Card of the Day: H.R.H. King George V

Always go to the bathroom when you have a chance.
King George V

Here’s our friend, H.M. King George V again. Of course he’d make a few appearances in this series of cards by Godfrey & Phillips. After all, the cards were produced in 1935 for the Silver Jubilee of the King and Queen Mary.

In this hand-colored photo, the King is seen in his coronation robes wearing the Imperial crown. He looks quite uncomfortable actually. Perhaps he didn’t have a chance to use the facilities. He was a proponent of bathroom breaks.

Following the death of his father, King Edward VII, King George V ascended the throne alongside his beloved wife, the former Princess Mary of Teck. George had enjoyed a few years of relative peace to get used to the idea of being the King. It was not something he’d ever really considered. After all, his brother, Prince Albert Victor, had been the next in line. However, Prince Eddie—as he was called—died while engaged to Mary of Teck, leaving George his intended bride and, also, as the heir to the throne.

The Coronation of King George V
Laurits Regner Tuxen
The Royal Collection

The coronation of King George V and Queen Mary (she had been forbidden to use her original first name—Victoria) took place at Westminster Abbey on June 22, 1911. A celebration ensued with the Festival of Empire in London. Later that year, the King and Queen travelled to India to participate in the Delhi Durbar (their coronation as Emperor and Empress of India). There, they were presented to Indian dignitaries and princes on December 12, 1911.

Here’s an interesting bit of trivia about the Delhi Durbar. Queen Mary—always a fan of jewels—thought it better that they have new crowns for the Durbar. It wouldn’t do, thought Mary, to wear the English crowns for the Indian coronation. Parliament said that such an expense was not needed. Mary, however, disagreed and gently asked their friends to donate jewels to assemble new crowns for the Indian event. She got her way and new crowns were made at no cost to the empire.

King George V and Queen Mary wore the newly-created Imperial Crowns of India at the ceremony. There, they declared the controversial change of the capital of India from Calcutta to Delhi.

Here are some videos of both the Coronation and the Delhi Durbar. Enjoy!