Description:

George V of England King

George V Appoints British Raj Officer Knight Commander of Royal Victorian Order following the Delhi Durbar

 

Appointment to the Royal Victorian Order dated February 4, 1912 and signed by King George V (1865-1936) as "George R.I." [Rex Imperator] at top. The elegant signature measures 2.75" x 1" and is a little faded. An embossed "Seal of the Royal Victorian Order" is located at upper left. The partly printed document is double-sided, but only the signed first page is visible. The document is handsomely presented behind beveled mauve matting and glass, to the left of a World War-era portrait of George V in full regalia. Expected light paper folds, else near fine. Not examined out of frame. Sight size of document is 7.75" x 12.75"; the frame size overall is 17.625" x 18.375" x .875". Catalog description from Kenneth W. Rendell Gallery, Inc. (New York, NY and Beverly Hills, CA) found verso.

 

In part:

 

"George the Fifth by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and of the British Dominions beyond the Seas, King, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India, Sovereign of the Royal Victorian Order to Our trusty and well beloved Sir Stuart Brownlow Beatson, Knight Commander of Our Most Honourable Order of the Bath, Knight Commander of Our Most Exalted Order of the Star of India, Major General in Our Indian Army, One of Our Extra Equerries

 

Greeting Whereas We have thought fit to nominate and appoint you to be a Knight Commander of Our Royal Victorian Order We do by these Presents grant unto you the Dignity of a Knight Commander of Our said Royal Order and We do hereby Grant of the Dignity of a Knight Commander of Our Royal Victorian Order to Major-General Sir Stuart Brownlow Beatson K.C.B., K.C.S.I."

 

Sir Stuart Brownlow Beatson (1854-1914) was a distinguished career officer of the British Raj. Already a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath and a Knight Commander of the Star of India, the Royal Victorian Order would be his third and last honorary appointment before his death a little over two years later. Beatson was an officer of the Bengal Lancers, a division of the Indian Army. He served in Afghanistan, Burma, northwestern India, Pakistan, and South Africa during many of Britain's most important late-nineteenth-century military campaigns. Between 1900-1907, Beatson served as Inspector-General of Imperial Service Troops and wrote about his experiences in A History of the Imperial Service Troops of Native States: with a Short Sketch of Events in each State, which have led to their Employment in Subordinate Co-operation with the Supreme Government (India: Office of Superintendent of Government Printing, 1903).

 

Beatson is also remembered for dismissive comments he purportedly made about Australian imperial troops during the Second Boer War (1899-1902). Following a particularly disastrous engagement, Beatson, then the commanding officer of the Victorian Mounted Rifles, supposedly condemned Australian forces as cowardly and worthless. His comments elicit anger in Australian circles even today.

 

The Royal Victorian Order, established by Queen Victoria in 1896, recognized exceptional personal service rendered by a subject to the monarch, the monarch's family, or another royal representative, like a viceroy. The Knight Commander is the fourth highest rank of this 5-level chivalric order.

 

It's likely that Beatson was awarded the Royal Victorian Order following his participation in the celebrated Delhi Durbar, or "Court of Delhi." George V and Mary of Teck traveled to northern India for their coronation as Emperor and Empress of India between December 7-16, 1911. According to Sir John William Fortescue's contemporary account Narrative of the Visit to India of their Majesties King George V. and Queen Mary (Macmillan & Co., London, 1912), Sir Beatson performed various duties at the Durbar including accompanying the monarchs on city processions.

 

George V succeeded his father Edward VII in 1910. Over the course of his 26-year-long reign, George V would shape imperial and domestic British policy during World War I, the rise of Communism and Fascism, and the beginning of both the Irish and Indian independence movements.

 


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