The Royal Image and the English People

Book excerpt: This title was first published in 2001. For the English people, the image of the monarchy is deeply bound up with the idea of nationhood. This book surveys aspects of England's royal heritage dialogue from the late middle ages to the 19th century. It concentrates on monumental sculpted portraits because that was the way in which the image of the monarchy was customarily presented in the most immediate and permanent form at large scale in the public arena. The aim of such memorials was to consolidate and commemorate shared loyalties and beliefs, focusing on the monarchs. They were sometimes protected by railings, more often than just by their talismanic value. There was widespread resistance to the idea that Oliver Cromwell should be commemorated by public memorial. The English generally remained uncomfortable with the idea of republicanism. The monarchial government of the middle ages, thought to be sanctioned by God, was very different from the figurehead the monarchy has become.