Monarchy New Zealand
The Journal of The Monarchist League of New Zealand Incorporated
ISSN 1174-8435
Volume 6 Issue 1 February 2001
The Monarchist League of New Zealand, Inc.
Secretary, 16/90 Remuera Road, Remuera, Auckland 1005, New Zealand
Website URL: http://www.geocities.com/Capitolhill/Parliament/7802
Patron: Hon Sir Peter Tapsell, KNZM MBE MBChB FRCSEd FRCS
Council:
Chairman: Noel Cox, Esq., LLM(Hons) CertTertTchg DCIL HonCIL FFASL FBS
Vice-Chm: Merv Tilsley, Esq.
Secretary: Miss Nancy Sellars
Treasurer: John Cox, Esq., LLB MNZTA
Councillors:
Nicholas Albrecht, Esq., MA(Hons)
Roger Barnes, Esq., FHSNZ
Richard Girdwood, Esq., JCD CLJ
Neville Johnson, Esq.
Ian Madden, Esq., MA LLB FSA(Scot)
Robert Mann, Esq., MSc PhD
Lt-Cdr Ken McGrath, VRD MSc(Hons) LIBiol MNZIMLS RNZNVR(rtd)
Professor Peter Spiller, BA LLB PhD Natal LLM MPhil Cambridge PhD Canterbury
League Officers:
Legal Adviser: Noel Cox, Esq., LLM(Hons) CertTertTchg DCIL HonCIL FFASL FBS
Librarian and Archivist: Noel Cox, Esq., LLM(Hons) CertTertTchg DCIL HonCIL FFASL FBS
Provincial Representative, Wellington: Mathew Norman, Esq.
Editor, Monarchy New Zealand: Noel Cox, Esq., LLM(Hons) CertTertTchg DCIL HonCIL FFASL FBS
Assistant Editor of Monarchy New Zealand: John Cox, Esq., LLB MNZTA
Advertising Manager, Monarchy New Zealand: John Cox, Esq., LLB MNZTA
Monarchy New Zealand is published by The Monarchist League of New Zealand Inc. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the policy of The Monarchist League of New Zealand. Correspondence should be addressed to the Editor, Monarchy New Zealand, 123 Stanley Road, Glenfield, Auckland 1310, New Zealand. Tel: +64 9 444-7687; Fax: +64 9 444-7397; E-mail: [email protected]
Editorial
The Guardian newspaper in London announced last December its support for what has been describ ed in the New Zealand Herald as a move to scuttle the monarchy. Actually the Guardian has launched a legal challenge to the law of succession to the Crown, a somewhat less ambitious aim.
At present Roman Catholics and anyone who has married a Roman Catholic cannot in herit the throne, and although women can succeed, males are preferred. The former is a consequence of the Glorious Revolution of 1688, the latter the result of over a thousand years of legal and cultural development.
The present legal challenge is based on the Human Rights Act 1998, which came into force in the United Kingdom late last year, and which prohibits discrimination on the grounds of sex or religion.
The newspaper's campaign has several curious aspects. Firstly, it is being waged in an aggressive and confrontational way, almost as though the monarchy itself was resisting the proposed changes. However both the Queen and the Prince of Wales are on record as supporting changes to the succession law, which Parliament had originally imposed upon an unwilling monarchy.
Secondly, Lord Wilson of Mostyn, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Home Office, announced three years ago that the British government supported changing the law of succession to the throne. That change has yet to occur is simply a reflection of the complexity of the task, and the lack of urgency.
Thirdly, any alteration by the United Kingdom Parliament to the law regarding the succession to the throne would not in itself be sufficient to alter the rules of succession to th e throne in other independent member of the Commonwealth of which the Queen remains head of state. New Zealand and every other country affected would have to change its succession law at the same time, or we would be faced with the possibility, at some time in the future, of having a different sovereign to the United Kingdom.
The prohibition on Roman Catholics succeeding to the throne is a consequence of the 1688 revolutionary settlement, after King James II had attempted (or so his critics argued) to re-impose Roman Catholicism on a predominantly Protestant people.
A return to the unspoken expectation of royal Protestantism of the Henrician reforms of a century earlier would be preferable to an outright legal ban on Roman Catholics succeeding. This could leave the legal e stablishment of the Church of England in England, and the Church of Scotland in Scotland, substantially intact. But it would mean that a Roman Catholic king or queen might succeed to the throne, as James II did, disastrously enough for himself, in 1685.
The present arrangements provide that the Crown descends lineally through the issue of the reigning Sovereign, subject to the right of primogeniture amongst both males and females of equal degree. Thus the eldest or sole son succeeds, but if a sovereign has only daughters, then the eldest of these will succeed in preference to a brother or uncle of the previous sovereign.
Were a succession law to be drawn up today, it is likely that it would provide for the succession of the eldest child of the Sovereign, irrespective of sex. Sweden has recently adopted such a rule. However that was replacing the much more restrictive Salic law, which allowed only male rulers. The British tradition has been one of compromise, of flexibility, and was never so exclusive.
No selection process for a head of state is perfect. Just look at the American presidency. The presidential election in 1996 cost the almost inconceivable sum of US$2.7b (NZ$6b). The election just held, with its attendant legal and constitutional chaos, will prove no doubt to have been even more expensive. The law of succession to the Crown is a product of a incomparably older tradition.
Changes should be as a consequence of mature debate, not media-inspired court action. Most importantly, this is a matter, not for a newspaper to decide, but for the people through their duly elected representatives, in the New Zealand and United Kingdom Parliaments.
News in Brief
Death of Sir David Beattie
The former Governor-General the Hon Sir David Beattie, GCMG GCVO QSO, has died. He was accorded a state funeral, as is customary for a former holder of that o ffice dying in New Zealand. This was held at the Wellington Cathedral of St Paul, with the Dean of Wellington, the Very Reverend Michael Brown, officiating.
Sir David was a Supreme Court judge before being appointed as Her Majesty's representative in this country. A fuller obituary will appear in the next issue of Monarchy New Zealand.
The Queen's Christmas Broadcast
The following is the text of Her Majesty The Queen's Christmas Broadcast:
"By any measure this Millennium year has been an unforgettable one. Since the turn of the year it has been celebrated and marked in this country and throughout the Commonwealth, and it has been a particular pleasure for me to visit Millennium projects large and small which will be reminders for generations to come of the time when the twenty-first century began.
But as this year draws to a close I would like to reflect more directly and more personally on what lies behind all the celebrations of these past twelve months.
Christmas is the traditional, if not the actual, birthday of a man who was destined to change the course of our history. And today we are celebrating the fact that Jesus Christ was born two thousand years ago; this is the true Millennium anniversary.
The simple facts of Jesus' life give us little clue as to the influence he was to have on the world. As a boy he learnt his father's trade as a carpenter. He then b ecame a preacher, recruiting twelve supporters to help him. But his ministry only lasted a few years and he himself never wrote anything down. In his early thirties he was arrested, tortured and crucified with two criminals. His death might have been the end of the story, but then came the resurrection and with it the foundation of the Christian faith.
Even in our very material age the impact of Christ's life is all around us. If you want to see an expression of Christian faith you have only to look at our awe-inspiring cathedrals and abbeys, listen to their music, or look at their stained glass windows, their books and their pictures.
But the true measure of Christ's influence is not only in the lives of the saints but also in the good works quietly done by millions of men and women day in and day out throughout the centuries.
Many will have been inspired by Jesus' simple but powerful teaching: love God and love thy neighbour as thyself - in other words, treat others as you would like them to treat you. His great emphasis was to give spirituality a practical purpose.
Whether we believe in God or not, I think most of us have a sense of the spiritual, that recognition of a deeper meaning and purpose in our lives, and I believe that this sense flourishes despite the pressures of our world.
This spirituality can be seen in the teachings of other great faiths. Of course religion can be divisive, but the Bible, the Koran and the sacred texts of the Jews and Hindus, Buddhists and Sikhs, are all sources of divine inspiration and practical guidance passed down through the generations.
To many of us our beliefs are of fundamental importance. For me the teachings of Christ and my own personal accountability before God provide a framework in which I try to lead my life. I, like so many of you, have drawn great comfort in difficult times from Christ's words and example.
I believe that the Christian message, in the words of a familiar blessing, remains profoundly important to us all:
"Go forth into the world in peace, be of good courage, hold fast that which is good, render to no man evil for evil, strengthen the faint-hearted, support the weak, help the afflicted, honour all men."
It is a simple message of compassion and yet as powerful as ever today, two thousand years after Christ's birth.
I hope this day will be as special for you as it is for me. May I wish you all a very Happy Christmas".
New years' honours list
In the December 2000 royal honours list there was one new Principal Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (PCNZM), Professor Lloyd Geering, and five new Distinguished Companions (DCNZM), Jocelyn Fish, the Rt Hon Thomas Gault, Sister Patricia Hook, Professor Alan Mark, and Colin Meads.
As might be expected, although the titular honours of knight and dame were not conferred, the media repeated referred to these titles, and compared the new honours with them. If the justification for abandoning titles was to prevent them unduly overshadowing other honours, then the reforms have failed.
The 12 new Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM) include Professor Mason Durie, Hon Russell Marshall, and Richard Nottage (Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade 1991-99).
The 27 new Officers (ONZM) and 3 new honorary ONZM. There are also 55 new Members (MNZM), and one honorary MNZM.
There were seven new Companions of the Queen's Service Order for Community Service, and seven for Public Service (QSO). There were also 35 Queen\rquote s Service Medals for Community Service, and 34 for Public Service (QSM) announced.
It is unfortunate that the Deputy Prime Minister has been quoted as asserting that the values of the Government were reflected in the composition of the honours list. Although political involvement cannot be excluded, the honours list should at least be presented as non-partisan in nature, for these honours are in the name of the Queen.
Amongst the honours awarded in overseas lists may be mentioned Dr Pupuke Robati, former Prime Minister of the Cook Islands, who is made a KBE, and the broadcasters Professor Christopher Frayling and Dr Patrick Moore, who are made knights bachelor.
Privy Council under attack again
The Attorney-General has recently released a discussion paper proposing ending the right of appeals to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. This has been rightly seen as more than simply the ending of a legal tie to English courts. It can also be seen as a deliberate gesture to assert national independence. But it is far from generally accepted that this gesture should be made.
If the right of appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council were abolished without substantially restructuring of the New Zealand judicial hierarchy, then many actions would have only one level of appeal. It is worth observing that in both Can ada and Australia, where appeals to the Privy Council have been abolished, there already existed parallel hierarchies of federal and state courts, which ensured both different perspectives and further tiers of appeal existed. The options suggested in the discussion paper will not provide a sufficiently robust appeal process.
It is also important that appeals to the Privy Council are, in strict legal theory, appeals to the Queen in Council, something particularly important to many Maori appellants. The Privy Council is also sufficiently distant from the circumstances of individual cases to allow more dispassionate consideration to be given to the facts.
Nor are appeals to the Judicial Committee heard by a purely English court. The judges are selected from a number of jurisdictions.
The presence of three Scottish judges (and two others with civil law backgrounds) out of 13 Law Lords is significant, as the Scottish jurisdiction is very much smaller than the English on a population basis. Since 1913 New Zealand judges also have sat on the Privy Council, and other Commonwealth judges are also appointed from time to time.
Considerable expense is involved in pursuing an appeal to the Privy Council, but Court of Appeal hearings are hardly inexpensive. The Privy Council is maintained by the British taxpayer, not the New Zealand. The benefit of the experience of some of the finest legal minds in the Commonwealth is available at no cost to the New Zealand taxpayer.
Generally speaking, appeals will only reach the level of the Court of Appeal or Privy Council where there is a significant amount of money involved, either directly or indirectly, and thus the direct costs of the appeal are not necessarily as significant to the parties as they may at first glance appear.
It may appear inevitable to some that in the long term the right of appeal to the Privy Council will be abandoned. However, this is by no means necessarily so. In 17 independent Commonwealth countries, including five republics, retain appeals to the Judi cial Committee of the Privy Council, as well as from many dependencies.
The majority of the Queen's realms retain appeals to Her Majesty in Council. In addition to these, six countries which do not acknowledge the Queen as Sovereign retain the appeal. Wh ile it is true that New Zealand might be the largest country still retaining appeals, it is also true that we are a much smaller country than Australia or Canada, and do not possess the federal appellate court structures which they have.
A significant proportion of legal decisions affect that directly effect New Zealand are now taken by overseas courts and tribunals. In an age of increasing internationalisation it is curious that we should be considering adopting an inward-looking and parochial approach to court reforms.
Royal Diary
Duke of York to leave RN
The Duke of York surprised senior members of the Royal Family when he revealed his plans at a meeting of the Way Ahead Group, which twice a year examines ways of reforming and improving t he monarchy. Senior royal officials disclosed that the Duke, 40, has been in private talks with British Trade International (BTI) - formerly the British Overseas Trade Board - over his new role. The Queen is believed to be in favour of the move.
He will replace the Duke of Kent, who will stand down in April after a quarter of a century as vice-chairman of the BTI. The organisation provides help and advice for British companies wanting to expand their businesses overseas.
One royal official said: "This sort of job involves an awful lot of overseas travel to some fairly far-flung places. It would have a wide-ranging portfolio."
The Duke of York has served in the Royal Navy since 1979, seeing service in the South Atlantic in 19 82. Postings have included command of the mine countermeasures vessel HMS Cottesmore, and as senior pilot of 815 Naval Air Squadron. That squadron provided all operational Lynx anti-submarine helicopter flights for Royal Navy destroyers and frigates
Prince Andrew's final posting was in the Diplomacy Section of the Naval Staff, where he was responsible for the international relations of the Royal Navy. The Duke of York played a leading role in these activities, including the planning and administration of all aspects of bilateral naval staff talks, and other liaison duties both with in the UK and abroad.
Princess Anne gets a Thistle
HRH Princess Anne, the Princess Royal, has been made a Lady of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle.
Buckingham Palace made the announcement on St Andrew's Day, 30 November, the day that the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh hosted a 50th birthday reception for the Princess in the Waterloo Chamber of Windsor Castle attended by 500 representatives of her charities.
The Princess will be installed as a Lady of the ancient Order, the Scottish equivalent of the Garter, at a ceremony in St Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh, next year. The Order, revived by King James II in the late 17th Century, is limited to 16 knights at any time. The Princess joins Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and Lady Marion Fraser, chairman of Christian Aid, as the only women members, apart from the Queen herself, in modern times.
League News
Queen Victoria centennial celebration
The Monarchist League's Victoria Day celebrations were held on Sunday 21st January. A picnic in Albert Park, Auckland, celebrated New Zealand's unique cultural heritage and identity.
The day included a formal ceremony at 11 am, with the unveiling of a floral tribute to Queen Victoria, who died almost one hundred years earlier.
Men of the 65th Regiment, a military re-enactment group, provided a formed body for a feu de joie to the accompaniment of a cannon, and entertained the crowd with displays of martial drill. The Auckland City Brass and Corps of Drums provided afternoon entertainment while members of the public enjoyed a Victorian-theme picnic in Albert Park.
Members of the Maori group Rangi o te Ao, and the Auckland Scottish Society performed at intervals until festivities concluded at 3 pm. Donald Linden read extracts from "The Passing of a Great Queen".
The Queen's Birthday Dinner
The Monarchist League of New Zealand is holding a formal dinner to mark the 75th birthday of Her Majesty The Queen. This will be the first formal dinner held by the League since our foundation. The dinner will be on Thursday 19th April, and the venue is Old Government House, Princes Street, Auckland. The cost per ticket is $55. Attire is to be as formal as you wish. There will be an after dinner speaker, and members of the patriotic societies and diplomatic missions are also invited to attend.
Overseas News
Jubilee plans
British Prime Minister Tony Blair has announced that celebrations for the Queen's Golden Jubilee in the United Kingdom will centre on a national Thanksgiving Service in St Paul's Cathedral, London on 4th June 2002, and both that day and the preceding will be public holidays.
In the months of May and June Her Majesty will tour the United Kingdom extensively, and she will embark on a Commonwealth tour in the northern Autumn. As she will be in this country in October Her Majesty will not include New Zealand in her itinerary.
The Queen will visit the armed forces on the 27th June, and open the Commonwealth Games in Manchester on the 25th July, and close it 4th August.
Civic honours (city status, and lord mayoralty) will be conferred upon selected communities.
Some public funds will be provided for the celebrations, though there will be 'no undue expenditure'.
The purpose of celebrations will be to allow The Queen an opportunity to express her thanks for the support and loyalty she has enjoyed during her reign. It is expected that opportunities will be provided for voluntary and community service as an expression of continuing loyalty.
Norwegian Prince to wed single mother
Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, has announced his engagement to Miss Mette-Marit Tjessem Hoiby, a student. Their wedding was planned for the 25th of August.
The prince's choice of bride was controversial. Miss Tjessem Hoiby is a single mother, with a three year old son, Marius.
The crown prince had already become the first European royal to live with a partner without first marrying. He moved into an Oslo flat with Ms Tjessem Hoiby, 27, last September, prompting a barrage of criticism from conservatives and churchmen.
King Harald V, who supported his son's decision to marry Miss Tjessem Hoiby, himself faced opposition to his 1968 marriage to Miss Sonja Haraldsen, now Queen Sonja. Although Norway is noted for its liberal and egalitarian society, many felt that the king should not have chosen to marry a commoner. His choice proven a good one however, and we can but hope that Miss Tjessem Hoiby will be equally acceptable.
Royal Martyrs
The Life Of Among The Saints Edward The Martyr, King Of England
Many saints and martyrs existed before the "Great Schism", that took place in 1054 between the East and the West, who attested to the holy Orthodox faith. St. Edward the Martyr is an excellent example of such a saint. Edward is simply known as "Martyr", who was born in 960 and his holy martyrdom took place in the year of 978. Edward was the King of England, and he reigned from 975 to 978. His father was known as Edgar the Peaceful.
I had learned from my Mother who had traced her family history, that we are related to St. Edward the Martyr, both myself and my family had been spiritually pleased to learn that we could trace our family history on my Mother's side, and to learn that we are related to not only to a King, but also a martyr of Christianity.
My Father being Greek Orthodox had told us in our early young years, that the Church was "One" at the time of King Edward of England. So my Mother continued to seek more information...in regards to her side of the family, being she was Scottish and English. We later discovered that Edward the Martyr holy relics where transferred to a cemetery church, and called Brookwood Cemetery, located outside of London, England, in the town of Surrey.
I also learned that the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russian (also known as the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad), in 1979, degreed by the Synod of Bishops that recognized the desire to obtain the holy relics of the "The Holy Right-believing Edward, King of England, the Passion-Bearer." Eventually the holy relics of St. Edward the Martyr where placed in the Church of Brookwood Cemetery, in which a brotherhood of monks exist today, under the spiritual guidance of Archimandrite Alexis.
My Mother had since been converted to the holy Orthodox faith, and has taken the name: Rebecca. Since the time of her conversion to the holy Orthodox faith, her life has changed, she has found a great deal of spiritual peace, and has now beheld the great spiritual beauty of the faith she truly loves today.
About ten years ago, I had the great spiritual joy to make a pilgrimage to England, and to venerate the holy relics of St. Edward the Martyr, it was for me one of the most moving experiences of my life, to stand and kneel before not only a holy martyr, but also a holy right-believing King, who loved God, and who gave his soul unto Christ our True God. Sadly enough I was only able to stay two days at the monastery, but it was two days, I never forgot, as I left spiritually uplifted and pleased to venerate such a holy martyr and saint of holy the Orthodox Church.
HOLY MARTYR EDWARD, PRAY UNTO GOD, FOR US!
WHO WAS ST. EDWARD THE MARTYR?
ST. EDWARD was the son of King Edgar the Peaceable, and succeeded to the throne of his father as King of England in 975 A.D. Of his character and piety we have his testimonial from Theodoric Paulus: "St. Edward was a young man of great devotion and excellent conduct; he was wholly Catholic, good and of holy life; moreover, above all things he loved God and the Church; he was generous to the poor, a haven to the good, a champion of the Faith of Christ, a vessel full of every virtuous grace."
He was an earnest supporter of the monastics in the life of the Church, as his father had been before him. But this aroused the displeasure of the powerful secular party within the Church, and, as so often happens in Church life, that displeasure found allies with ambition and jealousy, and the young king was brutally murdered at Corfe in Dorset in 979 A.D. After his death, the miracles worked through his intercessions have confirmed the testimony of his pious life and his martyrdom.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF HIS RELICS
The day following his death, the king's body was taken to Wareham and laid to rest there. No sooner was he buried than miracles began to occur, and we read that "a spring of clear water broke out from beside the grave, and many persons bathed their eyes in it to receive the benefit of restored sight." On the account of the multitude of the miracles it was decided to translate the sacred relics to Shaftesbury; and when they were taken up from the grave, they were found to be whole and incorrupt. This translation and the reburial of the saint with full royal honors took place in 981 A.D.
In the year 1001 A.D., the sacred relics were again taken up from the grave and placed in an elaborate shrine in the Shaftesbury Abbey church, because, through the miraculous "levitation" of his tomb, the saint had made known that he wished to be exhumed. This "levitation" was in fact the slight raising of the tomb from the ground each day, and was witnessed by many. The relics at this time were found to be fragrant, and the bishops there bore witness that they felt that they were standing amid the delights of paradise. So great was the fame of St. Edward that the town of Shaftesbury became known as St. Edward's Borough.
THE PROTESTANT REFORMATION
In the sixteenth century, during the reign of Henry VIII, when, at his command, the dissolution of the English monasteries began, when so many holy places were demolished, the sacred relics of St. Edward escaped destruction, being hidden, perhaps by the nuns of the abbey, perhaps by Henry's Royal Commissioners themselves, for it must be remembered that only two years previous to the dissolution King Henry had desired a long-awaited heir to his throne, whose name was Prince Edward.
The destruction of the undoubted remains of a saint, martyr and former King of England bearing the same name as the heir, the king's only son, would without doubt have provoked the wrath of the monarch.
THE DISCOVERY OF THE HOLY RELICS
In 1931, the sacred and holy relics were recovered during an archaeological excavation conducted at the ruins of Shaftesbury Abbey by the present donor, Mr. Wilson-Claridge. The bones were later examined by Dr. T.E.A. Stowell, an eminent osteologist, who, at the end of a lengthy report on the bones, concludes: "I cannot escape the conviction on historical, anatomical and surgical grounds that, beyond all reasonable doubt, we have here the bones of St. Edward, King and Martyr."
THE DONATION OF THE HOLY RELICS TO THE ORTHODOX CHURCH
Since 1979, the appointed Administrator in England of the British Diocese, of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, Archimandrite Alexis heard of the holy relics of King Edward and wrote to the present donor, who, after some correspondence, agreed to give them to the Church to be reverently enshrined.
A decree from the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, dated 15/28 March 1979, recognized the desire to obtain the holy relics and asked for some evidence of the authenticity of the bones. It seems that the bishops were impressed by the similarity between the Life of St. Edward and the circumstances of his murder and that of the holy Russian passion-bearers Boris and Gleb. On 6/19 September the Synod of Bishops decided to accept without reservations the authenticity of the holy relics which were being offered to the Church (encyclical no.255). Later onwards Fr. Theodore Jurewicz was commissioned by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia to paint an icon of St. Edward the Martyr, and a service was prepared to St. Edward.
The progress continued after many kind faithful Orthodox helped to donate land, and prepare a Shrine Church in honor of St. Edward the Martyr. A Church which already existed in the Brookwood Cemetery, in Woking, Surrey England, became the final place to for the holy relics of St. Edward, and a Brotherhood was organized. The cemetery has also become a place for many ethnic Orthodox Christians, as a resting place.
LOCATION OF THE CHURCH OF ST. EDWARD THE MARTYR
A Russian Orthodox Brotherhood
exist within the Brookwood Cemetery, located in Woking, Surrey
England, and the directions to the Church are: http://www.sherwood.co.uk/info/contacts/bkwdir.asp Archimandrite Alexis and several monks
and novices are caretakers of the Holy Church of St. Edward the
Martyr. The address is: St. Edward Brotherhood
St. Cyprianos Avenue, Brookwood, Woking,
England, United Kingdom. Tel. 44(0)1483-48-7763
Thanks To The Kind Assistance Of The Servant Of The Lord: John
Holy Saint Edward,
Pray Unto God, For Us!
Fr Demetrios Serfes
Royal Poetry
Lord Macaulay was a British Whig novelist, poet, and politician. He was nevertheless sympathetic towards the Jacobite cause. It is well to remember this today when Jacobitism is often mistakenly represented as a Scottish or even Celtic force.
Jacobites were not primarily, nor even principally, Scottish. Their cause was that of the Catholic cavaliers, of England and to a lesser degree Scotland; the Tories who scarcely a generation before had supported and su stained the king during the Civil Wars. The Romantic appeal of the Old and Young Pretenders was that of a Catholic king, the representative of the defeated Tory political cause.
A JACOBITE'S EPITAPH
To my true king I offer'd free from stain
Courage and faith; vain faith, and courage fain.
For him I threw lands, honours, wealth, away,
And one dear hope, that was more prized than they.
For him I languish'd in a foreign clime,
Gray-hair'd with sorrow in my manhood's prime;
Heard on Lavernia Scargill's whispering trees,
And pined by Arno for my lovelier Tees;
Beheld each night my home in a fever'd sleep,
Each morning started from my dream to weep;
Till God, who saw me tried too sorely, gave
The resting place I ask'd, an early grave.
O Thou, whom chance leads to this nameless stone,
From that proud country which was once mine own,
By those white cliffs I never more must see,
By that dear language which I spake like thee,
Forget all feuds, and shed one English tear
O'er English dust. A broken heart lies here.
Lord Macaulay
Royal visits
Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York 1901
George Duke of Cornwall and York, and his duchess, Mary, later King George V and Queen Mary, visited New Zealand in 1901. Prince George, who had been made Duke of York, was eldest surviving son of the king, and so Duke of Cornwall. But he wasn't the eldest son, the Duke of Clarence having died in 1892, and so was never Prince of Wales.
The visit occurred shortly after death of Victoria, and the Royal Family were still in mourning. But the imperial tour of which this country formed a part had been planned to show appreciation for the support given during Boer War, and it was decided that it must proceed. In the course of the tour the royal couple travelled 5,000 miles, and received 544 addresses.
In Auckland, the Mayor, Dr (later Sir) Logan Campbell, presented Cornwall Park as a gift to people of Auckland to commemorate the visit of the Duke of Cornwall. There was a military review, and the couple opened Queen Victoria School in Parnell, now unfortunately closed.
While at Rotorua they received a Maori welcome, including the presentation of gifts of greenstone weapons, whalebone meres, wooden taiahas. There were also visits to Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin, Timaru, and many short stops.
Royal Residences past and present
Sunninghill Park
An estate of some 665 acres lying between Ascot and the southern boundary of Windsor Great Park was purchased by the Crown Estate Commissioners in 1945 from the late Mr Philip Hill. The main house was made available to The Queen, as Princess Elizabeth, and the Duke of Edinburgh after their marriage in 1947, but was burned down before they would occupy it. The site was considered for a new home for Princess Margaret in mid-1960s, but nothing as done then.
The walled garden of some five acres was purchased on behalf of The Queen from the Crown Estate Commissioners in 1988, and in the following year building work began on the two-storey red brick house completed in 1990, which is the home of the Duke and Duchess of York.
The architect responsible was Sir James Dunbar-Nasmith, Balmoral Estate Architect and Professor and Head of the Department of Architecture at Heriot-Watt University.
The house has six reception rooms, 12 bedrooms, and 12 bathrooms, and compares in size to the larger country houses build since the Second World War. Sunninghill Park was the first new-built royal home since Bagshot Park was built 1879 for Arthur Duke of Connaught.
Tower of London
The Ancient Palace and Fortress of Her Majesty's Tower of London, one of the best-known buildings in the world, was also a royal residence for some six hundred years.
In the course of its long history it has been a State Prison 1100-1820 (and during the First and Second World Wars housed enemy prisoners including Rudolph Hess in 1941), a Royal Menagerie 1235-1834, the Record Office 1325-1851, the Board of Ordnance 1414-1855, the Royal Mint 1278-1812, and even the Royal Observatory for a time in 1675.
The Royal Armouries, though its headquarters has now relocated to Leeds, remains a major attraction. The Tower of London has been host to the Crown Jewels from 1255, and retains a small military presence.
The castle, commonly called the Tower of London- presumably after its principal building, the distinctive White Tower, still houses the Crown Jewels and a small army garrison. Field Marshal Lord Inge, GCB, 158th Constable and Governor of the Tower has the right of direct access to The Queen.
As the Constable has been non-resident since the time of the first Elizabeth, and unpaid since 1865, actual day-to-day control is in the hands of the Major and Resident Governor, currently Major-General Geoffrey Field, CB OBE, who lives in The Queen's House. He is also Keeper of the Jewel House.
There are many points of architectural and historic interest. Though the Yeomen Warders who conduct tours of the Tower have helped to promote darker aspects of its past, for most of its long history the castle has been a peaceful home for its residents, many of whom were members of the garrison.
Although the last battalion left the Tower in the 1950s, the Tower Guard, provided by a platoon of foot guards from the Household Division, is still responsible for the immediate security of the Tower. It is housed in the Waterloo Block, built in 1845 on the site of an armoury which had been destroyed by fire.
There is also a Royal Logistics Corps (formerly Royal Army Ordnance Corps) Small Arms Depot in Brass Mount, one of the turrets on the northern wall of the castle.
Buildings of interest within the curtain walls include the Chapel Royal of St Peter ad Vincula. The White Tower itself, dating from the eleventh century, contains the Chapel of St John the Evangelist.
The present body of Yeomen Warders or Waiters of the Tower were formed in 1485. In 1550 they became extraordinary Yeomen of the Guard. They were traditionally responsible for guarding prisoners, and attending gates. They are still responsible for the security of the Tower and its visitors, having control of the gates, the wharf, and all areas open to the public except the Jewel House and the Royal Armouries.
The Yeomen Warders are recruited from army, Royal Marines, and RAF warrant officers (exceptionally staff sergeants and flight sergeants are appointed) under 55 years, with 22 years service. Until recently they were appointed Special Constables of Metropolitan Police.
All Yeomen Warders live within Tower, and wear a full dress uniform which is distinguished from that of the Yeomen of the Guard lacking the cross-belt of the royal bodyguard. In 1992 Patrick Nolan a New Zealand Army sergeant major, was appointed to the 40-strong body. He was the first warden not to have been recruited from the British armed forces since the mid-nineteenth century.
Not only is the Tower of London a major tourist attraction (there are more than two million visitors a year, 80% from abroad), it is also a living community. Some 50 families- 150 individuals, live within the walls of the Tower. Residents- and their guests, must abide by the garrison regulations, and the list of passwords, required for entry and exit out of normal hours, is signed by The Queen.
Book Review
Who's Buried Where in England, by Douglas Greenwood
A new, extensively revised and totally up-to-date edition of the wide-ranging guide to the English burial places of over 350 prominent historical and royal figures, including Diana, Princess of Wales, with a brief biography of each, 87 illustrations and a useful index by county of all the graves mentioned.
"Boadicea (dc 60-61 AD) Under Platform 10, King's Cross Station, London)" is one of the fascinating entries in this unique book which also explains briefly the reasons why and how her remains lie there. There is no doubt that the final resting places of illustrious men and women, in this case those who have played a prominent part in England's history, exercise a mysterious attraction to the traveller. This book encompasses a wealth of fascinating and often little known burial sites of over 350 prominent figures in English history.
The book is divided into 8 sections:
1. Sovereigns; 2. Royal Consorts and Nobles; 3. Statesmen, Politicians and Warriors; 4. Churchmen, Philosophers, Lawyers and Scholars; 5. Scientists, Doctors, Businessmen, Engineers, and Industrialists; 6. Authors, Playwrights, and Poets; 7, Actors, Artists, and Musicians; 8. Explorers, Sportsmen, Reformers, Outlaws, Heroines, Criminals, and Miscellaneous.
The book contains an invaluable geographical county-by-county check list to inform the traveller of grave locations in any particular area of interest.