Walkabout at Windsor this morning.

Today’s celebrations to mark the Queen’s 80th birthday come with an affection and enthusiasm not always seen in the public’s response to the Monarchy.

As The Times (London) puts it: “It is not simply that the nation’s head of state has reached a venerable age in good health and robust spirit, or that she continues to perform her duties with diligence, tact and aplomb; it is the sense that the Queen has come to embody qualities and values that are recognised as important to our society. And at a time of accelerating social, cultural and economic change, her enduring example of continuity, tolerance and moderation is of inestimable value.”

Since her Coronation with its solemn oath taken in Westminster Abbey in 1953, the Queen has upheld the values of chivalry and duty just as she said she would. For more than half a century, she has never wavered in this resolve. Her sense of loyalty, stoic reserve and respect for older values have never deserted her. In a fractious, restless age, she believes these qualities are intrinsic to the Monarchy, and many agree.

As time goes on and the world veers in unpredicable ways around chasms of disaster, her unchanging strength of character are becoming more and more appreciated, even by those with republican tendencies. The incessant corruption and weakness of our political leaders has diminished the State, but not her presence at its head.

There are those who would rename her “Elizabeth the Good” — the historian Andrew Roberts is one. Others, “Elizabeth the Great”. This website believes only one designation will do: