Britain's unmarked swans have a new owner - King Charles

Record ID: 1688647

  • Title: Britain's unmarked swans have a new owner - King Charles
  • Date: 12th September 2022
  • Summary: WINDSOR, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (SEPTEMBER 12, 2022) (REUTERS) SWANS IN RIVER THAMES VARIOUS OF SWANS BY RIVER BANK AND BOAT WINDSOR CASTLE WINDSOR CASTLE AND FOOTBRIDGE / BOATS IN RIVER CROWDS AND SWANS ON RIVER BANK SWANS ON RIVER BANK VARIOUS OF SWAN MARKER TO BRITAIN’S KING CHARLES, DAVID BARBER (SOUNDBITE) (English) SWAN MARKER TO BRITAIN’S KING CHARLES, DAVID BARBER, SAYING: “Right, David Barber, I’m swan marker to His Majesty the King.” SWAN FEATHER ON BARBER’S HAT QUEEN ELIZABETH LOGO ON BARBER’S SLEEVE VARIOUS OF BARBER FEEDING SWANS (SOUNDBITE) (English) SWAN MARKER TO BRITAIN’S KING CHARLES, DAVID BARBER, SAYING: “The King has the right to claim any swan swimming in open waters, unmarked, if he so wishes. So not all the swans belong to the king. But if he wishes to claim them, he can, by the royal prerogative.” PEOPLE FEEDING SWANS VARIOUS OF WOMAN BY BOAT NAMED “WINDSOR MONARCH” FEEDING SWANS (SOUNDBITE) (English) SWAN MARKER TO BRITAIN’S KING CHARLES, DAVID BARBER, SAYING: “Swan upping dates right back to the 12th century and of course swans then were an extremely important food source, very, very important, and it was served up banquets and feasts really for the wealthy. And as time went on, different people owned swans. They had the right, the crown gave them the right to own them. And they had the young cygnets and they would fatten them up for the Christmas feasts. Of course, today swans are no longer eaten, and it's all a conservation and education exercise.
  • Embargoed: 26th September 2022 18:11
  • Keywords: Britain swans Swans king charles king swans queen elizabeth queen swans swan marker david barber swan upping swans belong to king swans belong to monarch
  • Location: WINDSOR AND ETON WICK, ENGLAND AND EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
  • City: WINDSOR AND ETON WICK, ENGLAND AND EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
  • Country: UK
  • Topics: Arts/Culture/Entertainment,Europe,Royals,Editors' Choice
  • Reuters ID: LVA001478012092022RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:The hundreds of swans swimming along the bends of River Thames below Windsor Castle and feeding off the treats brought by visitors on the river bank have a new owner.
    Succeeding his mother, Queen Elizabeth, Britain’s King Charles has inherited the country’s unmarked swans in a shared ownership with old trade associations Vintners and Dyers.
    “The King has the right to claim any swan swimming in open waters, unmarked, if he so wishes,” the king’s swan marker, David Barber, told Reuters on Monday (September 12).
    Barber looks after the swans in the areas of the United Kingdom where the king exercises his royal prerogative.
    “Not all the swans belong to the king. But if he wishes to claim them, he can,” Barber said, preferring not to put a number on the swans owned by the monarch.
    The ownership of the swans dates back to medieval times when the birds were considered a delicacy.
    “Swans then were an extremely important food source and served up at banquets and feasts, really for the wealthy,” said Barber.
    “As time went on, different people owned swans. The crown gave them the right to own them. And they had the young cygnets and they would fatten them up for the Christmas feasts. Of course, today swans are no longer eaten, and it's all a conservation and education exercise,” said Barber.
    Over his 30 years as the monarch’s swan marker, Barber met the queen several times at public and unofficial events.
    Barber, who wears a scarlet coat and a swan feather in his hat, was personally presented with the Royal Victorian Order for his work by the Queen in 2014.
    “She was a very, very lovely person. You could get on with her very well. And she took a grand interest in all wildlife but swans as well,” he said.
    The swan marker said he hoped Charles would follow her example.
    “He’s very keen on conservation and all this type of thing, which is absolutely brilliant for us as well. So hopefully he will take a nice interest in the swan population. That will help us do our job.”
    (Production: Fedja Grulovic, Hanna Rantala)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2022. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register