Card of the Day: H.R.H. The Duke of Kent

Look! It’s Georgie! In this, the eighth Godfrey & Phillips Silver Jubilee Card, we see Prince George, the Duke of Kent about seven years before his shocking death in a 1942 plane crash. Just before her son’s death, Queen Mary noted in her diary that “Georgie” finally seemed happy and settled-down. He had married Princess Marina and they had a three children: Edward (now Duke of Kent), Princess Alexandra (later, the Honorable Lady Ogilvy) and Prince Michael of Kent.

Queen Mary had always had a soft spot for her fourth son. She enjoyed his company immensely and particularly liked to go shopping with him because they shared similar tastes. During the Second World War when Queen Mary had been taken away from London to stay at Badminton House in the country (threats against the Queen Dowager were quite real and the government feared that she would be abducted by Nazi forces), Prince George was the only one of her children who could visit her regularly because his position as Air Vice-Marshal allowed him free access to air travel. Together, they would sneak off to visit country antique shops and salvage yards. During her time at Badminton, Queen Mary became fanatical about finding scrap metal and giving it to the “cause.” She would often venture out on her own—sometimes with Prince George—and freely take whatever she could find that could be melted down for the military. The Queen, however, didn’t quite understand country life, and often mistook tools and barrows which had been left out over night (so they could be used again in the morning) as discarded. Prince George would see to it that these items were quietly returned without the Queen’s knowledge before they could be reported stolen.

It was at Badminton—just a day after visiting with her son—that Queen Mary was interrupted in her metal-thievery to answer a phone call. She was told that her precious Georgie had died. By this point in her life, the Queen had endured--with little outward emotion--the deaths of her parents, her fiance, her most beloved aunt, her youngest son, her husband, and her dearest friends. The death of her second youngest son, at first, was too much to bear for the Queen. Instead of sinking into despair, she chose not to believe it. Soon, however, the reality of the tragedy was too clear. In her typical manner, Queen Mary soldiered forward, but in a different way.

The Queen Dowager, while being driven in her deep green Daimler, would often offer rides to young soldiers that she or her driver spotted walking along the country roads. This became a regular event and one that the Queen looked forward to. She would talk honestly with these young men about her family and her life and listen intently—with tears rolling down her cheeks—as these soldiers described the horrors of war, their family troubles and the losses of their friends. Sometimes she’d offer them small gifts or a few coins, but most likely, she’d casually give the young men a cigarette and, together, they would chat and smoke as they drove.

She stated that this was what Georgie would have wanted her to do. I’m sure she was right.

Blake Ritson as The Duke of Kent
BBC

The Duke of Kent has been portrayed several times in popular modern culture.  Most recently, we've seen the Duke portrayed by Blake Ritson in the 2010 continuation of the celebrated Upstairs, Downstairs.  I've also included a fun little video of the children of King George V and Queen Mary. 

The Duke and Duchess of Kent with Prince Edward, 1936
Photo by Marcus Adams
Notice that Queen mary has written "Georgie, Edward, Marina" on thw photo.