The Queen has conferred knighthoods on the Americans Bill Gates and Norman Schwarzkopf. She appointed South Africa’s Nelson Mandela to the Order of Merit (along with John Howard.) Prince Philip has received high honours in dozens of countries. Why do Australian journalists and Labor politicians complain so loudly about his new Australian honour? Is it some sort of reverse cultural cringe?

President François Hollande graciously included my grand-daughter Maisie Dubosarsky as a guest at his recent reception in the Palais de l’Elysée for those closest to the murdered victims of the Paris atrocities as well as for the wounded and the...