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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
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Moya Lothian-McLean

After that disastrous royal tour, is the sun finally setting on the Commonwealth realms?

Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William arrive in Nassau
‘The signs weren’t looking good for William and Kate from the outset.’ The Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William arrive in Nassau. Photograph: Chandan Khanna/AFP/Getty Images

Just how long has the British monarchy been in crisis? This time – after “Megxit”, after Prince Andrew – it was the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s disastrous trip to the Caribbean. What was supposed to be a “charm offensive”, drumming up enthusiasm in the year of the Queen’s platinum jubilee, ended up looking more like a long goodbye, with the headlines spotlighting anti-royal protests, failures to address legacies of slavery, and the news that Jamaica is planning to ditch the Queen as head of state.

It may well be time for the royal family to face up to the fact that the sun is setting on those final remnants of the empire that they once embodied – and not a moment too soon.

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