Exercise: The Coronation of Queen Anne (1702)

How much can we learn about the values a society holds from its rituals and ceremonies? For Tuesday, read carefully a contemporary account of the coronation of Queen Anne, the last of the British monarchs in the Stuart succession, who reigned from 1702 until her death in 1714.

Now pretend that you are a Martian visiting earth for the first time, and happen to land in London during Queen Anne's coronation. Your job is to report back to your superiors on the Red Planet about the earthlings and how they govern themselves. Your bosses as especially keen to know who is in charge, just in case they feel the urge to make contact with the Blue Planet, perhaps at some point during the twenty-first century.

Write a one-page report on your findings, and upload it to SafeAssign. Bring a copy to class on Tuesday and share your findings with your fellow extraterrestrial investigators. (Don't forget to sign the report with your given earthling name).

Image right: Portrait of Queen Anne. Tinted engraving from an atlas commissoned by Augustus the Strong (Elector of Saxony and King of Poland), 1706-1710. Image source: Wikipedia Commons.

 


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