King Farouk had to abdicate and sail away on his yacht in 1952. In Egypt, he was rudely crossed out on the stamps and mocked for his lavish lifestyle and extensive collections. In Italy, he couldn’t fully enjoy his exile as the women in his life turned on him. His wife left him and a former British Cypher clerk at the embassy in Cairo who had been given the title of official mistress took advantage of his plight by writing a novel about a proper English girl who has to sleep with a hairy, morbidly obese former King named Yoyo who liked to spank her. Maybe she needed one. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill tour pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from the Philatelist.
The stamp shows the Cairo Citadel first built by King Saladin in 1176 AD. It was one of the most advanced and extensive fortifications of it’s day. You can also spot the twin spires of the Mohammed Ali Pasha Mosque added by the first Albanian Pasha appointed by the Ottomans at the end of Napoleon era French occupation. Mohammed Ali Pasha was the founder of King Farouk’s Royal Line. There was cause for cellebration at the time of the original version of this stamp. The Egyptian Army had just replaced the British Army garrisoning the citadel.
Todays stamp is issue A73, a 50 Millemines stamp issued by the new Egyptian Republic in 1953. It was one of 23 Royal era stamps reissued with King Farouk crossed out. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 35 cents used. The cross out adds 10 cents to the value.
In 1952, King Farouk was enjoying his summer has was his habit in Alexandria on the more temperate Mediterranean where he could also enjoy Alexandria’s night life and casinos. The King had been warned by his Prime Minister that officers in the army were plotting against him. He had the list of suspects read to him and then dismissed it as being from people too junior to be a real threat. He appointed a new defense minister to rout them out. Two days later Cairo fell to the coup plotters and army units headed toward Alexandria. The Sudanese Royal Guard stayed loyal as did the navy at anchor in Alexandria. They were able to fight off the first assault on the Alexandria palace with King Farouk himself taking out five of the attackers with his hunting rifle. The Army prepared to bring forth tanks and artillery for a final assault and King Farouk saw the wisdom of abdicating and sailing away on the Royal Yacht El Mahrousa bound for Italy.
Safely in Italy with his family, Farouk was faced with insult over insult. His collections of coins, stamps, suits of Armor, pornography, and geiger counters were displayed, ridiculed and put up for auction. This dragged out forever as many of those that helped him put together his quite extensive collections sued claiming Farouk had not paid for much of what he had. This dragged out the pain.
Even worse was his treatment by his women. His young Queen, left him going back to Egypt and sued him for divorce civilly claiming adultery, and abandonment. Divorce was granted gleefully by the new Egypt and allowed her unlike Farook to keep her citizenship. Prince Ranier stepped in and granted Farouk a Monaco passport. English socialite Barbara Skelton who had been a cypher clerk at the embassy in Cairo during the war had been awarded the title of official mistress. She repaid him by writing a novel called A Young Girl’s Touch. with her background sanitised and many years taken off her life and the King made older and more repulsive as King Yoyo. In reality, if he wanted to spank a younger girl he would have picked a different mistress. Barbara Skelton was four years older then him.
King Farouk tried to put his life back together in Rome. He found a new and final official mistress, 19 year old 1953 Miss Naples Irma Capese Minutolo. She stayed with him the rest of his life after he paid her parents a great deal of money in exchange for her virginity. They enjoyed the nightlife and King Farouk supported her ventures in acting and opera singing. She is still with us and has lately made the claim they were secretly married. As with Ms. Skelton she has the tendency to subtract years from her life to make her stories more tawdry/sexy.
King Farouk died in 1965, collapsing in his favorite Rome restaurant. President Nasser consented to an Egyptian burial but not a Royal one. President Sadat later had the remains removed to the Royal Cemetery. The Royal Yacht El Mahrousa returned to Egypt after dropping Farouk off in Italy and still serves, as it has since 1865.
Well my drink is empty. Farouk thought the young officers against him were nothings. Turns out to be true also with the women in her life. Come again tomorrow when there will be another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.