Trooping the Colour May Brutally Expose the Royal Family’s Decline

This Saturday marks King Charles’ official birthday. The celebration of it, the dramatic military parade known as Trooping the Colour, will be as magnificent and spectacular as ever, replete with flashing scarlet and gold uniforms, to the sound of trumpeting brass bands and clip-clopping hooves.

But when the king steps out onto the balcony of Buckingham Palace to receive the cheers of the gathered plebs, the moment risks being instead an all too graphic illustration of the parlous and threadbare state into which the monarchy has declined on his watch.

In the days of Queen Elizabeth II, the balcony groaned with family members; literally dozens of distant aunts, eccentric uncles, dotty cousins and rosy-cheeked nephews and nieces received the call-up to wave for queen and country.

Read more at The Daily Beast.