Her Majesty Queen Victoria, By the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Queen, Defender of the Faith, Empress of India, Spinner
A recent news article * about Prince Charles giving Camilla two sheep for her 60th birthday prompted a question from a reader of these pages about Camilla, "Don't tell me that next she will be spinning that wool herself. Does she look like a spinner to you?" To which question I respond with the above photo. Royalty are not above the humbler arts.
My understanding is that QV did, indeed, spin for pleasure. So who knows, perhaps Camilla will spin her new sheep's fleece--but those are some pretty little shoes to fill.
*
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20/07/07 - News section
Happy birthday to ewe! Charles gives Camilla two sheep
By REBECCA ENGLISH
She already has several wardrobes of designer clothes and enough diamonds to open her own jeweller's.
So when it comes to finding that special 60th birthday gift for the Duchess of Cornwall, what do you give the woman who has everything?
The answer, so far as her husband Prince Charles is concerned, was simple. A handful of plants for her garden -- and two large, long-haired sheep.
The Mail understands that Camilla is delighted with her gift of a rare-breed ram and ewe, which will be joining the flock at Home Farm, Charles's organic establishment just down the road from Highgrove in Gloucestershire.
The prince, who is patron of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust, probably paid about £300 per animal.
He has already invested £10,000 on two rare fell ponies for the duchess to ride at Birkhall, their Scottish retreat.
"The prince and the duchess are passionate country people who are very concerned about the demise of rarebreeds in this country," said a friend of Camilla.
The sheep are likely to be used for breeding and wool rather than eating, although as the prince is the founder of the Mutton Renaissance Club, the duchess might one day see them served up as Sunday lunch.
The friend said: "The Royal Family have so much already that they don't actually give wildly extravagant presents.
"Their gifts tend to be more thoughtful -- although some may view them as a little bit crazy.
"Camilla is, in fact, absolutely chuffed to bits."
A spokesman for the Rare Breeds Survival Trust added:
"We are delighted to hear that the prince has chosen to support this country's rare breeds.
"It sounds like he may have gone for something like the Lesser Long Wool or possibly even the Cotswold sheep, both of which are under threat of extinction.
"He has already bred a large flock of Hebridean sheep on his farm which, although they have thrived in recent years, are still very much at risk.
"They are big black or grey animals whose fleece is very much in demand by traditional hand spinners and are worth up to £300 each.
"The prince is very passionate about the work we do -- the fell ponies he recently bought were of a very rare bloodline and extremely valuable -- so it is wonderful that he is actively helping to restore Britain's native livestock to their rightful place in our countryside."
According to friends, Charles has also chosen a selection of hardy perennials for his wife -- who is an extremely keen gardener -- to plant in a small plot she has been given at Highgrove.
"Camilla loves to unwind by pottering around in her patch," said one. "The gardens at Highgrove are quite formal and very much the prince's pet project but this is a little plot of land that she can call her own. By all accounts, she is equally green-fingered."
Find this story at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=469806&in_page_id=1770 ©2007 Associated New Media
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