The death of Elizabeth II has reacquainted Britain with all the cherished irrationalities that make us who we are. Hereditary monarchy. Unfathomable pageantry. Democratic grief. The joy taken in queuing. There’s no understanding these customs; tradition exists to be followed, not deduced. To love the British, you have to love, or at least accept, their curious foibles.

There is one irrationality that is not exactly cherished but endures nonetheless and the Queen’s death has underlined just how irrational it is and how difficult to love. The British aversion to the French seems all the more perverse given la république’s extraordinary reaction to the passing of Britain’s longest-serving monarch.

France may be proudly republican — its own cherished irrationality, as we see it — but it had a quiet affection for the Queen. She met every president of both the fourth and fifth republics. She spoke French fluently and on her many visits would deliver speeches and converse with presidents en français. It was the tenth and final president of her acquaintance who spoke more poignantly about her death than any other foreign leader.

Paying tribute, Emmanuel Macron said:

‘We are grateful for her deep affection for France. Elizabeth II mastered our language, loved our culture and touched our hearts. From her coronation on, she knew and spoke with all of our presidents.

‘No other country had the privilege of welcoming her as many times as we did. In her, I have known a great head of state, a unique example of devotion to her people, and a very close ally.’

Addressing the British people directly, he added:

‘To you, she was your Queen. To us, she was the Queen. She will be with all of us forever.’

The French newspapers covered her demise as though it was a death in the Élysée Palace. Le Figaro’s front page carried a large photograph of the late sovereign and the headline: ‘Farewell to the Queen: A rock for her kingdom’. Le Monde dedicated a pull-out section to ‘a sovereign woman who made history’. A special edition of Le Parisien announced:

‘We loved her so much’. 

Even the radical Liberation dedicated its front page and 17 pages of reportage to ‘England’s sorrow’.

The Élysée Palace lowered the French flag to half-mast and displayed the Union Jack. Paris Metro renamed a station in her honour. Le Touquet-Paris-Plage is renaming its airport after her. When de Gaulle died, when Mitterrand died, British respects were paid and condolences given but the outpourings were like nothing we have seen from our Gallic neighbours in recent days.

Britain has met this warmth and generosity with indifference and even haughtiness. President Macron’s ‘incognito’ walk through the crowds in London was ridiculed. The Sunday Times ran a snotty piece quoting a former diplomat claiming Macron ‘would have hysterics if he wasn’t given a place of honour’ at the funeral. The British media paid little attention to the prevailing tone of respect and solidarity from the French elite.

Francophobia, a prejudice more of the British elite than the British people, is one tradition we should allow to slip into the past. We have differences with France. Not only on the matter of popular sovereignty versus constitutional monarchy but on Ukraine, boat-crossings, Europe and Aukus. There will always be tensions but with wise heads and good will they can be worked out between two countries that have much to learn and to gain from each other.

In the loss of our Queen, the French have eulogised her life, shared our grief, and embraced us as friends in sorrow. We should embrace them back.