Victoria Davies was the eldest child of James Pinson Labulo Davies, a wealthy Lagos merchant, and Sara Forbes Bonetta, an Egbado omoba who had been adopted as the goddaughter of Queen Victoria. When she was born in 1863, she was named in honour of the Queen, who accepted to be her godmother as well.[1]
The queen provided her with both an annuity and a golden christening set.[1] She later invited the younger Victoria to Windsor. Like her mother, she also showed considerable intelligence. She was educated at Cheltenham Ladies' College.[2] In 1890, Victoria married Dr. John Randle, a West African Scottish-trained medical doctor, and two hundred guests - including the governor of the Lagos Colony – were in attendance at the wedding at St. Paul’s Church in Lagos. The service was officiated by the Reverend James Johnson and her wedding gown was a careful selection of the queen's, as her own mother's had been years before.[1]
Victoria Davies Randle later took her children Beatrice and John to visit her godmother in 1900, escorted by Bishop Johnson. In a continuation of tradition, Princess Beatrice then became her own daughter's godmother.[1]
Her marriage eventually fell apart; she lived in exile with the children thereafter, first in the United Kingdom and then in Sierra Leone, only returning to Lagos in 1917. In London, Davies Randle had made the acquaintance of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, the prodigy who would rise to become a prominent Black British musician. She was later mentioned by Coleridge-Taylor as the source of the Yoruba folk song in his collection, Oloba yale mi.[1] Davies Randle provided Coleridge-Taylor with a Yoruba drum theme that he used in his Twenty-four Negro Melodies.[3] Her final years were dedicated to the activities of the Ladies' Club, a group of upper-class women in Lagos.[1]
victoria, davies, randle, this, article, about, west, african, princess, british, tennis, player, victoria, davies, victoria, matilda, davies, randle, née, davies, 1863, 1920, socialite, victorian, lagos, nigeria, omobabornvictoria, matilda, davies1863lagos, c. This article is about the West African princess For the British tennis player see Victoria Davies Victoria Matilda Davies Randle nee Davies 1863 1920 was a socialite in Victorian Lagos Nigeria OmobaVictoria Davies RandleBornVictoria Matilda Davies1863Lagos Colonial NigeriaDied1920 1921 aged 57 LagosNationalityWest AfricanOther namesVictoria DaviesOccupationSocialiteKnown forBeing the goddaughter of Queen VictoriaSpouseDr John Randle m 1890 wbr ChildrenBeatrice Randle daughter John Jack Romanes Adewale Randle son Parent s James Pinson Labulo Davies Sara Forbes BonettaLife EditVictoria Davies was the eldest child of James Pinson Labulo Davies a wealthy Lagos merchant and Sara Forbes Bonetta an Egbado omoba who had been adopted as the goddaughter of Queen Victoria When she was born in 1863 she was named in honour of the Queen who accepted to be her godmother as well 1 The queen provided her with both an annuity and a golden christening set 1 She later invited the younger Victoria to Windsor Like her mother she also showed considerable intelligence She was educated at Cheltenham Ladies College 2 In 1890 Victoria married Dr John Randle a West African Scottish trained medical doctor and two hundred guests including the governor of the Lagos Colony were in attendance at the wedding at St Paul s Church in Lagos The service was officiated by the Reverend James Johnson and her wedding gown was a careful selection of the queen s as her own mother s had been years before 1 Victoria Davies Randle later took her children Beatrice and John to visit her godmother in 1900 escorted by Bishop Johnson In a continuation of tradition Princess Beatrice then became her own daughter s godmother 1 Her marriage eventually fell apart she lived in exile with the children thereafter first in the United Kingdom and then in Sierra Leone only returning to Lagos in 1917 In London Davies Randle had made the acquaintance of Samuel Coleridge Taylor the prodigy who would rise to become a prominent Black British musician She was later mentioned by Coleridge Taylor as the source of the Yoruba folk song in his collection Oloba yale mi 1 Davies Randle provided Coleridge Taylor with a Yoruba drum theme that he used in his Twenty four Negro Melodies 3 Her final years were dedicated to the activities of the Ladies Club a group of upper class women in Lagos 1 She died in 1920 1 See also EditBlack British elite the class that Davies Randle belonged to Nigerian aristocracy the class that Davies Randle s mother belonged to Nigerian bourgeoisie the class that Davies Randle s father belonged toReferences Edit a b c d e f g Victoria Davies LitCaf Encyclopedia 14 January 2016 Retrieved 14 October 2020 Laud Derek 27 January 2015 The Problem With Immigrants Biteback Publishing ISBN 978 1 84954 877 9 Boyce Davies Carole 2008 Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora Origins Experiences and Culture ABC CLIO p 927 ISBN 978 1 85109 700 5 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Victoria Davies Randle amp oldid 1129369219, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
