My copy of The Queen’s Gift Book (1915) isn’t in good condition but I didn’t expect much for £2.50, indeed the postage cost more.
I was excited to see my copy is signed by Queen Mary until I discovered it’s a facsimile signature.
Some of the contributors are familiar, some not, at least to me. So far I have only read The Dane’s Breechin’ by Somerville and Ross. Queen Mary served an apprenticeship before she married, helping her mother, the Duchess of Teck, with charity work. At the outbreak of war she threw herself into charity work. A cynic might say she wanted to align herself with the British army and distance herself from her German origins but she did much more than she needed to. Queen Mary’s Needlework Guild supplied clothing to the troops and the poor. In 1919 she founded Queen Mary’s Maternity Home in Hampstead – a novel concept – with the intention that maternity homes and hospitals should be opened across the country. She was a diligent visitor to see for herself what was needed and to be seen by the public. Today all the royal family have roles in the charitable sector; a legacy of Queen Mary’s initiatives.
