You may recall Agnes Whitcombe, librarian AKA Agnes Regina - Her Majesty the Queen of the Commonwealth of Elsewhere. She has been living quietly working and studying regal comportment - behaving with the dignity, grace, majesty, and propriety befitting royalty, characterized by dignified bearing, self-control, good manners, and an impressive presence, like a king or queen. Practicing the way of carrying oneself that shows respect, restraint, and noble conduct, encompassing posture, actions, and overall demeanor.
Here are a few readings from her notes.
The Queen’s Manual of Self-Governance
A Selection of Her Reflections
I. The Stature of Stillness
“In every act of rule, one must first master stillness. The world rushes about in restless noise, yet sovereignty begins in the silence that listens before it speaks. Those who sit well, stand well, and walk well - rule well.”
II. On Bearing and Breath
“The breath is the invisible scepter. With every inhalation, one receives and gathers the kingdom inward; with every exhalation, one offers the kingdom back to the world. A monarch who breathes with awareness governs without coercion.”
III. The Discipline of Regard
“To regard a thing is to endow it with existence. Therefore, be careful what you look upon and how. The gaze of a Queen blesses or burdens, and both are contagious.”
IV. The Currency of Composure
“Composure is a quiet wealth. It cannot be bought nor borrowed, only cultivated. Keep your movements measured, your gestures deliberate, and your pauses purposeful. In this, dignity becomes its own reward.”
V. Of the Heart’s Tempering
“Love is not weakness, nor restraint coldness. The sovereign heart must be tempered like steel: firm, luminous, and flexible. Sentiment clouds judgment, but clarity does not forbid compassion.”
VI. The Art of Listening
“To listen is to extend one’s reign beyond one’s own thought. When the Queen listens, the realm expands. When she ceases to listen, the realm contracts into shadow.”
VII. The Mirror and the Mantle
“The crown is only a mirror of the conduct beneath it. Let not adornment deceive you. The true mantle of majesty is woven of patience, presence, and poise.”
Some Things the Queen Said
“In my studies of self-governance and the cultivation of a regal demeanor, I have found that one must continually practice control over the heart, the mind, and the body.
To rule oneself is to keep the mind in quietude, the heart in clarity, and the body in disciplined rhythm.
Move at a stately pace, never hurried.
Breathe as though the breath itself were a ceremony.
Be present in all you do.
Extend respect to all you touch.
Treat each thing as precious.
Allot importance to whatever comes before you.
Thus is sovereignty not a crown, but a way of being.”
The cultivation of demeanor as a practice of self-governance is such a refreshig frame. The idea that "sovereignty begins in the silence that listens before it speaks" redefines authority as atention management rather than power projection. I love how the reflections emphasize that composure is "cultivated" not performed, that regal bearing emerges from internal discipline rather than external adornment. The "invisible scepter" of conscious breath as governing tool is particuarly evocative. I've been working on similar practices around deliberate movement and measured gestures, and the hardest part is maintaning that stately pace in a world that rewards hustle. Agnes Regina's framework suggests that true majesty isn't about commanding others but about mastering the self's restlessness. Dunno if most people could sustain that level of continous self-regulation but the aspirational quality is beautiful.
Wow!