After my late Father-in-Law left his initial FO posting to the Embassy in Ankara, he was sent to our fledgling Consulate in Kathmandu, Nepal.
His immediate remit was to create ties with Nepal's Royal Family and leading politicians.
As in so many consulates around the world, work mostly consisted of getting wayward Brits out of prison, getting them medical attention, or loaning them money to return home. There wasn't a lot more to do.
Lady Magnon should have been born in Kathmandu, but a sudden outbreak of either Cholera or Yellow Fever (not sure which) forced her mother to return to England, and she was eventually born in 'leafy Surrey' (as was I).
After four years, when my Father-in-Law handed over the reins to the new incoming Consul, he took with him his small Union Flag, above, made by Shaw Bros of Calcutta in 1941. It's not a particularly old flag, nor is it valuable, but it's a highly prized memento. It was this flag (his own), which was raised over the consulate during his time there.
After Kathmandu he then went on to Moscow with all the difficulties that that entailed. A very different scene to that of Nepal. The future Lady Magnon spent her first four years in Moscow.
My own family owned a particularly nice Union Flag, that had been passed down through many generations. It was bigger, and much older than the one above, and was also a very prized possession.
It would have been used by family members to celebrate the end of two world wars, as well as during the reigns of Queen Victoria, Edward VII, George V, Edward VIII (briefly), George VI, and our present Queen Elizabeth II. Sadly it was loaned to someone and not returned. I would liked to have flown it to welcome King Charles III (if I'm still around), and pass it on, but that will not now happen.
I would never, ever, loan the one above to anyone; in fact I might even frame it. If that one was stolen, we would be even less happy than we are about losing my own bigger family one!
What a wonderful history attached to a simple flag.
ReplyDeleteIs it not possible for you to approach the person who purloined your family heirloom and request its return?
We've tried several times, but we get nothing but insults. Best forgotten.
DeleteSo the scoundrel knows but persists in keeping it.
DeleteThe flag has an interesting history and is a little older than Lady M.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if Charles really wants to be king now. He has waited so long and it will cramp his style.
Andrew, "cramp[ing] his style" made me smile. Good point.
DeleteI have been asking myself for years what it must feel like having been groomed for a job to never being given it. It baffles me why his mother didn't retire in style ages ago, and pass on the baton. There are only two explanations: Either she doesn't trust him or she loves him too much to burden him with the load. The third possible (and unlikely) explanation is too unkind to mention in public.
I dare say Prince William might be in with a chance before he turns his father's age.
Long live the Queen,
U
I don't really think it's a question of if he wants the job or not; he's the oldest son, and the position comes automatically. I think he'll enjoy it.
DeleteMonarchs do not retire in the United Kingdom. If the Queen were to step down it would be an abdication of the throne which she is not going to do. The only reason this might happen would be for reasons of serious ill health. Either way, Parliament would have to be involved and an Act of Parliament enacted. At present our Queen is still doing a wonderful job and long may she reign.
DeleteYes, Rachel, but there are always exceptions to a rule. Edward VIII? He abdicated. Dare I say, not for reasons of "serious ill health".
DeleteFor me it's not about whether the Queen "is still doing a wonderful job". If she were my mother I would want her to have some time, just before exit, to not be involved in pomp and ceremony. The current retirement age in the UK is sixty six. Surely, a Queen (by which I mean the human being behind the crown) deserves time off too.
U
While she is still doing a superb job with unfaltering dedication, I believe she would be insulted at any suggestion that she should abdicate. There is no reason to abdicate just because Charles is getting older, his time will come very soon.
DeleteRachel, sometimes I think I am not being heard. Worse, I am not making myself clear.
DeleteLeaving Charles aside for a moment (yes, I did mention him having been groomed for a job he may never get) I can only repeat: If she were MY mother I'd want her to enjoy whatever life span she has left WITHOUT her current obligations. Obviously, that is between the Queen, her heir and her other children to decide. To put it another way, I'd hate to see my mother who is considerably younger than the Queen to be a puppet of aforementioned pomp and ceremony, a tourist attraction, wheeled out as and when - regardless. I was glad for Prince Philip when he bowed out of the public lime light, albeit late in his life. I breathed a sigh of relief on his behalf.
U
I don't think you understand our Queen.
DeleteUrsula, I wouldn't say HRH should have retired ages ago, but she is now very old, too old to travel to her former colonies. Though she still presents very well and is clearly sharp of mind it really is past the time when she moved on. Abdicate is such a negative word. Never mind the legalities, she should have just retired, maybe a decade ago.
DeleteSome people knock or mock Prince Charles but I rather like the guy for his passions and eccentricities. To me he seems like a decent guy in spite of his fractured relationship with Diana. He was kind of pushed into that and they were clearly not well-matched. If he does become king you will have to wave one of those small paper union jacks that they used to put in sandcastles.
ReplyDeleteI like him too, and many of his eccentricities (for which he was mocked in the past) have now been taken-up by Extinction Rebellion, and others.
DeleteAs for my flag-waving, I have others in England, including some very bizarre French hand-made ones that were used to welcome our troupes after the war. The Union Flag pattern is more guess work than anything. They are beautiful.
You speak beautifully and with great pride about your British flag. I, too, uphold the flag and all that it stands for. Damn the individual that stole one of your flags.
ReplyDeleteI may live in France, but I'm a very proud Englishman. Sadly, some people are just plain untrustworthy, but one learns it too late!
DeleteWhat a wonderful story behind Lady M's family flag. Bailing nationals out of prison is rather the workaday lot for foreign consuls!
ReplyDeleteIt's not as romantic as one might imagine. Work at the embassy in Moscow was quite different.
DeleteHope the loanee sees this and turns it back forthwith.
ReplyDelete