in britain, some of the most elaborate boundary-marking ritual are those associated with the monarchy, and the announcement of the royal wedding of prince William and Catherine Middleton in 2011 was widely deemed to be unmitigated good news, despite falling in a period of serve economic depression. Tourist visiting London for the first time inevitably make their way to see daily events such as the changing of the guard at buckingham palace, when the paths of marching soldiers are firmly confined, and their garments much more for show than for any acts of physical defence, or to the tower of london, a site of horrific punishments in the past, but now just another location of elaborate cultural display. rituals of royalty are not found in every nation, and even where they are found, some 'subject' will be resentful about their cost, but they are powerful expressions pf social grouping that can evoke the strongest expressions of loyalty, especially where the incumbents of the pimary roles somehow express ideological expectations popular with their people at the time. public reaction to the death of princess Diana was an example of royalty so powerful that it surprised even some of the anthropologists who specialize in these issues.