A Royal Conundrum

The Crown is a dramatic recount of the transition of power of the British royal family shortly after the second World War. The first episode begins with the marriage of Prince Phillip to Princess Elizabeth with some concerning wedding vows - but I’ll get to that later. The story mainly focuses on King George VI’s failing health due to lung cancer. After learning that he only has a few more months to live, the king struggles to find an appropriate time to tell his family - let alone the rest of his country who needs a strong ruler.

The main concern that I see developing in the first episode is not that of the king’s failing health - that is an obvious and soon to be resolved problem - but from the chemistry between the prince and the princess. The power will soon transition to the newlyweds, and I have reason to believe that difficulties will ensue. During the scene when the prince and princess give their vows, Princess Elizabeth pauses on the part about obeying her husband. She seemed very tense, and Winston Churchill points out to the audience that the word “obeying” wasn’t even originally supposed to be in the wedding vow. Later in the episode, when King George VI asks his daughter how she feels about her husband, she says that he is high-strung and controlling when it comes to decorating their new home. A sickly king may not be good for the nation, but it’s certainly not worse than an inexperienced couple in a power struggle.

Those who disagree with me might point out the public’s opinion towards Prince Philip. After all, he must not be marrying the princess to gain political power; he had to renounce his royal titles of both Denmark and Greece just to gain a royal title in England. Furthermore, the English royalty doesn’t have nearly as much political power as it used to. During this time period England had a parliament that made most of the major political decisions. On another note, Prince Philip served valiantly in the English Royal Navy, and is shown at a party celebrating his upcoming promotion. There is no doubt that the prince has done a lot of great things; but that cannot hide the lingering effect his foreshadowing has on the audience throughout this episode. During his wedding vows, the prince seemed impatient and stared intently at Elizabeth while she struggled to say her words. He nodded controllingly for her to finish speaking. By the end of the episode, the king had taken Prince Philip out duck hunting with him to talk to him about his true duties as king one day. While the prince was respectful to the king, he gave the audience a weird feeling about whether or not he was sincere about loving his wife first.

In conclusion, the first episode of The Crown leaves the audience with a lot to question. While many may see Prince Philip as a respectable runner-up to the king, I believe that his controlling ways will lead to problems for Elizabeth in later episodes. Watch out!