A snippet of how it is to be a king

[Micael]

Someone might find this interesting, it’s a short clip from a documentary about the King of Sweden. It depicts the King arriving ahead of diplomatic audiences for new ambassadors, which is considered a type of state ceremony, so it gets the full ceremonial treatment which in its fundamentals dates back centuries. Even the King’s arrival, as is apparent here, is very orchestrated and very traditional at these occassions. A surviving sliver of a bygone era. It’s partially shot from the King’s point of view, as it attempts to show how it might feel to be the King, and that makes it a bit unique as well.

Video clip:
https://x.com/northumbriana/status/1743 ... 12840?s=46

The ambassadors arrive in a bit of an old fashioned way as well.


Then they get a chat with the King in a fairly fancy setting.

[Nathan45]

Tradition has its own value. It's also hard to recreate once it's gone. Nice to see things like this.

[Craiglxviii]

I like your King. The more I see of him, the more i like him.

[Micael]

Tradition has its own value. It's also hard to recreate once it's gone. Nice to see things like this.

It is, some things have passed into the fog of time, I believe that we have to maintain the traditions that remain, lest we be left with a poorer understanding of where we came from, of what the past was like. No theatre can depict a setting in the way a living tradition can.

[Micael]

I like your King. The more I see of him, the more i like him.

You know there’s a pretty amusing moment in the documentary when they’re doing an interview segment in a room of the Royal Palace and the King looks at his watch and goes ”Oh heavens it’s almost lunch time. OH [expletive] I HAVE GUESTS!” and properly charges out of the room, leaving the tv crew behind.

Amusing as it is I also think that it says something about a person when they react like that when realising that they may be leaving someone waiting. The opposite of ”whatever, I’m the King, they can wait.”

[Belushi TD]

I also very much like the Swedish royal family. They seem to have avoided the idiocy that seems to infect the youngsters in the family at times in all royal families.

Belushi TD

[Craiglxviii]

I like your King. The more I see of him, the more i like him.

You know there’s a pretty amusing moment in the documentary when they’re doing an interview segment in a room of the Royal Palace and the King looks at his watch and goes ”Oh heavens it’s almost lunch time. OH [expletive] I HAVE GUESTS!” and properly charges out of the room, leaving the tv crew behind.

Amusing as it is I also think that it says something about a person when they react like that when realising that they may be leaving someone waiting. The opposite of ”whatever, I’m the King, they can wait.”

Exactly. Noblesse oblige, and he knows what that actually means. Service, in the truest meaning, not accepting servility.

This is where modern TV trash slebz, who call themselves “royalty”, fall down hard. It isn’t about what you’ve got, it’s about the good you can do with it.

[Pdf27]

I also very much like the Swedish royal family. They seem to have avoided the idiocy that seems to infect the youngsters in the family at times in all royal families.

If you give a young person almost unlimited wealth and tell them they aren't allowed to work until their parent dies, they're almost certain to go off the rails. Edward VII is a good example - as soon as his mother died and he had a job to do he straightened right out. It's one of the reasons our lot are traditionally packed off to the military - it gives them something to do that normally doesn't upset the public.

[Micael]

On a related note, I just came across another point of view video showing how foreign heads of state on a state visit to Sweden are received when they enter through the royal palace. Really cool I have to say.
Facebook video: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/ygZVeR ... tid=WC7FNe