The 1805 Dispatches #24.05 October 2024 4 of 6 VISIT TO THE RAG – SEPTEMBER 2024 Peter Pennington On the 20th September, 1964, some 234 young men started to shuffle in a vague form of order from the ferry up the hill towards the Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth. It was the 60th anniversary of this event that would get about one hundred of us together, to the day, in the Vintners’ Hall, London. As I was due to arrive in London from Washington DC on Tuesday 17th, I thought it would be a good idea to meet some fellow members of The 1805 Club for an informal meal at the Rag, the Army and Navy Club in Pall Mall. So, Stephen Howarth kindly arranged a luncheon in the Coffee Room of the Club. The Gods were with me for despite doing two circuits of the infamous Hemel Hempstead roundabout at 6000 feet and ground control parking the aircraft in a field in Slough or somewhere for 20 minutes while they tried to find an empty ramp, I arrived at the Club, hot and breathless, a mere 4 minutes late. Ten of us sat down to lunch, seven Club members and, thank you Stephen, three members of my family that I had not seen except digitally for quite some time. The food was good, the presentation and service excellent and price very reasonable. More importantly – the conversation was lively. As an example, we compared notes about the forthcoming Trafalgar Night banquets. England will celebrate on October 19th in the Wardroom of HMS Nelson, Portsmouth. America will celebrate on Sunday October 20th at the Country Club for Fairfax. After the luncheon, we retired to the Terrace where we consumed our coffees, and I recounted (interminably) the extraordinary tale of the Battle of the White House that took place on the Potomac River during the first week of September 1814. But that is another story [Which it is hoped will appear in KA in due course. Ed.] Photos, clockwise from top left: • Peter’s granddaughter, Matilda, with the famous Emperor Penguin (stuffed) given to the Club by Surgeon Commander G Murray Levick, RN, who accompanied Captain Robert Falcon Scott aboard Terra Nova. • Jenny Newbold, John Wills, Meryl Balchin and Ed. In the Coffee Room (Note: this is a bootleg photo because technology is not allowed in the Coffee Room at The Rag.). • Stephen Howarth, Meryl Balchin and Bill White on the Ribbon Bar Terrace. • Peter, Matilda and Mark Pennington and Stephen Howarth. • Bill White, John Wills and Ed. • Ed. showing “the spot, the very spot where Captain John A Rodgaard, US Navy Retired, Chairman of the 1805 Club, tripped and fell in October 2023 causing much pain and grief, especially for Judith his wife. It is suggested a plaque be set up to mark this important occasion.” [quote from Peter Pennington] • Granddaughter Matilda again alongside the portrait of the then 28-year-old Queen Victoria.
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