HM King Edward VIII

Today is the anniversary of the death of King Edward VIII of the United a Kingdom of Great Britton, Ireland, and of the British Dominions over the seas, Empirer of India. As Monarch he reigned for less than one year after the death of his father King George V and ending with his abdication on December 11th 1936 and therefore the Crown passing to HM King George VI.

HM was forced to abdicate when his government informed him they would resign should he marry his lover Wallice Simpson. Believing that he could not carry out his duties without the help and support of the woman he loved he choose to abdicate the throne.

In King George VI address broadcasted the same day he informed his peoples that he was creating his brother, Prince Edward, Duke of Windor. The title was used from that date even though the Letters Patent were not signed for many months later.

HRH The Duke of Windsor later married Wallice Simpson and therefore she became Duchess of Windsor however the King would not grant her the right to be addressed as Her Royal Highness which is a gift in his personal giving. However withing the Windsors Household it is believed that she was addressed as HRH.

While Prince Edwards actions have been considered to be not in the best interests of the a United Kingdom in relation to his friendships in the 1930's it is important to remember that hindsight is an amazing thing and one should not judge historical events by modern day standards or knowledge.

May the Duke and Duchess of Windsor rest in peace.

Appointment of a new family genelogist

Press release: Borrow-Longain Foundation & the Borrow-Longain family

For immediate release 

Wednesday May 28th 2014

It is with great respect and pride that I announce this morning that Mr William Hall of London, UK, has been appointed as the official Genealogist of the Borrow-Longain Foundation and of the Borrow-Longain Family.

Mr Hall has been carrying out two contracts for Mr Paul Borrow-Longain over the last three months which have resulted in significantly increasing the size of the family tree. As of today there are just over 400 members on the family tree dating back to the 1600's. It is hoped that we can press back further in time while simultaneously expanding on the branches that we already have.

Mr Hall is a professional and experienced genealogist and is taking on other clients.

State Opening of Parliament

Next week, The Queen accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh will attend her 60th State Opening of Parliament to open the final session of this present parliament before the next General Election in the UK. The traditional ceremony, which combines all three elements of the British legislature, is the highlight of the ceremonial year for many.

The ceremony itself is centuries old and many of the elements which we see today in the State Opening are those which have their roots in historic events and also traditions which have been established by custom. The State Opening is the only occasion in the year where The Queen wears the Imperial State Crown, made for Queen Victoria in 1838.

Before The Queen and the royal party set off for Parliament, a hostage is taken by The Queen (not personally) from the Houses of Parliament to Buckingham Palace where they’ll stay for the duration of the state opening. This custom is longstanding convention derived from a time when Parliament and the Monarch were on less cordial terms (Parliament famously chopped the head off of King Charles I in 1649), though the hostage is treated well at the Palace and is released upon the safe return of Her Majesty.

Another ceremony which takes place before the royal arrival is the ceremonial searching of the cellars. Thanks to the (thankfully unsuccessful) attempt by Guy Fawkes to blow up Westminster in 1605 with King James inside it during the State Opening of Parliament, The Queen’s personal bodyguard – the Yeoman of the Guard – perform a sweep of the cellars before her arrival.

The next event is the transporting of the royal regalia from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster ahead of The Queen. This includes the Imperial State Crown which she will wear and other state regalia which are carried before Her Majesty. These include the cap of maintenance, originally the lining for a crown given as a gift from Pope and the sword of state, made for Charles II and carried to symbolise Justice and Mercy.

The crown is then taken to the Robing Room in Parliament where it remains until The Queen arrives.

Next is the arrival of The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh, who usually travel in the Australian State Coach. Her Majesty, wearing the George IV State Diadem, will take the 12-minute journey from Buckingham Palace to Westminster escorted by the Household Cavalry. Upon arrival, she will be greeted by the first fanfare from the State Trumpeters at the entrance and the Royal Standard will be raised above the Palace of Westminster to signal The Queen is in residence.

Her Majesty and Prince Philip will then process to the Robing Room where The Queen will put on the crown and the Robe of State before emerging to another fanfare to process to the House of Lords to read the speech. As they do, they will pass a detachment of the Household Cavalry lining the staircase (known as the staircase party), the Household Cavalry are the only troops allowed to draw swords in the Houses of Parliament.

Meanwhile, the House of Commons begins its sitting after prayers in preparation for its part in the ceremonies. The speaker’s arrival in the Commons is another showpiece – shouts of “SPEAKER” are heard throughout the corridors in Parliament as Mr Speaker and his entourage process to the Commons. In the central lobby, the police Inspector on duty will give a shout of “hats off stranger” to those present in advance of the Speaker’s procession.

Once The Queen has arrived in the Upper House, she will say “my Lord pray be seated”. This will then set off a chain of events between various officials in the house. The Lord Great Chamberlain (the Marquess of Cholmondeley) will raise his distinctive white wand of office which is a signal to Black Rod (fully, the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod – who is The Queen’s messenger in Parliament) to go and summon the Commons.

Black Rod will then walk from there to the door of the House of Commons where the door will be slammed in his face as a symbol of the autonomy of the Commons. He will then have to knock three times on the door before the command to “open the door” is given from within.

Once inside the House of Commons, Black Rod will deliver The Queen’s request, saying “Mr Speaker: The Queen commands this honourable house to attend Her Majesty immediately in the House of Peers”. Shortly followed by the informal, yet increasingly customary, one-line joke from Labour MP Dennis Skinner, the MPs will then be led by the Speaker and Black Rod to the bar of the House of Lords to hear The Queen’s Speech.

Once the Lords and Commons are in place, The Queen will begin her speech by saying “My Lords and members of the House of Commons…”

After the 10-minute speech has been delivered, The Queen will conclude by saying “My Lords and members of the House of Commons, I pray that the blessing of Almighty God may rest upon your counsels.”

This will then signal the end of events in the Lords. Members of the House of Commons will return to the Lower House and The Queen will process back to the robing room in preparation to return to Buckingham Palace.

The royal regalia will precede The Queen back to Buckingham Palace in its own carriage where it will be checked before returning to the Tower of London and The Queen will leave with the Duke of Edinburgh back to Buckingham Palace, with her departure heralded by another fanfare and the Royal Standard being lowered for the Union Flag above the Palace of Westminster.

The House of Commons and House of Lords will then be able to initiate their usual business for the final session of Parliament starting with a Debate on The Queen’s Speech where a bill is started in both houses in response to the speech as a symbol of the autonomy of both Houses from the Monarch. The bill is ceremonial only and is never taken forward.

Formula One Teams Lost $500 Million In The Last Three Years

Formula One can't really be seen as a "typical" business driven by increasing revenues, decreasing expenses and maximising profits for their shareholders. Formula One, ever since the start of motor racing, has been far more to do with the dynamics between the driving skills of the driver and the engineering advancements of the cars all working towards their common goal of winning races, driver championships and constructors championships. Over the years we have seen Formula One being "driven" forward by the largest teams such as McLaren, Redbull, and Ferrari. These are the teams with the largest pockets to invest in the very best drivers and team engineers and the only way they are the teams with the largest pockets is because they have a track record of winning significantly and securing a huge amount of corporate sponsorship. That said in recent years we have seen the field change from all or at least mostly large teams to a field with a mixture of the big teams and young teams eager to make something of themselves. Even though these teams might, and often do, lose money year on year they are key to the success of Formula One and the big teams as they are the proving ground for young drivers entering the paddock. So should teams be limited to a regulated budget? My answer would be no! You should not put a limit on scientific and engineering advancements! We often see the smaller teams surprising us as nothing beats the potential of geniuses independent of access to capital.

Air Training Corp: A great start in life

The Air Training Corp of the Royal Air Force is a military (uniformed) cadet organisation within the United Kingdom formed by Royal Warrant signed by HM King George VI on February 5th 1941, which happens to be my birthday though not year, converting the Air Defense Cadet Corp.

I served in 2443 (Okehampton) Squadron  from 1993 till 1998 when I retired to concentrate on my A-Level exams which are required for admission into university. During this time I achieved the highest classification of Staff Cadet (now referred too as Instructor Cadet), the rank of senior non-commissioned officer, trained to fly both powered and glider aircraft of the RAF fleet, trained to shoot both the .22 rifle and the L98A1 semi-automatic assault rifle achieving both ATC marksmen and RAF marksmen status, attended national camps on active RAF bases around the United Kingdom, trained for and took part in the RAF Ten Tors, attended both Jr and Sn NCO courses, represented the Corp, Wing and Sqn at a wide range of events and last but not least served my local community with honour.

It is my personal belief that military cadet organisations such as the Air Training Corp, the Combined Cadet Forces, the Army Cadet Force and the Royal Navy Sea Cadets is the best way for teenage boys and girls to be taught discipline, citizenship, community service as well as a wealth of skills that will be useful to them in either military or civilian adult life. It is also an opportunity to make lifelong friends whom you can depend on in good times and bad.

Being a serving member of the ATC opened my eyes to all the opportunities that are available to those who want to dedicate their life's to achieving them. It also installed in me a strong belief in God, Queen, Country and Flag of the United Kingdom. I would recommend the ATC to anyone.

The ATC organisation is headed up by the Hon. Air Commodore-in-Chief HRH The Prince Phillip Duke of Edinburgh and on a day-to-day basis by an Air Commodore of the Royal Air Force Reserve who currently is Air Commodore Dawn McCafferty and under her some 10,000 staff, 5,000 civilian committee members and 41,000 uniformed cadets aged between 13-20.

For more information I would direct anyone to the official Air Training Corps website or your local Wing / Sqn.

Privy Council of the United Kingdom

Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign in the United Kingdom. Its membership is mostly made up of senior politicians who are (or have been) members of either the House of Commons or the House of Lords.

The Privy Council, the modern-day successor to the Privy Council of England and the Privy Council of Scotland, was formerly a powerful institution, but its policy decisions are now exclusively in the hands of one of its committees, theCabinet. The Council formally advises the Sovereign on the exercise of theRoyal Prerogative, and together (as the Queen-in-Council) they issue executive instruments known as Orders in Council, which among other things are used to make Regulations. The Council by itself also has a delegated authority to issueOrders of Council, which are mostly used to regulate certain public institutions. The Council also advises the Sovereign on the issuing of Royal Charters, which are used to grant special status to incorporated bodies, and city or borough status to local authorities.

The Witenagemot was an early equivalent to the Privy Council. During the reigns of the Norman monarchs, the English Crown was advised by a royal court or Curia Regis, which consisted of magnates, ecclesiastics and high officials. The body originally concerned itself with advising the Sovereign on legislation, administration and justice. Later, different bodies assuming distinct functions evolved from the court. The courts of law took over the business of dispensing justice, while Parliament became the supreme legislature of the kingdom. Nevertheless, the Council retained the power to hear legal disputes, either in the first instance or on appeal. Furthermore, laws made by the Sovereign on the advice of the Council, rather than on the advice of Parliament, were accepted as valid. Powerful Sovereigns often used the body to circumvent the courts and Parliament. For example, a committee of the Council—which later became the Court of the Star Chamber—was during the fifteenth century permitted to inflict any punishment except death, without being bound by normal court procedure.  DuringHenry VIII's reign, the Sovereign, on the advice of the Council, was allowed to enact laws by mere proclamation. The legislative pre-eminence of Parliament was not restored until after Henry VIII's death. Though the royal Council retained legislative and judicial responsibilities, it became a primarily administrative body.  The Council consisted of forty members in 1553,  but the Sovereign relied on a smaller committee, which later evolved into the modern Cabinet.

By the end of the English Civil War, the monarchy, House of Lords and Privy Council were abolished. The remaining house of Parliament, the House of Commons of England, instituted a Council of State to execute laws and to direct administrative policy. The forty-one members of the Council were elected by the Commons; the body was headed by Oliver Cromwell, the de facto military dictator of the nation. In 1653, however, Cromwell became Lord Protector, and the Council was reduced to between thirteen and twenty-one members, all elected by the Commons. In 1657, the Commons granted Cromwell even greater powers, some of which were reminiscent of those enjoyed by monarchs. The Council became known as the Protector's Privy Council; its members were appointed by the Lord Protector, subject to Parliament's approval.

In 1659, shortly before the restoration of the monarchy, the Protector's Council was abolished. Charles II restored the royal Privy Council, but he, like previous Stuart monarchs, chose to rely on a small committee of advisers.Under George I even more power passed to this committee. It now began to meet in the absence of the Sovereign, communicating its decisions to him after the fact. Thus, the English Privy Council, as a whole, ceased to be a body of important confidential advisers to the Sovereign; the role passed to a committee of the Council, now known as the Cabinet.

It was formerly regarded by the Privy Council as criminal, and possibly treasonous, to disclose the oath administered to Privy Counsellors as they take office. However, the oath was officially made public in a written parliamentary answer in 1998, as follows: 

You do swear by Almighty God to be a true and faithful Servant unto the Queen's Majesty, as one of Her Majesty's Privy Council. You will not know or understand of any manner of thing to be attempted, done, or spoken against Her Majesty's Person, Honour, Crown, or Dignity Royal, but you will lett and withstand the same to the uttermost of your Power, and either cause it to be revealed to Her Majesty Herself, or to such of Her Privy Council as shall advertise Her Majesty of the same. You will, in all things to be moved, treated, and debated in Council, faithfully and truly declare your Mind and Opinion, according to your Heart and Conscience; and will keep secret all Matters committed and revealed unto you, or that shall be treated of secretly in Council. And if any of the said Treaties or Counsels shall touch any of the Counsellors, you will not reveal it unto him, but will keep the same until such time as, by the Consent of Her Majesty, or of the Council, Publication shall be made thereof. You will to your uttermost bear Faith and Allegiance unto the Queen's Majesty; and will assist and defend all Jurisdictions, Pre-eminences, and Authorities, granted to Her Majesty, and annexed to the Crown by Acts of Parliament, or otherwise, against all Foreign Princes, Persons, Prelates, States, or Potentates. And generally in all things you will do as a faithful and true Servant ought to do to Her Majesty. So help you God.^[40]

Privy Counsellors can choose to affirm their allegiance in similar terms if they prefer not to take a religious oath.

Queen-in-Parliament

The Queen-in-Parliament (or, during the reign of a male monarch, King-in-Parliament), sometimes referred to as the Crown-in-Parliament or, more fully, in the United Kingdom, as the King-in-Parliament under God is a technical term of constitutional law in the Commonwealth realms that refers to the Crown in its legislative role, acting with the advice and consent of the lower house and upper house in the case of a bicameral parliament, or the legislature in the case of aunicameral parliament. Bills passed by the houses are sent to the sovereign, or governor-general, lieutenant-governor, or governor as her representative, for Royal Assent, which, once granted, makes the bill into law; these primary acts of legislation are known as acts of parliament. An act may also provide for secondary legislation, which can be made by the Crown, subject to the simple approval, or the lack of disapproval, of parliament.

The concept of the Crown as a part of parliament is related to the idea of the fusion of powers, meaning that the executive branch and legislative branch of government are fused together. This is a key concept of the Westminster system of government, developed in England and used across the Commonwealth and beyond. It is in contradistinction to the idea of theseparation of powers. The specific language of "the Crown", "the King", or "the Queen" in parliament used in the Commonwealth realms also alludes to the constitutional theory that ultimate authority or sovereignty rests with the monarch, but is delegated to elected and/or appointed officials. In federal realms of the Commonwealth, the concept of the Crown-in-the-legislature only applies to those units which are considered separate divisions of the monarchy, sovereign within their own sphere, such Australian states or the Canadian provinces; this is the basis of the legal distinction between a province and a territory in Canada, for example. The legislature of a territory does not receive its authority directly from the monarch, being instead delegated by the federal parliament. Similarly, with city councils and other local governments in the Commonwealth, the idea of the Crown-in-council is not used, as the authority of local governments is derived from a charter or act that can be unilaterally amended by a higher level of government.

Because of the sovereign's place in the enactment of laws, the enacting clause of acts of parliament may mention him or her, as well as the other one or two bodies of parliament. For example, British acts of parliament will start with: "BE IT ENACTED by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows..." The phrasing, however, is different when the bill is passed under the provisions of the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949, without the consent of the House of Lords. Similarly,Canadian acts of parliament typically contain the following enacting clause: "NOW, THEREFORE, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows..." Because the Queen remains a part of parliament, the enacting clause does not need to explicitly mention her, as in realms such as Australia and Tuvalu, where the clause is simply "The Parliament of Australia enacts" and "ENACTED by the Parliament of Tuvalu...", respectively. This may represent a distinction between whether parliament or the Queen is the primary legislator, however.

The Scottish Parliament follows a different approach: although its acts require Royal Assent, the concept of Queen-in-Parliament has not been incorporated. Instead of the enacting clause seen in UK acts, acts of the Scottish parliament bear the following text above the long title: "The Bill for this Act of the Scottish Parliament was passed by the Parliament on DATE and received Royal Assent on DATE."

Royal Prerogative

A few weeks ago I used the term "Royal Prerogative" in relation to granting "Achievement of Arms" which is an honour bestowed by the Crown by H.M. College or Arms. A gentlemen was questioning my "right" to bear Arms as I said it was granted under Royal Prerogative instead of saying it was granted by The College or Arms which to him made it sound as if I had not been granted Arms by the College. So is the right to grant honours a Royal Prerogative? The answer is yes and the below proves this. 

Under the British constitution, sweeping executive powers, known as the royal prerogative, are nominally vested in the monarch. In exercising these powers the monarch normally defers to the advice of the prime minister or other ministers. This principle, which can be traced back to the Restoration, was most famously articulated by the Victorian writer Walter Bagehot as "the Queen reigns, but she does not rule". The precise extent of the royal prerogative has never formally been delineated, but in 2004, Her Majesty's Government published some of the powers, in order to be more transparent: 

Domestic powers

• The power to dismiss and appoint a Prime Minister
• The power to dismiss and appoint other ministers
• The power to summon and prorogue Parliament
• The power to grant or refuse Royal Assent to bills (making them valid and law)
• The power to commission officers in the Armed Forces
• The power to command the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom
• The power to appoint members to the Queen's Council
• The power to issue and withdraw passports
• The power to grant Prerogative of mercy (though Capital Punishment is abolished, this power is still used to remedy errors in sentence calculation)
• The power to grant honours
• The power to create corporations by Royal Charter
• The power to appoint bishops and archbishops of the Church of England.

Foreign powers

• The power to ratify and make treaties
• The power to declare War and Peace
• The power to deploy the Armed Forces overseas
• The power to recognise states
• The power to credit and receive diplomats

The most important prerogative still personally exercised by the monarch is the choice of whom to appoint Prime Minister. The most recent occasion when the monarch has had to exercise these powers was in February 1974, when Edward Heath resigned from the position of prime minister after failing to win an overall majority at the General Election or to negotiate a coalition. Queen Elizabeth II appointed Harold Wilson, leader of the Labour Party, as prime minister, exercising her prerogative after extensive consultation with the Privy Council. The Labour Party had the largest number of seats in the House of Commons, but not an overall majority. The 2010 general election also resulted in a hung parliament. After several days of negotiations, between the parties, Queen Elizabeth II invited David Cameron to form a government on the advice of the outgoing prime minister Gordon Brown.

The monarch formerly enjoyed the power to dissolve Parliament (normally on the request of the prime minister). However, this power was explicitly removed from the monarch by the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011. The last monarch to dismiss a prime minister who had not suffered a defeat on a motion of confidence in the House of Commons, or to appoint a prime minister who clearly did not enjoy a majority in that House, was William IV who in 1834 dismissed the Government of Lord Melbourne, replacing him with Robert Peel (The Duke of Wellington briefly heading a caretaker ministry as Peel was on holiday in Italy at the time). Peel resigned after failing to win the 1835 General Election — prior to the 1832 Reform Act, which reduced the number of rotten and pocket boroughs, it would have been very unusual for a government with Royal backing to be defeated in this way.

Demise of the Crown

The demise of the Crown is the legal term for the end of a reign of a King, Queen or Empire or the abdication of one of those three people. 

The term was coined in English law to signify the immediate transfer (Law French demise, "sending down [the line of succession]," from Latin demiss-[gender ending], the perfect participle of demittere, having the same meaning), of sovereignty and royal prerogatives to the late king or queen's successor without interregnum. By confusion, "demise" is sometimes interpreted as referring to the death of the Sovereign rather than to the transfer of the Crown. This erroneous meaning is undermined by the principle in constitutional law of the continuity of the monarchy, as expressed in the maxim "the Crown never dies".

Upon the Crown's demise, in the United Kingdom a meeting of the Accession Council is held in London in order to give directions for the proclamation of the late monarch's successor. This meeting is to arrange for the formalities; neither the identity of the next monarch nor their accession to the throne depends on it. The proclamation takes place at St James's Palace, Charing Cross, within the City Boundary at Temple Bar, and the Royal Exchange. In Canada the Queen's Privy Council for Canada meets in Ottawa to perform the same functions.

Traditionally, the demise of the Crown resulted in the immediate dissolution of Parliament. This requirement was abolished throughout the British Empire by the Representation of the People Act 1867. A demise of the Crown no longer brings a session or a Parliament to an end. The Succession to the Crown Act 1707 provides that in the event of the demise of the Crown, Parliament, if adjourned or prorogued, must meet as soon as possible and if sitting must immediately proceed to act without any summons in the usual form. 

In the UK, under the Representation of the People Act 1985, if the demise of the Crown occurs during a general election, the vote is postponed by fourteen days.

At the first meeting of Parliament under a new monarch there is no speech from the Throne. All Members of Parliament and members of the House of Lords take an oath of allegiance to the new Sovereign. The House votes an Address to the Crown in response to the official notification of the previous monarch's demise, expressing condolences upon the death of the previous monarch and loyalty to his or her successor.

All civil service and Crown offices also, traditionally, became vacant upon the demise of the Crown. As all staff were employees of the monarch, their employment would end upon the death of the monarch thus all civil servants would have to be rehired and swear out oaths to the new king or queen. The Demise of the Crown Act 1901 in the UK, and similar legislation in otherCommonwealth realms, now makes this process unnecessary – they are all employees of the Crown, rather than any particular Sovereign.

The coronation of the new monarch usually occurs within eighteen months, but is not necessary to secure the succession.

Accession Council

With 2015 being the year in which H.M. Queen Elizabeth II becomes the longest service head of state in the history of the United Kingdom, England and Scotland I wanted to refresh my knowledge on the activities which started our Soverign Lady's time as our Queen.

As you will all know the moment King George VI stopped breathing and was called to God's side HRH The Princess Elizabeth became Queen Elizabeth II. However there are a number of formal events which take place in those important few hours and days of which the first is the Accession Council.

The Accession Council is made up of  the former Monarchs Privy Councillors, members of the House of Lords, The Lord Mayor of the City of London, the Aldermen of the City of London and the High Commissionairs of some of the Commonwealth Countries.

The purpose of the Accession Council is to meet at St. James's Palace and proclaim the new Monarch and receive a religious oath from the new King / Queen.

It should be noted that the proclamation has no legal authority what so ever as the Crown automatically passes to the Heir Apparent on the death of the Monarch under the terms of the Act of Settlement 1701.

The most recent proclamation was as follows:

Whereas it has pleased Almighty God to call to His Mercy our late Sovereign Lord King George the Sixth of Blessed and Glorious memory, by whose Decease the Crown is solely and rightfully come to the High and Mighty Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary:
WE, therefore, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal of this Realm, being here assisted with these His late Majesty's Privy Council, with representatives of other Members of the Commonwealth, with other Principal Gentlemen of Quality, with the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Citizens of London, do now hereby with one voice and Consent of Tongue and Heart publish and proclaim that the High and Mighty Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary is now, by the death of our late Sovereign of happy memory, become Queen Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God Queen of this Realm and of all Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith, to whom Her lieges do acknowledge all Faith and constant Obedience with hearty and humble Affection, beseeching God by whom Kings and Queens do reign, to bless the Royal Princess Elizabeth the Second with long and happy Years to reign over us.

The oath which the new Monarch takes is as follows:

And further Her Majesty with Advice aforesaid expressly declares and statutes that none of the Subjects of this Kingdom[Scotland] shall be liable to but all and every one of them for ever free of any Oath Test or Subscription within this Kingdom contrary to or inconsistent with the foresaid true Protestant Religion and Presbyterian Church Government Worship and Discipline as above established and that the same within the Bounds of this Church and Kingdom shall never be imposed upon or required of them in any sort And lastly that after the decease of Her present Majesty (whom God long preserve) the Soveraign succeeding to Her in the Royal Government of the Kingdom of Great Britain shall in all time coming at His or Her Accession to the Crown swear and subscribe that they shall inviolably maintain and preserve the foresaid Settlement of the true Protestant Religion with the Government Worship Discipline right and Privileges of this Church as above established by the Laws of this Kingdom in Prosecution of the Claim of Right. 

While "The King is dead. Long live the King" is commonly believed to be part of the official text of the Proclamation of Accession read out following the decision of the Accession Council as to the rightful heir to the throne, it is in fact only tradition that causes it to be recited immediately after the proclamation is read aloud in many villages and towns.

Heart issues are to be taken serious

As many of Mr Borrow-Longain's friends will remember he suffered a heart attack 4 years ago in 2010 while on a plane between Michigan and Atlantic Canada which forced the plan to make an emergency landing in Toronto. Ten days later he was to fly home after an operation to remove my gallbladder and on medication for my heart.

48 hours ago while trying to sleep after a charity business trip to London UK he started to get pains in his chest as if his heart was about to explode out of his chest and was struggling to breath. Because he hated to cause fuss he did not do the sensible thing and call and ambulance and instead thought resting was the way to go.

In has since been found out that he had abnormalities in his Q-waves on an ECG which has resulted in him being placed on bed rest for a week and has to reduce his level of stress as well as a few other lifestyle changes.

He is doing well and reports that he is just feeling very tired and weak.

He would strongly suggest that anyone having pains in their chests to seek medical attention right away.

Victoria Day 2014

Today is a federal national holiday referred to as Victoria Day. It is the day on which Canada celebrates the birthday of Queen Victoria and the official Canadian holiday of the current Queen.

I wish all my Canadian friends a great holiday.

Queen Maxima of the Netherlands Birthday Message

Today May 18th 2014 is the birthday of H.M. Queen Maxima of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Princess of Orange-Nassau. She is the first Queen Consort of the Netherlands since 1890. 

Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 17 May 1971. Queen Máxima is the daughter ofJorge Zorreguieta (born 1928) and his second wife, María del Carmen Cerruti Carricart (born 1944). She has two brothers, a sister and three half-sisters by her father's first wife, Marta López Gil. She is named after her paternal great-grandmother Máxima Bonorino Gonzalez (1874–1965), whose mother Máxima González y de Islas belonged to the family of Justo José de Urquiza († 1870), the first Constitutional President of Argentina.

She studied at Northlands School in Argentina and worked as an investment banker before graduating with a degree inEconomics from the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina in 1995. She subsequently worked for large international finance companies in Argentina, New York, and Brussels.

Through her father, she is a descendant of King Afonso III of Portugal, and other noble families of the Iberian Peninsula. 

Queen Maxima married HRH The Princess of Orange-Nassau on February 2nd 2002 and has had three children to date being the Princess of Orange, Princess Alexia of the Netherlands and Princess Ariane of the Netherlands. 

Below is a picture of her coat of arms and her official standard. 

Quarterly: I and IV azure billety or, a lion with coronet also or armed and langued gules, holding in his dexter paw a sword argent hilted or, and in his sinister seven arrows argent pointed and bound together or, which is of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; II and III or, a horn azure opened and bound gules, which is of the First House of Orange; an inescutcheon or bearing a castle of three towers gules flanked on each side by a poplar tree au naturel, and a river azure flowing from the base, ondoyant to the gate of the castle, which is of the house of Zorreguieta in Argentina.

Do bank branches still matter?

Retail banking has changed on a global scale over the last 10-15 years with a huge push towards online and telephone banking. Not only because it's less time consuming but I believe also because of the way banks now make decisions. In the past spending time to develop a strong relationship with the business bank manager was very worth the time as then your account manager had a far greater understanding of your business, it's unique selling points and requirements. The bank manager can take this all into consideration when accessing the banks willingness to lend funding. Sadly today the bank manager has not authority in most cases and the lending decision is made by a nameless person at the banks regional head office based completely on the application form information and your business plan and the man / woman you met with has close to no involvement... Therefore why spend your time developing a relationship with someone who can't help and who will probably be in another position in a few years? I would argue none.

Prince Arthur Duke of Connaught & Strathearn

His Excellency His Royal Highness The Prince Arthur William Patrick Albert, Duke of Connaught & Strathearn , Earl of Sussex KG, KT, KP, GCB, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, GCVO, GBE,VD, TD. Governor General & Commander-in-Chief of Canada

The 10^th Governor General of Canada since the Canadian Confederation was H.R.H. The Prince Arthur, seventh child and third son of H.M. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg & Gotha. Until World War One he head a number of German titles that were dropped on the orders of the Monarch due to anti-German feelings of the time. The name of the Royal House was also changed to Windsor.

Prince Arthur was born on the 1^st May 1850 and was educated during his early years by private tutors as was normal for members of the Royal Family at the time. He was then educated at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich at the age of 16. Upon graduation he was commissioned as a Lt. in the British army where he served for 40 years taking an active part in operations throughout the British Empire.

In 1911 on the advice of the Prime Minster of the United Kingdom HM King George V appointed him as the 10^th Governor General & Canadian Commander-in-Chief serving in the Vice Regal office until he was replace in 1916 by His Grace The Duke of Devonshire.  

Prince Arthur was sworn into the Vice Regal office in the government building in Quebec and became the first governor general of Canada to be a member of the Royal Family. During his time in office he travelled across the country a number of times with both his wife and daughter with the latter becoming very popular with Canadians of every walk of life. He carried out official duties such as the State Opening of Parliament at which he wear his uniform of a Field Marshall of the British Army and laid the cornerstone of the new government buildings in Ottawa as well as taking part in an official visit to the United States of America at the request of President Taft. During the First World War he was extremely active in supporting the training of recruits and visiting military hospitals as well as donning his Field Marshalls uniform and without informing his ministers went to the training grounds to personally. 

Prince Arthur’s achievement of arms were adopted in 1874 and are blazoned as Quarterly 1st and 4th gules three lions passant guardant in pale or 2nd or a lion rampant gules within a double tressure flory counterflory gules 3rd azure a harp or stringed argent.  His supporters are: Dexter a lion rampant gardant or imperially crowned proper, sinister a unicorn argent, armed, crined and unguled or, gorged with a coronet or composed of crosses patée and fleurs de lis a chain affixed thereto passing between the forelegs and reflexed over the back also or. Overall an inescutcheon of Saxony (for his father) and differenced by a label of three points argent, the central point charged with a George Cross, the points dexter and sinister charged with a Fleur-de-Lis azure.

Prince Arthur was granted a coat of arms with his dukedom, consisting of the escutcheon of thearms of the sovereign in right of the United Kingdom, with a difference of a label argent, of three points, the first and third bearing fleurs-de-lis azure, and the central a cross gules and an inescutcheon of Saxony. In 1917, the inescutcheon was dropped by royal warrant from King George V.

After leaving the Vice Regal office being replaced by the Duke of Devonshire he returned to England and was not appointed to any further significant offices. He did however carry out a significant number of official duties and Royal Visits including one to India where he officially opened the Central Legislative Assembly, Council of State and Chamber of Princes.

Upon the outbreak of the Second World War Prince Arthur returned to military service in the position of Field Marshall where he was seen by the young recruits as a type of grandfather figure and was looked up to by all. He died at the age of 91 at Bagshot Park making him jointly the longest lived of all the children of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert with his sister Princess Louise, Dowager Duchess of Argyll.

During his life Prince Arthur was the Colonel-in-Chief of 7 regiments; Hon Colonel of 9 regiments; Colonel of the Regiment of 2 regiments; Personal aide-de-camps for four Monarch’s; awarded two long-service medals; two campaign medals; 16 British honors and 30 foreign honors.

His Grace Victor Christian William Cavendish

His Grace Victor Christian William Cavendish,

9^th Duke of Devonshire KG, GCMG, GCVO, TD, PC, JP, FRS

The 11^th Governor General of Canada since the Canadian Confederation was His Grace The Duke of Devonshire whom held the Vice Regal office from November 11^th 1916 till August 2^nd 1921.

This Grace was educated initially at the public school Eden College and subsequently at the University of Cambridge. In 1891 his father passed away and the then Victor Cavendish Esq. entered British politics successfully winning his fathers riding unopposed. Upon the death of his uncle he inherited his Dukedom as the 9^th Duke of Devonshire and took his seat in the House of Lords. His Grace held a significant number of government positions before H.M. King George V, on the advise of the British Prime Minister appoint him to the office of Governor General of Canada replacing His Royal Highness The Prince Arthur Duke of Connaught and Strathearn. 

Initially his appointment was seen as controversial however by the time His Grace returned to England he had earned respect for the way that he carried out his Vice Regal duties while in Canada.

As the 9^th Duke of Devonshire his coat of arms were those of the Dukedom which were created for his ancestors on May 12^th 1694, some 320 years age, by TM King William and Queen Mary and are blazoned Sable, three bucks heads cabossed argent. Created for the first Duke of Devonshire William Cavendish and have been in use by every duke to the current day.

The full achievement of arms as displayed (below) are blazoned as: Arms: Sable, 3 stags' (or bucks') heads caboshed (or cabossed). Crest: A serpent nowed proper (or vert). Supporters: On either side, a buck (or stag) wreathed (or gorged) about the neck with a chaplet (or garland) of roses proper—but see note! Motto: Cavendo tutus, Safe through caution. NOTE: The stags' head are sometimes given as attired Or; for example the garlands should be roses alternately argent and azure. At least the 6th duke substituted as a crest a buck statant wreathed as the supporters. 

His Grace was sworn into office on November 11^th 1916 while his appointment was still causing political earthquakes, as the Canadian Prime Minister had not been consulted. In the first year of his tenure he introduced conscription that caused significant issues between English and French Canadians, he had the woman’s suffrage movement that was gaining traction within Canada and then there was the explosion that occurred in Halifax harbor, Nova Scotia. With the victory in 1917 at Vimy Ridge His Grace used this significant victory to generate pride in Canadians and close the gap between English and French Canadians. As a landowner he enjoyed travelling Canada meeting the people from all walks of life and supporting the farming communities from coast to coast. In 1918 he officially visited the United States of America and the invitation of President Wilson and soon after oversaw the first Royal Tour of Canada by HRH The Prince Edward, Prince of Wales. By the time he left office he was well respected by Canadian in general and both Prime Ministers considered him a personal friend. 

Prince Carl Philip of Sweden

Today, May 14th, is the 35th birthday of His Royal Highness The Prince Carl Philip, Duke of Varmland the eldest son of HM King Carl XVI Gustar and Queen Silva of Sweden.

On his birth Prince Carl Philip was the Crown Prince of Sweden and therefore next inline to the crown until later that same year the succession laws within Sweden were changed allowing the first born child of the Monarch to become the heir independent of its sex. Therefore his older sister was named Crown Princess.

HRH The Prince Carl Philip, Duke of Varmland

Santa Marie's found?

On Christmas Day 1492 off the coast of what is now Haiti the flag ship of Christopher Columbus ran aground on rocks during a storm. As Captain-General of the ship and of the expedition he ordered that wood from the ship be taken onto land and used to build a fort. It was his intention to leave members of the crew in situ on the island while Christopher Columbus and the other two ships returned to Spain.

When he returned to the island the fort was found empty and the fort destroyed.

The key goal of this mission was to find a westerly route to Asia instead what was found was North America.

His flag ship called Santa Maria was lost approximately 500 years ago and has remained lost until very recently when a US underwater investigator found what he believed to be the remains of the ship. So far his team has taken measurements and pictures of the site and has been working with the Haitian government to protect the site and to carry out a far more in depth study of the wreak.

It is believed that financial support for further investigation will come from both the Haitian government and the History Channel which is planning to make a television documentary of the find and investigation.

The investigator Barry Clifford has already been proven to find once lost ships as he was the first person to find the wreak of a pirate ship.

Coronation of King George VI

May 12th 1937 was an important date in modern British history for more than one reason. The year before HM King George V died in his bed after a period of illness in the presence of Queen May, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of York.

Moments after the death of King George V his wife bowed too and kiss the ring of her eldest son and now sovereign King Edward VIII, followed by the Duke of York and they both proclaimed "God save the King".

Before the year was out King Edward VIII was "forced" to abdicate the throne in favour of his younger brother due to his love for the American Wallace Simpson. One of the first acts of King a George VI was to ennoble his brother as His Royal Highness The Duke of Windsor.

The plans for the coronation of King Edward VIII were well underway by this time so the decision was made that the coronation of King George VI would occur on the same day - May 12th 1937.

The Coronation was the first in British history to have present an existing crowned Queen at the Coronation of a new King and Queen. HM The Dowager Queen Mary was at Westminster Cathedral to show her support for her son after a rather turbulent year for the British Monarchy.

A few things went astray during the Coronation which makes this one stand out. The Archbishop of Canterbury Cosmo Lang almost placed the crown on the kings head backwards while one assisting bishop stool on the kings train while another one converted up the Oath with his thumb while the King was reading it allowed. Furthermore the Coronation was attended by Crown Prince Michael of Romania in stead of his father King Carol II of Romania.

If the aforementioned differences were not enough this was the first Coronation to be recorded on television cameras and recorded for broadcast on the radio.

The full story about the Royal history during 1936 / 7 is well worth reading in great detail and I would direct you to a range of texts which are listed on Wiki.

This day my thoughts are with the memory of HM King George VI, who died before his time and lead our great country through the Second World War and whom I would have loved to have met, and HM Queen Elizabeth, whom I had the honour of meeting when she was Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. May they rest in peace.

National Day of Honour in Canada

Friday saw the first National Day of Honour held in Canada to remember those solders that have died in the line of duty during the 12 years of the Afghan war and to thank the 40,000 solders from Canada who took an active role in that campaign.

The ceremony took place on Parliament Hill in Ottawa in the presence of the Governor General of Canada and the Prime Minister and was watched by thousands of fellow Canadians and others present during the parade.

Unlike traditional parades this one was without the pomp that one might expect from a National Day in the presence of the Governor General who is the Vommander-in-Chief of the Canadian armed forces. Instead they concentrated on the practical aspect of the work carried out by the military.

After the parade there was a range of static displays showing the equipment and tactics utilised by the military while on operations within Afghanistan.

I personally join with the Right Hon. Stephen Harper Prime Minister of Canada and His Excellency the Right Hon. David Johnson Governor General & Commander-in-Chief of Canada in honouring the service off all of H.M. Canadian armed forces that saw action in the Afghan operations as well as remembering the families of those who gave their lives to make Afghanistan a safer place.

Kate Middleton: not any more.

Ever since the marriage of HRH Prince William of Wales to Kate Middleton the knowledge of the world media and the general public in regards to her real name has really distressed me and actually drives me crazy. She keeps being referred to as Kate Middleton which is totally incorrect. Firstly the Royal Family don't have a surname!

The correct name is as follows:-

Her Royal Highness Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Countess of Strathearn, and Lady Carrickfergus

Please will the media get this one right!

Order of the Bath

Today in Westminster Cathedral HM The Queen joined by HRH The Prince Charles, Prince of Wales invested senior military officers into the Most Honourable Order of the Bath.

The Order was created in the early 1700's to honour the service of senior military officers. The Order has three grades of membership which are in accenting order of priority are Companion of the Order, Knight Commander/ Dame of the Order and finally Knight Grand Cross / Dame Grand Cross with the number of people admitted to each grade limited to 120, 355 and 1925 respectively.

As the Monarch the Queen is the head of the Order with the Prince of Wales being the Grand Master. There are currently a number of other offices within the Order such as the King of Arms which are all held by senior military officers excluding the Dean who is in the Church of England.

It is important to note that the Order of the Bath is currently fourth in line of importance after the Order of the Garter, the Order of the Thistle and the Order of St Patrick which is no longer granted since the creation of the Irish Free State.

Those granted with the status of a Knight, Dame or higher are entitled to be addressed as Sir and Dame as long as they are subjects of the United Kingdom and most other the Queens other Realms. Where an award is granted to a non-resident of these countries they are entitled to the relevant post nominals but not to the title of Knight or Dame.

As with all other Knighthoods their wives are entitled to be addressed as Lady though there is no such system currently in place for a husband of a Dame. That may change in the future.

I congratulate the new members of the Order who were duly invested this morning.