Lankan-Royal tie sealed with a gift; a star tortoise
From the family album: J.A. A. Perera (left) meeting the Gloucesters in 1948 and (inset) his diary entry in 1957
Our story last Sunday of the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester who represented the British monarch King George VI at Ceylon’s Independence in February 1948 and the star tortoise from Ceylon that was gifted to their son Prince William (the recalcitrant reptile that ate up all the exotic orchids gifted to the Duchess from Malaya) has a fascinating postscript.
In 1948, the Police officer who was bodyguard to the Gloucesters was J.A.A. ‘Algy’ Perera and his children still have his letters and diaries which tell of a connection that continued beyond the Royal visit.
He must have left a deep impression, because in 1957 when the Gloucesters were back for a night at the Queen’s House in Colombo on their way to Malaya, Algy was invited to meet them.
In his diaries for 1957, in elegant script the Superintendent of Police who was then attached to the CID has written about the reunion with the Royal couple.
“A very pleasant surprise last week when their royal highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester who were on their way to Malaya for Independence, and were staying the night at Queen’s House, sent for me specially to meet them at QH. As Prince William (14) was also in the party I took along a star tortoise for him. They were quite pleased with it and wanted it brought in on their return trip.”
With Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru when he visited Ceylon in 1950
He went to the Katunayake airport to meet the Gloucesters on their return trip with his three sons Adrian, Leo and Gerry, aged 12, 10 and six.
“They (the boys) obtained autographs of the prince and gave him the ‘Star Tortoise’ as our present” Algy had written in his diary entry dated 5.9.57.
The prince was to call the tortoise Tunku (memories of hot Malaya still vivid) but was not allowed to take it to school, so it had to be given to the London Zoo (as Algy was informed by the Duke’s Equerry, Major Michael Hawkins in a letter dated 27th September, 1957 sent from York House, St. James Palace.
News of the tortoise: The letter from the Duke’s Equerry
J.A.A. ‘Algy’ Perera was also bodyguard to Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh when they toured Ceylon in 1954 and to other dignitaries such as Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi on their visits to Ceylon. Having joined the Police as a Sub-Inspector in 1929 he served in many stations such as Ratnapura, Ruwanwella, Tangalle, Kotte and Jaffna before moving to the CID. He was also sent to Hendon, UK on a senior officer training course in 1939. He left the Force in 1959 after 30 years of service.
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