Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are getting married. That’s nice. Correction: that’s really, really nice. Even a republican paper smiles with pleasure and wishes the couple every happiness. The younger Harry could often be foolish, but there’s rightly a lot of affection for him these days – and everyone likes a wedding. When the big day comes, some will look in the other direction, but a lot more will tune in. It will be a public celebration. There’s nothing wrong with either response.
In a constitutional sense, this wedding is not really an important event. It isn’t epochal. It shouldn’t be asked to bear too much weight. Prince Harry is only fifth in line to the throne, and about to sink to sixth. He is not going to be head of state. Presidents and premiers need not be invited. Ms Markle’s Americanness, mixed race, acting career and divorce are all interesting. None of them, though, is unprecedented among the royals. The striking thing is that such issues do not matter in the way they might once have done.
This marriage will tell us little about the state of the monarchy or the nation beyond the obvious truth that most people enjoy a glamorous wedding. Most people will also keep it in perspective. The wedding is a happy distraction. Fascinating, yes. Delightful, yes. Significant, not very.
