Good morning Pip.
I had been at two other historic events all within the same few weeks. The granting of Independence to Ceylon now Sri Lanka and another historic event four weeks earlier for my 18th birthday in Rangoon and the Independence of Burma, now called Myanmar.
I just put the jacket and tie on for the photograph, I was wearing white tropical shorts.
I must have given away half the British Empire and even stuff that was not ours to give, like the handing back of Italian Somali land to the Italians. But that was the United Nations, when they were at Lake Success, that passed that resolution and caused another civil war for us as we waited off Mogadishu for the vote.
Then of course we went to South Africa and where our good friend Jan Smuts lost the election to the pro Nazi Dr. Malan, so we seem to keep up our losing streak. Although in the meantime we did put on a good show for the 80th Birthday of the Sultan of Zanzibar. I hope we did not give his harem any ideas of independence.
I wonder how America survived me - or perhaps it was just the beginning of the end. :)
My 18th birthday in Rangoon, Burma 1947
That is a 6 inch gun turret for a background.