Madam, – It would be good to believe that as a Republic we have reached a state of maturity where we can invite dignitaries to visit us from anywhere in the world. In response to Gerry Casey (June 29th) who asserts that a visit from Elizabeth Windsor (his words) would somehow be seen as a normalisation of partition, could I ask him to possibly look at this another way? If the head of state of the UK accepts an invitation to the Republic, couldn’t this be seen as a sign that peace is becoming what is normal? A very high price indeed has been paid for this peace. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – In castles, big houses and more modest dwellings throughout the Republic, there are “children of the [Irish] nation”, who, while unquestionably loyal to the State, retain a family tradition of regard for the British Queen. For that reason, an official invitation for a royal visit would honour the resolve expressed in the 1916 Proclamation that all “the children of the nation” be cherished equally, (be they represented in either the orange or green strip of the national flag). – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Irrespective of Irish-British history, as an aspirational republic, does this country really buy into the whole royalty thing, or are we afraid to rock the fairytale which other countries insist on perpetuating? – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Where are our manners? We, as a nation, portray ourselves as a modern, neutral, forward-minded, European country. This statement could not be further from the truth. Our reaction to an invitation to a visit from the head of state of our nearest neighbour cannot be described as anything short of hostile.
Gerry Casey (June 29th) reminds us that the queen is the commander-in-chief of the British armed forces, and depicts her visit as a deliberate insult to victims of the British army, here in Ireland and also in Afghanistan. Am I misguided in assuming there would be less outrage towards a state visit from President Obama, commander-in-chief of the US army, the leader of the country which initiated this war? To say that we, as a country, are living in the past is a shameful understatement. We should remember the victims of the supposed Irish Republican Army that has, since 1939, carried out violent terrorist attacks on innocent civilians and parliament members, (to say nothing of the infrastructure destroyed).
This visit is not hostile. Nor is it an attempt to “normalise” the partition of our country. This visit is merely an attempt at affability between two nations with a troubled history.
If we cannot accept this visit by Queen Elizabeth, if we cannot put the past behind us and move forward from it, we will by no means become an independent, prospering nation in the modern world. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Like most rational Irish people I welcome the proposed visit of Queen Elizabeth to Ireland, as I would welcome the visit of any monarch from another EU country. Indeed I understand such monarchs have visited here without protest. However, I would like to point out that, unlike Queen Elizabeth, they do not adorn their coat of arms with the emblem of our state. I know the presence of the harp is a relic of past links, but surely in today’s atmosphere of mutual forgiveness and tolerance it is an inappropriate reminder of her dynasty’s ancient claim to rule this island?
Would it not, therefore, be a nice gesture for Queen Elizabeth to announce on her arrival that it will be dropped – perhaps to be replaced by a Unionist-pleasing Red Hand? – Yours, etc,