Dear Antoine, Thank you for your kind words. Membership in one of the Livery Companies is occasionally granted to exceptional national figures, most often members of the Royal Family. Churchill had no responsibilities or duties in connection with the Mercers Many years ago I compiled a list of Churchill's London-related honours and his City connections, if you are interested in this esoteric subject you may be read it here: http://bloggingyoungfogey.blogspot.co.uk/2007/05/churchills-london-honours.html Interestingly, it was as an Honorary Bencher of Gray's Inn (one of London's historic Inns of Courts) that Churchill first met Roosevelt in 1918 (Roosevelt was also an Honorary Bencher). Alas, records suggest that their first meeting did not go well -- and certainly carried no suggestion of their future relationship. R.===============================Rafe Heydel-Mankoo's new book: A London Peculiar: The London You Missed, a guide to the hidden gems of London, will be published in March 2015. http://www.waterstones.com/waterstonesweb/products/rafe+heydel-mankoo/london+peculiar/11569807/
> From: churchillchat@googlegroups.com > To: churchillchat@googlegroups.com > Subject: [ChurchillChat] Re: "The gentlemen dressed in red " > Date: Sat, 31 Jan 2015 22:43:09 +0100 > > Dear Rafal, > > I am in awe before your exceptionally detailed answer on "the gentlemen > dressed in red " - many thanks. > > I did not know that "Sir Winston was a member of the Worshipful Company of > Mercers" - in what capacity, I wonder ? > > The Chat is a magnificently useful source of information for all > Churchillians - as your answer proves once more. > > No doubt other Members will provide us with an equally informative answer on > the two girls. > > Best wishes, > > A.C. > ========= > > From: Rafal Heydel-Mankoo > Sent: Saturday, January 31, 2015 10:12 PM > To: churchillchat@googlegroups.com > Subject: RE: [ChurchillChat] Westminster Abbey's Churchill wreathlaying > ceremony - Order of Service > > Dear Antoine, > > I too wondered about the descent of the young girls. Unfortunately, I am now > in the country and without access to any of my > reference works -- and the Internet does not seem to yield any answers. If no > one else replies in the interim, I shall check when > I return to London. > > The gentlemen dressed in red were members of the Company of Watermen and > Lightermen. The Bargemaster of the Company stood at the > bow of the Havengore for the procession in 1965. > > > The Company is an ancient guild of the City of London and is almost identical > to the City's famous Livery Companies except for the > fact that it (along with the Parish Clerks' Company) never received a grant > of "Livery" (a fact of which it is very proud). > > Historically the Company was responsible for licensing Thames Watermen > (watermen transported people on the river, lightermen > transported goods) but is perhaps best known today for the annual Dogget's > Coat & Badge Race, the world's oldest rowing race (and > allegedly the oldest annual sporting event in the world). > > To bring this more directly back to Churchill, Sir Winston was a member of > the Worshipful Company of Mercers (the senior livery > company in the City). > > Best, > > R. > > > > From: churchillchat@googlegroups.com > > To: churchillchat@googlegroups.com > > Subject: Re: [ChurchillChat] Westminster Abbey's Churchill wreathlaying > > ceremony - Order of Service > > Date: Sat, 31 Jan 2015 20:47:37 +0100 > > > > Dear Rafal, > > > > Many thanks for the link - which I duly followed. > > > > I was intrigued by the allusion to WSC's descendants : > > > > "Flowers were laid on the memorial stone commemorating Sir Winston > > Churchill in the Nave by John Winston Churchill, > > great-great-grandson; Iona Pite, great-great-granddaughter; and Christable > > Fraser, great-great-granddaughter." > > > > I think I can identify "John Winston Churchill" as the current Randolph's > > son. But what of the two girls ? Who are they ? > > > > On a different subject : > > > > Who were the men in red with white stockings on the fore deck of the > > Havengore yesterday ? > > > > Best wishes, > > > > A.C. > > > > Antoine CAPET, FRHistS > > Professor emeritus of British Studies > > University of Rouen > > 76821 Mont-Saint-Aignan > > France > > antoine.ca...@univ-rouen.fr > > > > 'Britain since 1914' Section Editor > > Royal Historical Society Bibliography > > > > Reviews Editor of CERCLES > > http://www.cercles.com/review/reviews.html > > =============== > > > > From: Rafal Heydel-Mankoo > > Sent: Saturday, January 31, 2015 8:18 PM > > To: churchillchat@googlegroups.com > > Subject: [ChurchillChat] Westminster Abbey's Churchill wreathlaying > > ceremony - Order of Service > > > > For those who were unable to attend yesterday's special wreath-laying > > ceremony at the Churchill memorial in Westminster Abbey, a > > PDF of the Order of Service is now available online via the Abbey website: > > http://www.westminster-abbey.org/press/news/2015/january/sir-winston-churchill-remembered > > > > Direct link: > > http://www.westminster-abbey.org/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/88855/32507-Churchill-Wreath-Laying-Service.pdf > > > > > > -- > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > > "ChurchillChat" group. > > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > > email to churchillchat+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > > To post to this group, send email to churchillchat@googlegroups.com. > > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/churchillchat. > > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > > > > -- > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > > "ChurchillChat" group. > > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > > email to churchillchat+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > > To post to this group, send email to churchillchat@googlegroups.com. > > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/churchillchat. > > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "ChurchillChat" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to churchillchat+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to churchillchat@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/churchillchat. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "ChurchillChat" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to churchillchat+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to churchillchat@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/churchillchat. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "ChurchillChat" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to churchillchat+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to churchillchat@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/churchillchat. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
