'Hamilton' Tribute to Queen Elizabeth II Confounds American History Buffs

Fans of the Broadway megahit Hamilton love the show for a lot of reasons, including its inherently revolutionary spirit. It is, after all, about the Revolutionary War, and the United States' Founding Fathers. So people were confused yesterday when, after Queen Elizabeth II died, London's West End production of the show tweeted out a fond tribute to the monarch.

"Everyone at Hamilton is deeply saddened by the passing of Her Majesty The Queen and we offer our sincere condolences to the Royal Family," the verified Hamilton West End Twitter account posted on September 8. "we join together with the people of the United Kingdom and around the world in mourning her loss."

Lin-Manuel Miranda's magnum opus, which won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize and a staggering 11 Tony Awards, is based on author Ron Chernow's 2004 biography, Alexander Hamilton. Miranda's work famously critiques colonialism at every turn, perhaps most notably in its purposeful casting of BIPOC performers—including Miranda himself as Hamilton, Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Phillipa Soo and Jasmine Cephas Jones as the Schuyler sisters, and Christopher Jackson as George Washington—and its feminist themes.

One of its most well-known and pointed numbers, "You'll Be Back," sung by an irate and offended King George III—Jonathan Groff originated the role on Broadway and was nominated for a Tony—portrays a monarch who cannot tolerate America's petulance and quest for independence, and illustrates just how far he'll go to exact revenge on his ungrateful subjects.

George sings to the American revolutionaries, "You'll be back, soon, you'll see/You'll remember you belong to me. You'll be back, time will tell/You'll remember that I served you well. Oceans rise, empires fall/We have seen each other through it all. And when push comes to shove/I will send a fully armed battalion to remind you of my love."

Understandably, some fans were confused by the Twitter page's diffident tone toward a monarch who is a direct descendant of George III. (Her father was King George VI.)

Still, others understood why a British production of a play—even an American one that seems inherently at odds with the idea of the Crown—would pay tribute to its longest-running monarch.

Les Misérables, which has nothing to do with the American Revolution, got dragged into things due to thematic proximity, after its official Twitter account for its London production also posted a tribute to the queen. Les Miz, based on Victor Hugo's 19th-century novel, is about social inequities and injustice in France.

With Operation London Bridge—an official 10-day period of meticulously planned mourning and tribute—underway, many events in the country have been canceled or postponed. All West End shows, including Hamilton, will reportedly dim their lights for two minutes each night.

Newsweek has reached out to representatives for Lin-Manuel Miranda and the London production of Hamilton for comment.