Foreign Soil Depicted On Canadian Stamps

Here is the next example: #2380-3 (2010) Four Indian Kings



Their portraits were painted in London, England, but the backgrounds are all North American (not that the artist had ever visited North America.)
Therefore what was is depicted would be Iroquois territory, mainly in present-day northern New York.

Although there had been a few aboriginal visits before, the arrival of the "Four Indian Kings" in April, 1710, was an event that took the country of England by storm.
They had been chosen by the mayor of Albany to represent Mohawk/Iroquois nation in the attempt to create an alliance against the French. They were not actually "kings", of course, nor accredited by any aboriginal nation.
One can only imagine what they thought as they stood in St. Paul's or the Tower of London, or looked through the telescope at Greenwich, or had audience with Queen Anne.
They made such a sensation at the Globe Theatre that the crowd roared to stop the play (Macbeth) and have the four gentlemen presented on stage.
And here's a playbill for Punch's Theatre during that time:



Queen Elizabeth gave the four portraits to Canada in 1977.

Okay... I see I'm kinda on my own here...

In order for there to be a continuation of the British monarchy (and our own dear head of state) there needs to be a royal heir and before that there has to be a royal wedding: #2477 (2011)



Of the nine philatelic items (including a gutter pane, which does not sound very hoity-toity) the above is the most other-worldly. Westminster Abbey, where the wedding took place, could not be more prominent. It is my favourite place in London, where 18 British monarchs are buried.
The latest House of Windsorites, however, are/will be buried in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle (our first post.)

You're not on your own here, SAK. This ignorant American is thoroughly enjoying this thread. Keep it going!

The next example is #2533-4 (2012) 100th anniversary of the Titanic's sinking.



Here is the view of her stern, still in dry dock in Belfast, with nine or so Scotsmen staring up at her.
As a pair it has a very dramatic feel.

But why did the stamp designers plunk the bow down on top of the stern to create this strange (impossible!) effect?



I think these stamps should be presented as two separate pairs, not one block. (That's the way I have them in my album, side by side.)

I mentioned before that I was a volunteer at ExpoRail, the Canadian Railway Museum near Montreal.
There we display the private business car of Charles M. Hays, the president of the Grand Trunk Railway, and driving force behind the second transcontinental railroad within the borders of Canada.
The destination port for the GTR was going to be Prince Rupert, BC, and it was a boom town in preparation for the arrival of the railroad.
Hayes drowned on April 15, 1912, in the Titanic's sinking and it is generally accepted that without his management the GTR could not be saved from bankrupcy.
The assets were sold and combined with others to become the CNR. Prince Rupert was by-passed and the CNR runs to Vancouver instead.


[Statue of Hayes outside city hall in Prince Rupert]

"One can only wonder what Prince Rupert's future would have been had Charles Hays survived the Titanic. His was indeed a titanic loss." [Nauticapedia]

For $30 per person, you can have a very elegant tea in that very business car "Canada" at ExpoRail, an opportunity that only happens during the Christmas holidays. Reservations required.



See you there!

A little delay as I was lost down not one, but two, rabbit holes.
The first was #2644 (2013) QEII's 60th Anniversary portrait by Canadian artist Philip Richards.
This post was half done, with references to the BNA Act, the QEII rose and all, when I discovered that she had posed for the photograph that Richards used in Ridaeu Hall, Ottawa!
An entirely Canadian background.

Second, a slam-dunk, I figured. #2682 (2013) Superman flying over the Daily Planet in Metropolis - obviously a USA site.
Not! It was modelled after the Toronto Star building!

Which brings us to: #2684 (21013) The Hastings & Prince Edward Regiment 150th anniversary.



The background is obviously an Italian fort or monastery (maybe Monte Cassino).
The Hasty P's, an amalgamation of two county regiments (around Bellevile, ON, in 1920) was awarded more Battle Honours during WWII than any other Canadian Infantry Regiment
It's Colonel-in-Chief is Prince Edward.
Other notables are Sir Mackenzie Bowell, Canada's 5th PM, author Farley Mowat who wrote about his war experiences in "The Regiment", and Private Pringle, the only soldier of the Canadian Army to be executed by firing squad for a service offence during the Second World War.

On an odd note, the regimental colour was stolen from the Belleville Armouries in 1960. The commanding officer, Lt.Col. Duffy, refused to wear his cap badge after the theft up until his death, as the colours were his personal responsibility. The regimental colour has never been located. (New colours were royally presented in 1964.)

342 Hasty P's have been killed or died of wounds, the latest Cpl. McLaren, 23, killed by IED outside Kandahar city, Afghanistan, Dec. 5, 2008.
R.I.P. Mark Robert McLaren

Well... as far as I can tell, this is it. Our last example (so far).
#2686 (2013) The birth of Prince George. (That's him off to the left.)



Born on July 22, 2013, he is the heir to the throne of the United Kingdom and future Canadian head of state...

... once we have been graciously reigned over by Charles III and then William V. (That's him off to the right.)

Luckily, we already have a city named for him:
Prince George, BC, formerly known as Fort George named after George III, renamed after George V's fourth son George whose brother, Albert, became George VI, our present queen's father! (It's a family thing - something only George Foreman would understand.)
Sadly, gang wars, drug abuse and a serial killer have caused McLean's Magazine to label Prince George Canada's most dangerous city!

On a slightly more serious note, the person between the two kings-to-be may well be the last saving hope for the British monarchy in the future.

So... Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays. Maybe you will catch the 49th example of foreign soil on Canadian stamps before I do. (It's been fun.)

I was turning the pages of my trusty Unitrade catalogue the other day when I spied two more examples of foreign soil on Canadian stamps.

In the Canada Pride definitive series: (used copies)



#2423 (2011) the Coliseum in Rome
#2501 (2012) the Acropolis in Athens

The first one reminds me of my experiences hitch-hiking around Europe in the late 60's. With my Canadian flag displayed I had no trouble finding rides - especially in Belgium where two cars might stop at the same time, lunches and drinks provided free, scenic tours as they went out of their way to express their gratitude to Canada for liberating them in WWII.
I was proud to be a Canadian - still am!