I had it drummed into me from an early age that family and knowing where your roots come from are vitally important. My Grandfather, Edward Gordon Gedge, told me fantastic stories about his aristocratic life and my parents often said to me that I had ‘blue blood’ in my veins although I had no idea what they meant, and that I could trace my ancestry back to William the Conqueror. Living in New Zealand, I didn’t have any appreciation of my ancestry until I first came to England and visited Whitmore Hall – my roots; the ancestral home in Staffordshire. […]
King Abbas
Sailing down Egypt’s Nile
Egypt 2004Following in my grandfather’s footstepsMy grandfather grew up in the royal palace in Alexandria, Egypt so this trip was very poignant for me. Gordon, my grandfather, died at the age of 95 in 1991 and was an Olympic medal winner (Antwerp Games) and a decorated soldier. But it was his stories of growing up in Egypt that I remember the most.My great grandfather was an Admiral and naval adviser to the King of Egypt – Abbas II. He was also honoured with the title of Pasha in 1912. The family moved into the Royal Palace and my grandfather (we[…]