The Monarchy - should we abolish it?

[SteveH]

 


Who cares? This is supposed tyo be the 'United Kingdom' - not England. (Not that you'd know it, given the tradition -bound anachronistic tripe of Westminster)

And the Scottish Episcopalian church (the Scottish branch of anglicanism) had its own separate origin at the time of the reformation, founded by moderate Scottish reformers who wanted to keep Bishops and parishes.  It is the only national branch of the Anglican Communion (apart, obviously, from the Church of England itself) which was not founded as an off-shoot of the C of E, but had its own separate origin.

[Anchorman]

And the Scottish Episcopalian church (the Scottish branch of anglicanism) had its own separate origin at the time of the reformation, founded by moderate Scottish reformers who wanted to keep Bishops and parishes.  It is the only national branch of the Anglican Communion (apart, obviously, from the Church of England itself) which was not founded as an off-shoot of the C of E, but had its own separate origin.

   



Er...
Eh?
cHarlie Stuart tried to impose Eposcapacy on Scotland...using Laud's verion of Cranmer's Prayer book.
He lost his head as a result.
The Wars of the Three Kingdoms - mis named "The English Civil War" was the outcome.
Even after Charles II, already king of Scots, got the fake blimng at Westminster, the suppression of those whio dared to oppose episcopacy in the south and West continued.
Google "The Killing Time".
My own ancestor, John Brown of Priesthill farm in Sorn Parish, was shot in front of his wife and children for refusing to accept the king or his church. (Google' John Brown of Priesthill').
The forced introduction of Anglicanism in this country was anything BUT peaceful!

[SteveH]

If you say so.

[Robbie]

I looked up the 'Killing Times Scotland', good wiki article & others.

[wigginhall]

I did as well, thanks for that, Jim, I am pretty ignorant about that stuff.  Pretty vicious treatment of dissenters.  Hoping that 'Gunpowder' will also provide some background, but probably not. 

[Anchorman]

Don't misunderstund me, the strands of dissenters varied.
Toward the 1670's sme were liitle more than Taliban with Bibles, but the savage brutality meated out by government forces was dreadful. My own kirkyard has a grave which once contained a body...I say 'once', because Alexander Peden did a terrible thing in the eyes of the government...he died a natural death.
Six weeks after he died, his corpse was exhumed by dragoons to be publicly displayed on the gibbet.
Stories like this abound - stories backed up with evidence.
The hills and moors are dotted with cairns and markers to those shot on sight for refusing to swear loyalty to the monarch as head of the 'king's kirk'; illegal Presbyterian services were held on remore moors and glens - as failing to attend the 'kings kirk' or failing to have one's infant baptised by a 'king's curate' carried both a £50 Scots fine and an opportunity to take the 'test' -  the "Test Act" - and failure to swear meant an nstant bullet.

[Sassy]

The subject of the monarchy came up on another thread. Floo posted one of her trenchantly intellectual comments defending it, while others like me, thought that it should be scrapped. I have no grudge against the individual members of the royal family, though they are a pretty mediocre lot judged as ordinary individuals, but surely a hereditary head of state is an anomaly in a democracy in the present age. Heads of state and government should be directly elected, either as such or at least as an MP (as our prime minsters are). If anyone wants to defend the monarchy, please go ahead, as that's what this thread is for, but please don't come out with the tired old second-hand joke that the best argument against republicanism is two words - "President Thatcher" (or Blair, depending on your politics. Thatcher and Blair, whatever their faults, were elected, and were evwentually got rid of. Anyway, the Prime Minister, as head of government, has the real power in this country, the Queen being a mere figurehead.

The Monarchy exists because the people in power want it that way. The people who really run the Country the power house.
But more importantly the queen works harder than any minister be it prime or otherwise and serves this Country far more in her daily life than any minister.

The Monarchy is not up for abolishment because only a fool would not be able to visualise the damage which would follow in the wake of such an event.