The genealogy of the Royal Family in the last 150 years should be a set question for applicants to the College of Arms.
It is especially baffling as they all changed their titles in 1917, when it was decided to rebrand the German dynasty (Saxe-Coburg-Gotha). The House of Windsor was born and titles such as Milford Haven, Cambridge and Athlone invented. Another significant modernisation in George V’s reign was allowing marriages with British non-royals. So we have him to thank for Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and her daughter. All this and much more is covered in Jane Ridley’s biography: George V, Never a Dull Moment. The only dull moments are the political bits. In those days the King had a greater responsibility in the Prime Minister making department and sometimes had to miss a day’s shooting to find a new PM.
It took a cold week in March on the Dee until he landed his first salmon. When he went to Norway for the coronation of King Haakon VII (formerly Prince Charles of Denmark) things got better – a 28 pound fish but bigger salmon ran in those days. Only in later life did the King start reading, so when he was asked if he might like to send a telegram to Thomas Hardy to celebrate his 70th birthday it was dispatched to Hardy of Alnwick, the maker of his rods.
Shooting took priority over fishing; the latter was only useful because it did not clash with the former. The huge numbers of pheasant and partridge shot have been recorded, not least by the King himself. He was a good shot. Perhaps not so well known is a visit to Nepal during which he shot twelve tigers and two rhinos (with a right and left) in four days. Although the King was not a conservationist he kept a pet parrot called Charlotte at York Cottage. She was allowed to walk on the breakfast table dipping her beak unhygienically into anything she fancied. When she made a mess on the table the King would cover it with a mustard pot.
Jane Ridley covers his life and Queen Mary’s not swerving their short-comings, nor those of their children, with fairness and often a light touch. Her portrait of Queen Mary is revealing. She concludes:
” King George, and his Queen Consort, deserve to be remembered for the dramatic changes his reign helped to bring about. He was an unexpected king, but the way he handled the crises that came at him one after another showed him to be one of the most thoughtful and one of the most successful monarchs in British history. He may have ducked the issue of his immediate successor, but the Crown’s stability in the twenty-first century – and that of Britain’s system of government – surely owes much to him.” (George V, Jane Ridley)