King reunites with old Royal Navy shipmates for trip down ‘memory sea-lane'
The special private reception, staged for the King's fellow sailors, was staged following a personal request from Charles, who funded the event himself.
The 76-year-old monarch, who served in the Royal Navy between 1971 and 1976, was said to be 'greatly looking forward' to the catch-up with his former comrades and has been 'grateful for their continued loyalty, laughter and support' over the years.
An aide to the King said: 'His Majesty was greatly looking forward to seeing his old shipmates and no doubt sharing a few salty tales on the trip down memory sea-lane.
'He is most grateful for their continued loyalty, laughter and support over the decades, and looked forward to hearing where life's journeys had taken them all.'
Some 400 guests gathered with the King, who is now Head of the Armed Forces, in the royal residence, including his former mates, and their partners, from HM Ships Bronington, Jupiter, Norfolk, Hermione, Minerva, Hermes, Dryad, Fox, and the Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth.
After passing out at RAF Cranwell, the young Prince of Wales began his naval career as a 22-year-old acting sub-lieutenant when he joined an accelerated graduates course at Britannia Royal Naval College in 1971.
Two months later, he was posted to the guided missile destroyer HMS Norfolk, and then to the frigates HMS Minerva and HMS Jupiter.
In 1974, the future King qualified as a helicopter pilot, and he flew with 845 Naval Air Squadron from the commando aircraft carrier HMS Hermes.
In 1976, Charles took on his final post with the Royal Navy, becoming the Commanding Officer of Ton-class minesweeper HMS Bronington.
His active naval career ended in December 1976, with the rank of Commander.
Fellow aviators drawn from 845 Naval Air Squadron and across the Fleet Air Arm were also among the guests, as were contingents from HMY Britannia and the King's Navy-related patronages, The White Ensign Association, The Royal Navy Club of 1765 and 1785, The Royal Naval Benevolent Trust and the Association of Royal Naval Officers.
Charles set up his youth charity, The King's Trust, formerly known as The Prince's Trust, with his Navy severance pay nearly 50 years ago, and the King's aide said the reception was 'a timely opportunity to reflect on what great things have sprung from those formative years'.
No media were present for the private get-together.
The aide said: 'As we approach the 50th anniversary of The King's Trust, which was initially funded with His Majesty's £7,400 severance pay from the Navy, it was a timely opportunity to reflect on what great things have sprung from those formative years – including lifelong friendships and a continued commitment to public service.'
Charles's shipmates have previously reflected on his seafaring days.
Former clearance diver Petty Officer John Friar, who served on HMS Bronington, said the-then Lieutenant Wales was 'without doubt, the best ship handler by far'.
He added: 'Believe me, if he had been rubbish, I would say so.
'He was not a good sailor in that he got very seasick, but then again, so did Nelson.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
14 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
After Palisades fire, Eames House reopens with a surprise: new access to a private space
On the second harrowing night of the Palisades fire in January, the security cameras surrounding the Eames House went dark. 'It was a long night,' said Eames Demetrios, grandson of designers Charles and Ray Eames and chairman of the board for the Charles & Ray Eames Foundation. 'And then later that day the signal came back on.' The house — a midcentury modern landmark designed and built in 1949, also known as Case Study House No. 8 — was still standing. But Demetrios soon went back to worrying. A neighbor who had stayed to battle the blaze with a garden hose reported that a nearby tree had caught fire. 'I thought, 'OK, this is it. It's coming,'' said Eames. But the water-dropping helicopters came first and then — mercifully — the wind died down. The Eames House was saved, but it was covered in soot and sustained a substantial amount of smoke damage. The residence, with its 31,000 historic objects, closed for five months while it underwent extensive cleaning and repairs — the most intensive of which involved hiring a disaster recovery team to hand-wipe the fragile structure while wearing protective gear. The compound finally reopened late last month for tours on an appointment basis — and it unveiled its adjacent studio to the public for the very first time. The two structures are connected by a narrow walkway, and the Eameses often left doors and windows open, creating a natural flow between the spaces. As the creative nerve center of the site, the studio is where the Eameses spent the bulk of their time working on various projects. It will serve as a multipurpose staging ground for exhibitions, workshops and panel discussions, as well as a place for the community to gather and hold events, said Demetrios. This notable change comes with another major announcement: the launch of a new and expanded Charles & Ray Eames Foundation, which unites the cultural and educational programming formerly done by the Eames Office — run by all five of the Eames grandchildren — with the preservation efforts of the Eames House Preservation Foundation. The new foundation's executive director, Adrienne Luce, was in the process of being hired when the fires hit, and she recalled being told before her last interview, 'Look, if the house does not survive, they're still building this new global, international foundation.' Luce said she sees the new foundation as 'the connective tissue between scholars and important collections globally.' Next year she's planning to host a conference or summit in order to gather 'diverse stakeholders from all over the world to advance thinking around the Eames' design legacy' and to hopefully collaborate on future projects. What Luce, Demetrios and the board of directors could not anticipate before the fire was how much this new era of the foundation's — and the house's — existence would be affected by issues of preservation in the face of mounting ecological and climate disasters, as well as the community engagement that became increasingly urgent and necessary in the wake of the fires. Luce said there are plans to offer free admission to first responders as well as to residents of Pacific Palisades and Altadena, which was ravaged by the Eaton fire. With the grounds and studio now open, the foundation has invited the Palisades Library to hold family storytimes and book clubs onsite. It has also hosted a wide variety of community-driven events. Of particular note, the foundation welcomed a gathering for a new nonprofit called Case Study: Adapt, which was co-founded by Dustin Bramell, whose house burned down in the Palisades fire. The organization partnered with Architectural Digest to recruit 10 L.A.-based architecture firms to pair each with one to two families who lost their homes in the fires in order to build inventive houses under 3,000 square feet, surrounded by fire-safe landscaping. This, of course, mirrors how the Eames House was built. The original Case Study homes were commissioned by Arts & Architecture magazine in the wake of World War II to spark architectural innovation by challenging architects to utilize new materials and technologies to design progressive — but modest — homes in Southern California. The Eames House is a raised steel-and-glass structure built into a hillside on the edge of a sun-dappled meadow in a eucalyptus grove on North Chautauqua Boulevard, with a view of the Pacific Ocean. The husband and wife duo — architect Charles and painter Ray — approached the project with the holistic, multidisciplinary thinking that they put into all their design work. 'Charles and Ray really felt that the best design addresses real human need,' noted Luce, which is perhaps why their most famous creations are the Eames lounge and dining chairs. But the pair also excelled at photography, film, graphic design and even whimsical toys and sculptures. In 1957 they created the so-called Solar Do-Nothing Machine, which harnessed solar energy to power an aluminum toy that joyously whirled and spun. They made short films about many of their projects. Demetrios is particularly fond of 'Toccata for Toy Trains,' which was created in 1957 and inspired by a toy locomotive gifted to the couple by director and friend Billy Wilder. The film features footage of toy trains running on a track with music by Elmer Bernstein, who frequently collaborated with the couple on their movies. Demetrios pulled up the video on YouTube. Charles narrates the film in a calm voice tinged with the comforting fuzz of an old recording. 'Most of the trains we have used are old. Some are quite old. The reason for this is perhaps in the more recent years, we seem to have lost the knack of making real toys,' he says. 'Most old ones have a direct and unembarrassed manner that give us a special kind of pleasure, a pleasure different from the admiration we may feel for the perfect little copy of the real thing. In a good old toy, there is apt to be nothing self-conscious about the use of materials. What is wood, is wood. What is tin, is tin. What is cast, is beautifully cast.' That, declared Demetrios, closing out of the video, 'is the most Eamesian narration ever.' The idea raised by the film, he said, is the honest use of materials. 'That's why they were able to not be too fussy about the past, while at the same time loving it and still embracing the future,' he said. 'I mean, they made the first plastic chair. They made the first molded plywood chair. They were the first to use aluminum in a certain way.' The new foundation seeks to build on the depth and breath of Charles and Ray Eames' multidisciplinary legacy — and the technically stunning and deeply beautiful home they built. Plus, the couple's ideas about sustainability — preserving natural landscapes and integrating them into their designs, rather than razing or altering them — have never been more resonant. 'One of the unique things about this place is that the grounds are authentic. Think the contents are authentic. The structure is authentic. The landscape's authentic,' said Demetrios. 'And important people did important work here.' The Eames House is one of only two heritage sites in North America, along with the Salk Institute in San Diego, that the Getty Conservation Institute has worked with to create a comprehensive preservation plan for the next century — and that work, which is compiled in an extensive book, became crucial to the restoration process after the fire. 'There's been a lot of rigorous scholarly studies and thinking behind all of the different conservation aspects of the site,' said Luce. The Eames House has achieved a level of international renown reserved for some of the world's most revered historic destinations. The scholar who devised the climate control plan for the house did the same thing for King Tut's tomb.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Charity wrongfully dismissed naturalist
An employment tribunal has ruled that a charity wrongfully dismissed its former conservation officer. Nigel Middleton worked for the Hawk and Owl Trust (HOT) for more than two decades and helped develop the Sculthorpe Moor Nature Reserve which opened in 2003. Mr Middleton, who has appeared on BBC Radio as a nature expert, said when he realised his job was at risk, "I was gutted, I was devastated because this wasn't just a job for me". HOT said it recognised that the tribunal found "its processes were unfair" and that the charity would seek to learn lessons from this experience. In November 2022 Mr Middleton raised issues with the charity's trustees about the way in which the organisation was being run by chief operations director, Adrian Blumfield. The concerns covered staff and volunteer treatment and payments being made to employees leaving the charity. Following this, the tribunal heard, Mr Blumfield and the charity trustees decided Mr Middleton "had to go". The judge said what followed was a "woeful tale of unfairness in process". After raising the concerns Mr Middleton was told his performance was being investigated. In February 2023 he was informed the scope and hours of his job were being changed and he was subsequently suspended, pending a disciplinary hearing. In May that year he received an email telling him the disciplinary process was being withdrawn and 20 minutes later he received a second email telling him he was dismissed with immediate effect. While Mr Middleton's unfair dismissal claim was upheld by the judge, his claim that he was acting as a whistleblower by raising his concerns with the trustees was not. Mr Middleton said: "Sculthorpe was something quite special. A place that had a real opening for people and nature. I'm hoping that legacy will still carry on." He said he now plans to work with farmers and landowners to help create new raptor habitats. Dr Andrew McCulloch, the chair of HOT, said: "The Hawk and Owl Trust is disappointed by the findings of the tribunal, particularly given that its actions were guided by independent professional HR advice. "While the tribunal rightly dismissed the whistleblowing allegations as being entirely unfounded and without merit, it upheld the unfair dismissal claim due to procedural shortcomings." The BBC reached out to Mr Blumfield for comment. Following that request a spokesperson for the trust said: "The charity will be reflecting on the judge's comments, seeking to learn lessons from this experience, while ensuring that our focus remains on our critical conservation work and delivery of our charitable objectives." Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. More on this story Redundancies prompt nature reserve protest Watch: Cathedral's first 2025 peregrine hatched Related internet links Hawk and Owl Trust
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Charles Faces Scary News After Camilla Was Seen Crying Over His Cancer Status
King Charles' illness has had everyone concerned since he was first diagnosed over a year ago. It's made preparations for the succession ramp-up. Funeral planning has already gotten underway. And the King has even taken steps to reconcile with his son, Prince Harry. Cancer does put everything in perspective. And now, another big scare has helped provide a different bit of perspective for the King. The King and Queen's country estate, Highgrove House, is reportedly being stalked by a large panther. Yes, that's right, a panther. The animal was seen hunting a fox near the residence, with three dogs frightening it off. More from StyleCaster Harry Just Took His Biggest Step Yet Toward Reconciling With Charles a Day After Camilla Was Seen Crying Over the King's Cancer Status Charles' Secret Friendship With Melania Trump Revealed After Report the King Is 'Very Concerned' by Her Husband's Visit Related: Here's what each royal inherited from Queen Elizabeth Big cat expert Rick Minter, who hosts a podcast about the matter, is said to be investigating these encounters. He said: 'A dog walker near Tetbury watched a black panther cornering a fox at dusk. Her three big dogs were on leads but they rumbled the cat, which rushed away and the fox emerged from its trapped situation and left the area keeping close to the walker and her dogs, seemingly wanting their company for safe escort.' He also shared details of a similar sighting north of Stroud, Gloucestershire. The 'panther' was seen stalking deer in that instance, though Minter noted that the witness 'noticed an orange hue to the animals' otherwise dark fur, suggesting it was a leopard in its black form, which most of the credible 'panther' sightings would seem to be' according to the Daily Star. In addition, Minter has been looking into another sighting by the M5 in May. 'In May, a driver claimed to have seen a black panther lurking in the scrub by the M5 motorway verge in south Gloucestershire.' The scary sighting comes days after a veteran went off-script to salute King Charles during the VJ Day celebration in remarks that were broadcast live on the BBC. 105-year-old Captain Yavar Abbas saluted the king, who was seated beside Queen Camilla, during his remarks. 'I make no apology for briefly going off script to salute my brave king, who is here with his beloved queen, despite the fact that he is under treatment for cancer,' he said. Queen Camilla briefly got emotional, her eyes filling with tears, with one rolling down her cheek as the man spoke about the King battling cancer. The King, meanwhile, was also seen getting briefly emotional, covering his mouth with his hand, while Abbas continued. 'And if it provides any comfort, I've been rid of it for the past 25 years and counting,' he added, as the crowd cheered for King Charles. King Charles might not be as frightened by the panther (or leopard), or indeed by news of his cancer, but there's no doubt he's taken the news of his illness seriously, as there have been recent reports that his senior aides met with senior aides to Prince Harry in what is being reported as the first steps towards reconciliation. That, coupled with reports that Prince Harry reportedly invited his family to the next Invictus Games, that the two might meet as soon as next month and reports that the King has factored not only Prince Harry but Meghan Markle and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, into the heart of his funeral plans, means there's a good chance the two make up sooner rather than later. So, at least there's that. Best of StyleCaster The 26 Best Romantic Comedies to Watch if You Want to Know What Love Feels Like These 'Bachelor' Secrets & Rules Prove What Happens Behind the Scenes Is So Much Juicier BTS's 7 Members Were Discovered in the Most Unconventional Ways Solve the daily Crossword
