The royal family appears to have received two stamp collections as official gifts, including them in the very valuable private stamp collection inherited by King Charles from his mother.

According to the British Guardian, this is a collection of rare Canadian stamps, as well as a series of stamps from Laos. These stamps were solemnly presented to the royal family as a gift on behalf of the two states. However, after some time, the family included them in the Royal Philatelic Collection, which is worth at least 100 million pounds. This appropriation raises questions about whether the royal family is violating rules against treating government gifts as private property.

Canadian stamps were issued by the Government of Canada in 1939 before the 1990s. donation policy was introduced.

On the other hand, a set of stamps from Laos was given in June 2016 as a 90th birthday gift to Queen Elizabeth II, received by the British Ambassador to Laos, sent to London, and from there incorporated into the palace collection.

A spokesman for Buckingham said: “The Royal Philatelic Collection is private property and therefore we will not comment on any issues you have raised.”

The reason was the assignment of the stamps of Canada and Laos and the sale of horses donated by the Sheikh of Dubai.

Last week, the same newspaper reported that King Charles III and Queen Elizabeth II made nearly £2 million selling horses donated by a Dubai sheikh, a Muslim religious leader and member of the royal family. family. The palace said they considered the horses “personal” gifts. However, he did not make such claims with respect to the stamps of Canada and Laos.

Obsession with George V

It’s no wonder the royal family has such an impressive collection of stamps, given George V’s obsession with philately. His official biographer Harold Nicholson noted that for 17 years the king “did nothing but kill animals and stamp stamps”.

The King’s Stamp Collection consists of 328 albums collected by King George V and another 30 albums collected by George VI and more recently by Queen Elizabeth II.

The scale of the collection suggests that George V’s wish came true when he wrote a letter to his philatelic advisor in February 1908: “I want to have the best collection, not one of the best collections in England.”

Gift policy to the royal family distinguishes between “formal gifts”, which are generally gifts received in connection with a family member’s official role or during an official event, and “personal gifts”, which are accepted from family members. members of the royal family know personally and are not required to state publicly. The case with two collections seems to be in a “gray area” between the two cases.

Harry will come to the coronation without Meghan

As it was recently announced, Prince Harry will eventually take part in the coronation of King Charles, while his wife Meghan Markle will not.

There has long been a heated debate about whether the couple will appear together at the coronation ceremony. Finally, Prince Harry will arrive himself. The Prince will join more than 2,000 guests at Westminster Abbey on May 6, where a grand ceremony will take place.

It will also be Harry’s first appearance with the royal family since the publication of his memoir, which caused awe in palace circles and was released in Greek under the title “Reserva”.

Prince Harry’s book vividly reveals the intensity of his disagreements with other members of the royal family, and since then he has often spoken about how he feels “different” from the rest of his family. Meghan’s decision to turn down the invitation is sure to be interpreted by many as part of these ongoing and unresolved family tensions.

Harry’s book, and earlier the Netflix series, highlight the prince’s stress over his negative portrayal in the media, which has criticized his treatment of his wife from time to time. He also claimed that he feels that he does not receive support from his family.

Among these events, many believed that Harry would choose not to attend his father’s coronation. Finally, he confirmed that he would be at the abbey to crown Charles along with his two sons.

The coronation day also coincides with Harry and Meghan’s son’s fourth birthday. Young Prince Archie will stay in the US with his mother.

The announcement, released by the couple, follows the same lines as the Palace statement: “The Duke of Sussex will attend the coronation ceremony at Westminster Abbey on 6 May. The Duchess of Sussex will stay in California with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.”
Neither the couple’s spokesperson nor Palace commented on the decision, but social media was on fire. Meghan Markle’s supporters deify her, saying she’s protective of herself, while critics accuse her of “snobbing” her gay relatives.

The coronation ceremony, which will be attended by world leaders, public figures and members of the royal family, will be followed by a weekend of concerts and public events. The grandchildren of “Royal Wife” Camilla will play a special role at the coronation, and palace officials have said that after the event, it would be “the right time” for her to start officially being called “Queen Camilla”, while a special role is expected. be William, Prince of Wales.

As for Harry, it is not known how long he will stay in the UK and how much he will attend events. In March, Harry also made a surprise appearance in London, where he stood trial in a copyright infringement case against the Associated Newspapers group. Harry is said to have met neither his brother William nor King Charles during this visit.