Princess Mary and the Costermonger
Princess May, the daughter of the Duchess of Teck and the future Queen Mary, went driving in Hammersmith and there saw a costermonger beating his donkey. She stopped the carriage and directed her footman to take away the stick from the costermonger.
The
costermonger, deprived of his natural rights, showered upon the princess a
storm of abuse and demanded the name of the woman who had dared to interfere
with him.
“I am
Princess Mary of Teck,” the young woman replied.
When the costermonger
knew of the royal presence in front of him, his face blushed with shame, bowed
down, and begged a humble pardon. The princess forgave him, lectured him upon
his cruelty but prevented him from being arrested by the police. The Australian Star, 4 Apr 1893
What a wonderful anecdote about the noble Queen Mary of Teck. Her daughter-in-law, the one to become the queen mother and her grand-daughter, queen elizabeth II, were a far cry from her, both being cold-blooded and reptilian opportunists who let Princess Margaret literally destroy herself and become the victim of her vicious husband, the photographer tony jones.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, my gran resembles her both in face and deportment and I love that fact!