All The Ways The Queen Shaped The Monarchy For The Modern World

Elizabeth brought a modern view of the monarchy to the world. Upon her ascension, she began to see the empire she inherited as a relic of the past, and favored a relationship with the countries of the Commonwealth that was to be built on a willing association with the monarchy, and not imperial rule or subjugation.

An example of this new dynamic was showcased in 1947 when India, a then British colony, declared its political independence from the United Kingdom. The newly independent country subsequently asked to remain as a member of the Commonwealth, a request that was formally granted two years later at the Commonwealth Prime Ministers meeting in London in 1949 by her father, King George VI, per The Commonwealth.

Young Queen Elizabeth understood that this new type of relationship with Commonwealth countries could foster an atmosphere of goodwill between the monarchy and the newly independent nation-states. According to Commons Library, this framework of free association allowed the future monarch the ability to modernize the monarchy while still maintaining international influence.