Royal family. From the magazines obsessing over the dresses worn by the Duchess of Cambridge, to the barrage of twitter reactions to the birth of Prince George, the Royal Family has captivated the imaginations of the American public with near unrivaled intensity. I say near unrivaled, because there is another “Royal Family” that has enthralled the imagination of the American people: the Kardashian family.

I don’t mean to disparage the accomplishments of the Kardashians; on the contrary, their net worth has been the reward of meticulous publicity and insanely smart business decisions. They deserve all of their success. Kudos!

The Royal Family, however, has often unfairly been called the ‘Kardashians of the UK’, due to the fact that they’re publicized without seemingly having any “merit.” While that is certainly one school of thought, the Royal Family does in fact have power and consequences in the lives of the British citizens.

1. Turns out Queen Elizabeth of Windsor does more than just make grim faces during the Olympics and crash weddings (yes, that has actually happened). She gives “royal assent,” which basically means she can veto any law made by leaders in the Parliament or House of Lords. Basically means that she’s the most powerful person in Europe.
2. British military is loyal only to the Crown, not any individual political party. So if ever Britain was to gain its own Donald Trump as Prime Minister, the world can rest easy knowing he or she would have severely limited militaristic power.
3. The Royal Family brings in about 500 million pounds, or $767 million, through tourism every year and considering how tourism is the third-biggest in the U.K. Thus, reducing the Monarchy to mere eye candy or relics of the past would be doing Britain and its industries a great disservice.
4. The Commonwealth wholeheartedly supports the expenses of the Royal Family. It all began in the reign of King George III in the 18th century. Under a crushing mountain of debt, he pleaded with the Parliament to absolve his debt, pay for his living expenses, and all the profit from the land owned by the Royal Family would go to Parliament. Since then, every ruler has enforced this rule. Since the profits from the land is exponentially more than the living expenses given to the Monarchy, funding the Royal Family is actually making taxes cheaper for Brits.
5. Prime Ministers come and go, and politicians come and go. But the King or Queen remains in the throne for decades. In times of crisis, seeing a familiar face preside in the same position for years lends an air of relief to the public, such as no matter how atrocious the new series of "Doctor Who" will get, the Queen will fix it all eventually.

Essentially, the power of the monarchy has greatly diminished in the past centuries, rendering them as mere figureheads in the matters of the state. However, Britain is a country of traditions, and the fact that the Queen and the Royalty still have the powers that they have speaks greatly about the importance of their existence in an increasingly democratic world.