Some thoughts on what it means to be royal

When we talk about royalty, what do we mean?

Think about royal titles like "Duke of York" or "Earl of Suffolk". These titles are attached to geography, to locations or areas that these people rule over. They are entrusted to take care of that land by their king or queen, who has granted them the title. Thus, by "ruling over", we need to understand that the first responsibility is to preserve the resources of the land for the future - or at least not squander them frivolously. (It should be noted that resources here can include the people.) This, in turn, means that the titled individual must be above daily trends or concerns such as politics. 

More than that, though, the titled noble should be thought of the embodiment or personification of the land itself. Like the land, the title will endure, through good times and bad, providing constancy.

None of this should be taken to mean that the noble is aloof or removed from their people. Quite the opposite, in fact: the noble should keenly feel every "sling and arrow of outrageous fortune" (to misquote Hamlet) that their people suffer, and wherever possible should demonstrate noblesse oblige towards their subjects. 

However, the land overall must endure regardless of the fate of the individual, and so it is with the nobility. If you bankrupt your treasury to elevate your citizens, then what future does your kingdom have?

Finally, I will close with a quote from the Netflix series The Crown which (despite allegedly taking certain liberties with some events) provides a very good and entertaining window into the life of Queen Elizabeth II.

"Monarchy is God's sacred mission to grace and dignify the earth. To give ordinary people an ideal to strive towards, an example of nobility and duty to raise them in their wretched lives. Monarchy is a calling from God. That is why you are crowned in an abbey, not a government building. Why you are anointed, not appointed. It's an archbishop that puts the crown on your head, not a minister or public servant. Which means that you are answerable to God in your duty, not the public." (Eileen Atkins as Queen Mary, The Crown, Season 1, Episode 4, "Act of God")

My royal cipher