, are able to combine a high regard for the Royal Family with a fundamental scepticism as to the viability of the institution. This is not the militant republicanism of the young Joseph Chamberlain, but as a state of mind it is more dangerous, because it is so mild and elusive. In Chamberlain’s day monarchies were the rule, republics the exception; it was therefore safe to flirt with republican theory. Today republics are the rule, and monarchies very much the exception. When she has lost the bloom of youth the Queen's reputation will depend, far more than it does now, upon her personality. It will not then be enough for her to go through the motions; she will have to say things which people can remember, and do things on her own initiative which will make people sit up and take notice. As yet there is little sign that such a personality is emerging. But time, though no longer clearly on her side, is not yet her enemy. If it is vital that the Monarchy should transcend race, it is hardly less necessary that it should transcend 'class'. The relatively 'class-less' character of George V has been mentioned; unfortunately it is not to be seen in his grand-daughters. The Queen and Princess Margaret still bear the debutante stamp. Why is this? The most likely reason is that they were given a conventional upper-class education. This is, perhaps, the price which had to be paid for the Queen Mother’s many services, and for the matchless charm which she has brought to her high position. 'Crawfie', Sir Henry Marten, the London season, the racecourse, the grouse-moor, Canasta, and the occasional Royal tour – all this would not have been good enough for Queen Elizabeth I! It says much for the Queen that she has not been incapacitated for her job by this woefully inadequate training. She has dignity, a sense of duty and goodness of heart - all precious assets. But will she, above all, see to it that Prince Charles is equipped with all the knowledge he can absorb without injury to his health, and that he mixes during his formative years...not merely with future landowners or stock-brokers?

rdf:langString John Edward Poynder Grigg FRSL (15 April 1924 – 31 December 2001) was a British writer, historian and politician. He was the 2nd Baron Altrincham from 1955 until he disclaimed that title under the Peerage Act on the day it received Royal Assent in 1963. Grigg edited the National and English Review (1954–1960) as his father had done. He was a liberal Tory but was defeated at the 1951 and 1955 general elections. In an article for the National and English Review in August 1957, Grigg argued that Queen Elizabeth II's court was too upper-class and British, and instead advocated a more "classless" and Commonwealth court. His article caused a furore and was attacked by the majority of the press, with a minority, including the New Statesman and Ian Gilmour's The Spectator, agreeing with some of Grigg's ideas. He left the Conservative Party for the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in 1982.

rdf:langString John Edward Poynder Grigg

rdf:langString Lord Altrincham(1955–63)