Caesar (dog)

Early life

Caesar was born Caesar of Notts in 1898, and was sired by Cackler of Notts. He came from the kennels of Kathleen, Duchess of Newcastle, and was given to King Edward VII by Lord Dudley in 1902 to replace the King's dog Jack who had died after choking on food.

Royal life

During his life with the King, he had a footman assigned to him to clean him and was allowed to sleep on an easy chair next to the King's bed. He wore a collar that read "I am Caesar. I belong to the King".

Caesar would always greet the King excitedly, and the King would often say "Do you like your old master, then?" while the dog was jumping up and down in excitement.

The King ordered hardstone models of his favourite dogs and racehorses from the House of Fabergé. Caesar was at the King's side on the Norfolk estate when the initial wax models were revealed by the company. The model of Caesar was made of chalcedony, rubies, enamel and gold, and included Caesar's collar in the design. The finished model did not arrive until after the King's death, and was purchased by Dame Margaret Greville (for £35 ()), who gave the figure to Queen Alexandra. A painting of the dog was also created by Reuben Ward Binks for the King.

After the death of the King on 6 May 1910, Caesar refused to eat, and would spend time whining outside the King's bedroom. He was placed ahead of the heads of state in the procession, including King George V and eight other Kings, an act of which Kaiser Wilhelm II of the German Empire disapproved.

Later life

Within a month of the funeral an unofficial book was published, Where's Master?, giving a first person account apparently written by Caesar from the king's death up to the funeral, something which made Queen Alexandra furious. The book was successful, running to nine reprints in the first year. The Steiff company produced stuffed toys based on Caesar around 1910.

He remained in the Royal household after the death of the king, although Alice Keppel, long-time mistress to the King, had enquired of Queen Alexandra about what was to happen to Caesar. Despite her previous dislike of the dog, the Queen took an interest in the terrier's care and tended to spoil him with treats, confessing to a friend that she was making up for the King being so strict towards him.

References

References

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3. Hibbert, Christopher. (2007). "Edward VII: The Last Victorian King". Palgrave Macmillan.
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5. (2 September 2013). "More shaggy dog stories...". The Northern Echo.
6. "Highlights from the Royal Fabergé Exhibition". House of Fabergé.
7. "Caesar (1907-10)". [[Royal Collection]].
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10. Edge, Simon. (16 April 2010). "The Funeral of Edward VII: End of the Empires". The Daily Express.
11. (22 March 2020). "The 10 most famous dog-and-owner combinations in history, from Churchill and his poodles to the Royal dog with its own footman". Country Life.
12. (1984). "Matriarch : Queen Mary and the House of Windsor". W. Morrow.
13. "'Royal Dogs' exhibition". Our Dogs.
14. "Caesar c. 1908". Royal Collection Trust.