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An Unlawful Use of Arms |
Conspiracy Theory We have been asked to comment on the story that Diana, Princess
of Wales, was murdered by the British secret services on the instructions
of HRH Prince Philip. It has been floating around for some time
since it was launched by Mohamed Fayed, the owner of the car involved
in the accident, the employer of its drunken and irresponsible
driver, and the father of Dodi (the man whom, he insists, Diana
hoped to marry, and who died with her). During a recent libel
case, and from the privileged protection of the witness box, Mohamed
Fayad repeated the charge with maximum publicity. The only response we could conceivably make to this is to question
whether the two secret services accused, MI5 and MI6, could possibly
work together on any assignment. (MI5, of course, is limited to
operations within the United Kingdom. MI6 looks after the James
Bond work abroad, and perhaps it is Bond himself who will emerge
as the prime suspect.) As for Prince Philip ~ well, he would not act independently of
his wife, and she must rely on the advice of the Prime Minister,
and he makes no move without the approval of his press secretary,
Mr Campbell, and Mr Campbell reacts only to focus groups reflecting
the mood of the country as articulated by members of the Labour
Party, most of whom shop at Harrods, the department store Mohamed
Fayed owns. We advise Mr Fayed to drop it. Unlawful Assumption Before justifying the headline that drew you to this article,
by discussing the unlawful use of arms, it is necessary to reflect
on the exchanges in the court case in respect of Mohamed Fayed's
name. He prefers to be known as Mohamed Al-Fayed, which is effectively
the same as a Scottish Chief being known (correctly) as, for example,
The Chisholm. It defines him as the Chief or Representer of all
the Fayeds. The counsel for the plaintiff challenged this (for
Mr Fayed's humble origins are well known) and received the riposte
that he could address the defendant as "Al-Capone" if he wished. But in his search for gentility Mohamed Fayed has explored other
avenues. He bought Balnagown Castle in Scotland and spent millions
on its restoration, an act which may be cautiously applauded,
but then placed at its entrance the arms of the Chief of Clan
Ross (illustrated at the head of this article). David Ross of Ross, 27th Chief of Clan Ross, gently objected,
but Mr Fayed persisted. Accordingly, as Scottish law dictates,
the case went before the Lord Lyon who upheld the rights of the
owner of the arms and ordered Mr Fayed to remove them. (If this
order were to be ignored, then Lyon would use his lawful powers
to have them removed by the police, and any repetition of the
offence would jail Mr Fayed.)
(spelt also as Balnagowan)
It is a matter of considerable delight to this columnist (as regular
readers might surmise) that the Lord Lyon has retained such authority
as late as what is prematurely described as the 21st century,
and the exercise of these powers should act as a caution to those
scam merchants who sell other men's arms to punters who are assured
they may use them as their own.
The Baronage Content Page January-February 2000
© 2000 The Baronage Press and Pegasus Associates Ltd
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