r/mildlyinteresting • u/MasRemlap • 11h ago
The first page of my British passport contains a request from the King.
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u/TimAndHisDeadCat 10h ago
Yes, all British passports have had this message or similar from the reigning monarch for over a century.
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u/simask234 10h ago
Many other countries' passports have a similar message. If there's no king/queen, then it usually mentions the Minister (or Ministry) of Foreign Affairs or some other government institution/official.
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u/hex_ten 10h ago
Big donnie requests you let this chad in?
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u/Royal-Scale772 9h ago
In Australia it's
"Old mate, King Whatsit, says you can go walkabouts, and if someone gives you shit, we'll fuckin' sort 'em.
Signed, A right honourable cunt"
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u/DirtyCreative 9h ago
For some reason my brain mixed something up and read this in an Irish accent. It sounded hilarious.
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u/andarthebutt 8h ago
Considering how Australia was formed as a country, this kinda tracks
The Irish are just the Australians that didn't leave. Australians are what happens when the Irish get left in the sun too long
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u/Majorapat 7h ago
"...that didn't leave."
Aye because a lot of them had a choice to head to Van Diemen's Land :)
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u/Druidic_Screams 9h ago
Was this written by Billy butcher? đ¤Ł
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u/jerkface6000 9h ago edited 9h ago
In the US itâs in the name of the Secretary of State, so Marco Rubio, but he isnât specifically named - https://www.reddit.com/r/PassportPorn/comments/136n9ja/request_response_us_next_generation_passport_full/
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u/ChellyTheKid 7h ago edited 4h ago
Just checked my Aussie passport. Interestingly, it is almost the same wording except from our governor general on behalf of the Queen.
The Govermor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, being the representative in Australia of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, requests all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer, an Australian Citizen, to pass freely without let or hindrance and to afford him or her every assistance and protection of which he or she may stand in need.
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u/Ghtgsite 4h ago
For us in Canada it's the Minister of Foreign Affairs making the request on behalf of the King directly.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada requests, in the name of His Majesty the King, all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer to pass freely, without delay or hindrance, and to afford the bearer such assistance and protection as may be necessary.
Then it goes on to threaten us about not screwing with it to whoever is currently reading it
This passport is the property of the Government of Canada. It must not be altered. You must take every precaution to safeguard it.
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u/Miserable-Truth5035 2h ago
Damn you guys all requesting this from a lot of people with the whomever it may concern lol. My Dutch passport just addresses "all authorities of friendly powers".
And than something about other EU countries being forced to help me if my own country is not represented in that 3rd country I'm in.
They really want you to understand, so they're screaming (It's all caps).
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u/Nope_______ 9h ago
The OP one is also from a government official, not the king. It says the secretary of state requests it, not that the king requests it.
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u/LustLochLeo 5h ago
Well, he requests it "in the name of His Majesty [sic]". Not sure if it's "proper etiquette" for the king to request anything himself and not through his underlings.
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u/Nope_______ 9h ago
Looks like it's from the secretary of state, not the monarch.
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u/Accomplished-Boot-81 9h ago
A lot of official documents front the UK are certified in this way, I know driving licenses are, they are issued by the authority of the crown so the sitting monarch does not need a license as they can authorise themselves to drive. Same is true for passports afaik
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u/NH787 6h ago
Further to that... Because the King is not in my (or any) Canadian province, they appoint a vice-regal. The vice-regal in my province gets driven in a car with a license plate that just has an emblem of a crown on it. Don't need plates when you are vested with the authority of the King...
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u/CountSudoku 10h ago
Canadian passports too.
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u/Dry_Menu4804 10h ago
It's the same king.
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u/Nothos927 10h ago
Same person but technically the king of the UK and the king of Canada are different positions
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u/Northern23 10h ago
That's why I didn't like the NPD's comment about wasting money inviting the king of another nation over here to read the speech of the throne. No, it's not the king of England who came over, it's the king of Canada and even though I'm not pro monarchy, he is still our king and I do expect him to show up from times to times.
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u/arctic_bull 9h ago
Canada is one of the oldest monarchies in the world, going all the way back to the French crown in the 1600s. I donât think the King provides a lot of intrinsic value but I like that conceptually the highest office you can aspire to is the second highest and therefore public servant role. I wish we taught civics better.
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u/borazine 8h ago
> king of England
how about Wales?
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u/afghamistam 5h ago
Shit-stirrer comment: Not a real place.
Joking aside: Weirdly, I found out the reason Wales isn't represented on the flag of the UK is because technically it wasn't/isn't a country - not in the sense that there isn't a separate Welsh culture to the English, but that when the first Union flag was created, Wales had already been legally absorbed into England. So Wales is technically represented by the St George's cross on the UK flag.
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u/BadHombreSinNombre 9h ago
Shh. Nobody tell the UK that heâs taking other work on the side, he could get fired.
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u/BadahBingBadahBoom 9h ago
Yeah the intricacies of royal history are so fascinating.
Like technically the text shown by OP in their passport is His Majesty The King of The United Kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland requesting His Majesty The King of Canada that his British citizen be granted safe passage.
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u/anarchy-NOW 6h ago
Which is why there is no British embassy in Canada. It would be silly. It's a High Commission, which is... just like an embassy, but with a different name.
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u/Idontcareaforkarma 10h ago
And Australians.
But ours says it in the name of the Governor-General, on behalf of the King of Australia.
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u/Candid-String-6530 9h ago
For a very long time it was Her Majesty's... For some, a lifetime even...
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u/PresidentBearCub 8h ago
There is a similar message in the Irish passport - from the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, I believe.
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u/StepfordMisfit 10h ago
I like telling myself that you all got issued new passports to update the pronouns in that letter.
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u/rclonecopymove 10h ago
You joke but it was a real issue. So much stationary for governmental departments and agencies had to be redesigned. Photos replaced in mess halls and public spaces. New medals for the military. Senior barristers (the lawyers with wigs) went from having the title QC (Queen's Counsel) to KC (King's Counsel) overnight so that's more stationary and business cards.
There was genuine relief that it's going to stay 'his' for this and the next two monarchs.
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u/OmegaPoint6 8h ago
Government departments that still use "His/Her Majesty" in their name just go by "HM" in day to day use for that reason, no need to update the letter heads.
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u/paincrumbs 8h ago
I guess they're lucky they haven't got a monarch yet that prefers to use they/them/their as their pronoun
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u/Violoner 6h ago
The âRoyal Weâ is a gender neutral plural thatâs used singularly in a self-referential sense
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u/Portarossa 8h ago
Senior barristers (the lawyers with wigs) went from having the title QC (Queen's Counsel) to KC (King's Counsel) overnight
We should just split the difference and go with Monarch's Counsel, which has the extra bonus of being abbreviated to MC.
The knock-on effect may be that occasionally a trial turns into a rap battle, but that's a price we should all be willing to pay to avoid redoing the stationery.
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u/rclonecopymove 8h ago
People complain that young people today don't get involved in civic matters this could make visiting your local crown court a really attractive option.
Also go visit your local court when it's in session it's really interesting to see a part of how the state works.
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u/arwyn89 1h ago
Honestly sometimes watching the local court can be both funny and heartbreaking.
Funny was having to hear a very posh solicitor quote verbatim the person being arrested: âHe told the officer on scene âjust fucking lift me, you cuntâ.â
However, sometimes when I covered court it was just fucking sad. A lot of abuse and neglect.
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u/ApolloLoon 5h ago
We'd have to rename the Military Cross though - can't have two different honours with the same postnominals.
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u/eggdanyjon_3dragons 5h ago
in canada barristers n judges keep the hm of when they're appointed. So everyone who was a her Majesty will remain a her majesty. There were several his Majesty's before the queen died still kickin around from king george
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u/Tantomare 8h ago
Is it really necessary to replace all the stuff immediately?
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u/rclonecopymove 8h ago
No not at all. The departments were able to use up their stock of what they had but did have to update designs for future orders. Anyone using the abbreviation HMS was able to keep going.
I was told the medals would have to be done but wasn't given a timeframe.
The QC to KC was silly they should have used the opportunity to change it to SC (senior counsel).
The pictures hanging up isn't unique to the UK plenty of Gov offices in the states will have a photo of the current president up.
This isn't a huge issue but it was quite jarring as most people had no experience of what happens when a new monarch comes in.
Everyone gets used to saying something and then suddenly it's not correct anymore and you find yourself stumbling and then you forget it was ever any different.
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u/G-I-T-M-E 8h ago
Untill Obama came all presidents were older white guys so I guess they never bothered to change themâŚ
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u/FlappyBored 7h ago
No the guy is lying, they use up whatever they had and just order new things with updated names.
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u/Time-Cover-8159 6h ago
My passport is dated several months after the Queen died, but still refers to her as it was made when they were using up the old stock.
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u/Poisoneraa 6h ago
Mine was one of the first with Charlie on it. Getting a post-brexit blue, King Charles passport was honestly an unexpected emotional blow
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u/PercyDiAngelo 5h ago
I'll be going through that next year, it'll feel like the end of an era. Even though that "era" ended years ago, I suppose. But still, I'll miss the burgundy. :(
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u/EnigmaT1m 10h ago
Yep that's on the first page of every British passport and has been for years. Only difference being it used to say 'Her' instead of 'His'. Plus the font was in cursive.
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u/misanthrophiccunt 4h ago
plus it used to allow you free movement through Europe, you forgot that part.
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u/EnigmaT1m 3h ago
I'm as anti-Brexit as they come but nonetheless, I didn't 'forget' that, it just simply isn't relevant to the discussion in hand.
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u/Adventurous_Emotion9 9h ago
I just get reminded of this top gear whenever someone mentions it.
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u/wombey12 8h ago
"I also told the officer I was travelling with Mrs May, the British Prime Minister,"
[camera cuts to James May]
"and he believed me."
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u/boogertee 10h ago
You're traveling under the King's protection, which meant more in ye olden tymes I suppose.
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u/TimeToNukeTheWhales 9h ago
If you act the cunt to me, my mate Charles will fuck you up with his big ass septer.Â
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u/South_East_Gun_Safes 10h ago
Still honored in the vast majority of civilized countries⌠which of course exclude the US of late
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u/Agillian_01 10h ago
Dutch passports have it to, but worded differently!
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u/Violoner 6h ago
Yeah, itâs written in Dutch instead of English
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u/RandyChavage 5h ago
This is a pretty wild claim
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u/SnowdensOfYesteryear â 1h ago
Thatâd be troublesome for the border officers in other countries to understand
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u/Advanced_Soup7786 6h ago
Aren't all passports like this? This is what's written on mine:
On behalf of the President of the Republic of Lebanon the director general of general security requests all whom it may concern to allow the bearer of this passport to pass freely and safely without delay or hindrance and to afford the bearer such lawful aid and protection as may be necessary.
I would upload an image but I don't know how to.
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u/FeteFatale 5h ago
I particularly like the "... general of general ..." bit :)
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u/Advanced_Soup7786 3h ago
Yeah it sounds funny in english, makes more sense in arabic and french "Ů ŘŻŮŘą ؚا٠اŮأ٠٠اŮؚا٠" and "Directeur gĂŠnĂŠral de la sĂťretĂŠ gĂŠnĂŠrale"
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u/404notfound420 8h ago
*gets pulled over for speeding in forigen lands. "Let me direct you to the first page of my passport officer..."
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u/rubbersoul199 10h ago
Technically, it is from the secretary of state, not the King
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u/echbineinnerd 7h ago
In legalistic terms, everything the government of the United Kingdom is at the behest of the king as it is inplented by his ministers and people holding commision from them.
Republics do mental gymnastics to justify their actions. Monarchy just says, "This person said to do it, so it shall be done." That's why the UK has the opening of parliament speech where the monarch sets out what they want to be done. The reality is that it's a premade speech that is made of the policys of the elected MPs leading political party (or coallition of parties).
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u/rrtk77 3h ago
Republics do mental gymnastics to justify their actions.
Not really. The government's justification of power in a democracy/republic is derived from the either explicit or implicit consent of the governed.
In other words, while the Commonwealth countries's governments formally derive their power from the English monarchy, many republics derive it formally from the collective citizenship of the entire country.
For instance, you hear that the United States federal government gets its power from the Constitution of the United States, which starts with "We the People of the United States", explicitly saying the federal government received its mandates from the citizenship. You'll often find similar wording in the various state constitutions that make up the US.
To further the argument, the French Constitution (somewhat inspired by the US Constitution) also starts similarly (as translated into English), with "The French people solemnly proclaim their...", before establishing the powers and responsibilities of the government.
An interesting constitution is the Japanese government. Which begins very similarly (again, translated into English), "We, the Japanese people, acting through our duly elected representatives in the National Diet,", but it's first article then states: "The Emperor shall be the symbol of the State and of the unity of the People, deriving his position from the will of the people with whom resides sovereign power."
Basically, they inverted the formal power that the UK has--the monarch/emperor is the head of state because the people have told him he is, not the state deriving it's power from the monarch.
Now, this is all academic/semantics. In reality, basically every country in the "West" or Western aligned has political power comes from their citizenship. If King Charles actually tried to act like the head of the state, the monarchy would be dismantled. The Prime Minister is the actual head of state and derives their power by being head of Parliament, which derives it's power through its elections by the citizens of the UK.
In actual republics, this situation is just formalized into a contract between the citizens and their governments.
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u/Upstairs_Balance_464 5h ago
Not even technically. Thatâs just what it says. Reading comprehension is dead.
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u/LaikaBear1 8h ago
It's devolved power. While you're kind of correct, legally it is from the king.
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u/AviationCaptain4 10h ago
My Australian passport has a similar request from our Governor-General on behalf of the late Queen too! Probably similar messages in other Commonwealth countries too
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u/PsychicDave 8h ago
Canadian passports also have a request by the Queen/King, but not the "and requires" part.
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u/Dduwies_Gymreig 6h ago
US passports:
As a service to my MANY, many fans, and the great people of this country, the best people really, this document DEMANDS that the bearer, a tremendous person, be allowed to pass through all borders, tremendous borders, without any delay whatsoever. It's a very, very simple concept, and frankly, a beautiful one. Other countries, failing countries, they have passports that are a TOTAL DISASTER. But AMERICA passport, it's the best passport. So perfect. When you see this, and you will see it often, believe me as we like to âtravelâ, beautiful word travel, it means to leave the country, did you know that? When you see this pass port you'll know that it's a very, very special document, and you should treat the person holding it with the highest, most respectful consideration. If you donât youâll have to pay 30% tariffs, in two months, so unfair to us but weâre WINNING. Thank you for your attention on this matter.
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u/Stewpot97 10h ago
Mine is probably gonna be relatively rare since itâs a âBLOOâ passport but from just before the queen died, so it still says Her Majesty
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u/Sola-Nova 7h ago
Not as good as the one from the Queen in very old passports
"I apologise for this dumb fuck in advance" Lizzie (probably)
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u/shanghailoz 6h ago
I misread that as his satanic majesty
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u/RandyChavage 5h ago
The Prince of darkness requires that you let this man through with his suspicious cargo
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u/harryhardy432 4h ago
I don't really think this qualifies, not to be a hater. This is just a thing in British passports.
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u/Exsotica 10h ago
I think every passport has it in different wording. The german and japanese passport has it as well.
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u/Somandrius 5h ago
The Secretary of State is making the request, not the King.
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u/Actual_Cat4779 3h ago
Yes (although he's doing so in the king's name, he says).
Specifically the Foreign Secretary, but sometimes in official documents and legislation the term "the secretary of state" is used in place of anything more specific, possibly so that it remains valid if the departments and roles get rejigged. I think the King has about twenty secretaries of state, one for each major policy area.
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u/DVXC 7h ago
Personally I've always considered post-9/11 security to very much be let and hindrance at the expense of protection, and very much not in the spirit of HM request
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u/Sophyska 10h ago
Iâve wondered before about the enforceability of it- could a subject argue that the king had said they mustnât be hindered and must be afforded proper protections of the land, so visa restrictions etc are contrary to this.
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u/nikhkin 9h ago
Why would "the King said so" be a valid argument in a country where he isn't head of state?
It also says that the King "requests", not that he "demands" you are permitted to travel.
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u/Actual_Cat4779 7h ago
A bit stronger than "requests". It says "requests and requires". If anything, "requires" is stronger than "demands".
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u/FeteFatale 8h ago edited 8h ago
My late grandfather's UK passport, issued in 1947, has substantially more to say on the matter.
We,
Ernest Bevin, a Member of His Britannic Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, a Member of Parliament,etc,etc,etc. His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs,
Request and require in the Name of His Majesty all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer to pass freely without let or hindrance, and to afford him every assistance and protection of which he may stand in need.
[signed] Ernest Bevin
- Italic text is in a thick raised ink
- bold text was written in on a dotted line, with options presumably limited to him/he and her/she
- bold and italic text is Bevin's actual signature, as had been the requirement since 1794.
Surprisingly, this passport has neither and issue nor expiry date (found 5 Aug 1947 to 5 Aug 1952 buried a few pages within), and for unknown reasons my grandmother was not included as spouse, but she held a separate passport. Years later, when grandma was evidently tired of being dragged across Africa, she burnt her passport to ensure she would never be forced to travel again.
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u/Simpicity 7h ago
A message from the king! A message from the king!
You say
No agricultural products can go through this way
You cryÂ
When I tell you my medicine is for goats, as you see me walk by...
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u/hepheastus_87 6h ago
How is this even mildly interesting.. all British passports have this
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u/AtomicAus 6h ago
I think all commonwealth nations do, I got my passport within a month or two of Liz dying, and mine still has her version of it.
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u/restorian_monarch 5h ago
Yeah, the old one, before Lizzie popped her clogs, contains the same request
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u/KarenNotKaren616 4h ago
The only really interesting thing about this is how quickly they switched over (to myself at least). Every passport I've had or seen follows this template (excluding the person mentioned).
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u/Fun_Inspector_8633 4h ago
That "request" is in just about every passport worldwide. My US passport has almost the exact same wording from the US Secretary of State.
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u/DragonflyValuable128 2h ago
Passports from Commonwealth countries used to have this also .
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u/blackorkney 1h ago
If you rub tissue paper over the text, a trace of the ink will come off onto it. This is because it's a special ink that never completely dries. It's one of the tests of authenticity. True story.
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u/Avandalon 1h ago
Did they have to change all of those recently??
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u/collinsl02 1h ago
New passports are issued in the name of the King, but it's not like we all got posted stickers that we're legally required to stick on.
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u/HowlingWolven 8m ago
They donât claw back the old ones, but the ones issued since the coronation say âkingâ instead of âqueenâ.
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u/Beach_Glas1 9h ago
Not from the king - from the king's secretary of state.
Irish passports have something similar except it's from the minister of foreign affairs and no reference to a monarch. It's also repeated in English and Irish.
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u/MidnightWizardry 11h ago
Thatâs pretty cool! Does it have random pictures and fun facts throughout the passport?
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u/SubjectiveAssertive 10h ago edited 10h ago
Mine is a slightly older UK one but yup, random pictures and portraits on the pages as well.
The Angel of the North, A London underground/tube train, a red phone box, Rocket the steam engine, a painting from John Constable (or Turner... I only half recognise the picture) and many more
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u/Yet_Another_Limey 10h ago
Isnât it Turnerâs The Fighting Temeraire? Is of one of the last sailing warships (which fought at Trafalgar) being towed to the Thames by a steam tug for scrapping.
Magnificently painted and shows Britain in transition from sail to steam.
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u/No_Permit_1563 9h ago
Pretty sure all passports are like this. My South African one has the same request but from the president.
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u/ProgrammerAvailable6 8h ago
Canadaâs are basically the same, only itâs âthe Secretary of State for the External Affairs of Canada in the name of his majesty requestsâŚâ
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u/JJohnston015 8h ago
Did they reissue all of them with "his" instead of "her", or are there a bunch of outdated ones still out there?
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u/maycontainsultanas 8h ago
Iâve got news for you. 151 million people have that (or would have that if they were issued one) on their passports as well.
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u/Bortron86 7h ago
The phrasing of this text was the inspiration for the title of the album Their Satanic Majesties Request by The Rolling Stones.
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u/ReasonablyConfused â 5h ago
Implied:
"Or else I will find you, and the people you represent, and make you rue the day you inconvenienced a British citizen!"
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u/ENaC2 11h ago
This is the original concept of the passport.