Royalty lived well through command of menial labor. But the role of labor has changed. A typical American child, my eight-year old daughter, is already proficient with panoply of technologies and gadgets that provide her capabilities and resources that make her, in many ways, far wealthier than the mightiest kings of yore. Elizabeth II, Queen of England, has access herself to today's technologies, so let's consider the cornucopia of personal devices and services that have emerged since her coronation.

The Queen's predecessor and father, George VI  reigned from 1936 until his death in 1952, having been thrust unexpectedly upon the throne late in life after the surprise abdication of his brother, Edward VIII.  As boys and young men, both were royal princes of the realm, in line of succession at the zenith of the British Empire.  In consequence, they had access to servants and palaces, fellowship of the greatest noblemen, and resources of the Imperial Government, British Army and Royal Navy, all by virtue of being at the ruling apex both political and social of the greatest Colonial Empire in history in its most modern epoch before the onset of its decline after WWII. Nonetheless, compared to these greatest of princes and kings, my daughter has at her fingertips miraculous but inexpensive technologies undreamed of 50 years ago. Unlike Kings Edward and George,

1. She can communicate instantaneously with her mother from almost anywhere at any time
2. She can capture in an instant a high-resolution color-photo ready for digital editing
3. She can send said photo to her grandmother 1000 miles away in the blink of an eye
4. She can game online with a playmate on the other side of the globe
5. Her father can map her GPS position and be given travel directions automatically
6. Her family is routinely forewarned well in advance of severe storms by weather satellites
7. She can board a plane and travel quickly and economically to almost any major city in the world in the certain expectation of complete safety, comfort and timeliness
8. She can purchase a gift from innumerable online-emporiums to be sent overnight to nearly any address in North America
9. She travels freely, safely, comfortably and at high speed the economical family car any time we wish to destinations both local and long-distance on an extensive, continent-spanning network of well-maintained roads and interstate highways
10. Her parents can access and transmit funds in an instant almost anywhere in the world without fear of theft, misdirection or delay
11. She routinely views educational video clips taken from outer space or deep undersea
12. She lives at a time of unprecedented excellence in public health
13. She has ready access to health care infrastructure that is amazingly proficient and effective, resulting in America's ever increasing quality-of-life and life expectancy
14. Her home and school are powered by electricity from the nearby nuclear generator.

1. Internet search engines are much faster and have access to a vastly greater data base than even a royal army of file clerks and librarians
2. Word processing has become so easy we tend to forget that production and reproduction of letters and documents quite recently required offices and workshops filled with typists, stenographers, typesetters and printers
3. Software and online-banking maintain financial accounts up-to-date and with unprecedented accuracy, all without bookkeepers and accountants
4. Local supermarkets provide a constant supply of fresh, inexpensive groceries and other goods with abundant choices at low prices without stewards, butlers or game-keepers
5. The entire entertainment industry backed by enormous budgets compete to entertain her be sending movies, TV shows, and music into our living room, vastly in excess of what could be rendered by court jesters, dancers, musicians, minstrels and bards.
6. Modern kitchens are equipped for easy preparation of meals without constant need for live-in cooks, waiters, and maids.