For fifty years the Queen has been true to her anthem: she has been gracious, and that, in a not altogether gracious age, has been an exceptional achievement. She has presided over immense changes - the transformation of an empire into a commonwealth, and of Britain from a monoculture into a multi-culture - and has done exactly what a royal head of state should. She has been a living symbol of continuity and a role model of public service. Few figures have survived the 'death of deference' with their personal and institutional standing enhanced; but she has, and she has done so with a lightness of touch that is unique to her. Monarchy will survive in Britain because in ages of change we need symbols of permanence, and as governance becomes ever more remote, societies need a human face.

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