Prince Philip’s 1956 visit to Moratuwa Church and a right royal remark
The letter Prince Philip sent on the church’s centenary
Last month saw an outpouring of condolences and remembrances for the late Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh who departed this life at the age of 99 years, after a memorable married life of 73 years, as the Consort to his beloved wife Queen Elizabeth 11.
The Royal couple’s links to this island have been well documented but few may recollect Prince Philip’s visit to Holy Emmanuel Church Moratuwa in 1956 and the comments he made. The Prince’s unscheduled stop was when he was on a two-day visit to Ceylon and this incident is related by the late Shelton C. Fernando, Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Home Affairs, an ardent worshipper of the Church in its Centenary Souvenir authored by the late W.R.O. Fernando, Chairman Board of Compilers in 1960.
Shelton C. Fernando, in his message to the Centenary Souvenir titled “The Last Fifty Years” wrote:
“Holy Emmanuel is the largest Sinhalese Anglican Parish in the Island, and has attracted a constant stream of notabilities – including Royalty – particularly in the last half-century. Indeed, if she chose to expand on her own original site rather than encourage the growth of daughter churches around her in Moratuwa, like a fond mother fostering a growing brood, she would today after 100 years be perhaps the biggest Anglican Parish in all Asia.
“Among Royalty there was Princess Louise in 1904, and much more recently Philip, Duke of Edinburgh in Octobe 1956.
“With pardonable pride I may refer to my humble part on this. When Government seemed averse to place any such visits on his two day programme for fear of alleged discrimination, I contrived to place our Church Road on the route way back from Bolgoda Lake, hoping for the best! One look at the Tower, and the Prince promptly decided to get off the car, though unfortunately with hardly anybody to receive him but the priests of the parish as we could not take the risk of prior announcement with possible disappointment.
“The Royal Visitor spent nearly half an hour, and one reminiscence is worthy to mention as characteristic of the man and apposite to the present celebrations.
“Told of the Pan-Sinhalese Parish, but seeing an Acting Vicar of a different colour, H.R.H. asked him in the hearing of my Minister and myself ‘Do you think your race would stand in the way of being made permanent one day?’ (Revd. Misso was a Burgher).
“No wonder the way the Parish has risen above such considerations in the Centenary of all years by welcoming him later as permanent Vicar gave singular gratification to the Prince as I communicated to H.R.H.when he so kindly received me in private audience at Buckingham Palace to hand over his personal Greetings to the Centenary.”
Race was no problem at all for the Parish who made Revd. E. Geoffrey Misso the permanent vicar of Holy Emmanuel Church from 1959 with his assistants the Revd. Lakdasa Jayawardene and Revd. Donald Kanagaratnam. At a time when communal feelings were strained it is a matter of pride that priests of three communities worked happily within the parish when the church services were conducted in Sinhala.
Unscheduled stop: Prince Philip at Holy Emmanuel Church, Moratuwa
During the 150th anniversary of Holy Emmanuel Church, Moratuwa, Revd. E. Geoffrey Misso who had migrated to Perth in Australia made a visit to our Church as a special invitee in December 2010 and read the Epistle in Sinhala.
Shelton Fernando during an official visit to London in November 1959 and thanks to the arrangements made by the then Ceylon High Commissioner in London, was privileged to have a private audience with Prince Philip at Buckingham Palace to receive the letter dated 16th November 1960 with greetings for the Holy Emmanuel Church for its centenary celebrations held from 27th December 1960.
The letter sent by Prince Philip with his photograph appears in the Centenary Souvenir. Framed and installed in the Church Vestry, they can still be seen today.
(The writer is a past Warden of Holy Emmanuel Church & Chairman, Board of Compilers of the church’s 150th anniversary souvenir)