The fact is, though St Helena has many attractions, this, the oldest of the immigrants, is so part and parcel of the legend of the island that none of Her Majesty’s governors would ever like to be in office when he gives up the ghost. Above all, they would not like to have their name attached to the death of this occupant of Plantation House park.
Many of you know, dear readers, that Jonathan is a giant tortoise from the Seychelles who arrived on the island by boat 136 years ago. Specialists think that he (for it is a ‘he’) was already 50 at that time, which would make the old boy today about 180 or 190. As far as we know, he is the oldest animal in the world. And the record is even better when you consider that Seychelles tortoises in principle never usually live longer than 150, and this tortoise has already lived fifty more than his allotted.
I was privileged to meet his vet, doctor Joe Hollins, who, in the same way that Doctor O’Meara used to do for Sir Hudson on behalf of another famous visitor to St Helena, provided me with his most recent health report. I can therefore reveal (and I reckon it’s an exclusive) that Jonathan is doing well for an animal of his age and is only suffering from caracts (which will not be operated on); he has an excellent appetite, particularly appreciating bananas, which is he eats out of Joe’s hand. For the rest, it’s true he’s not leaping around like a twenty-something, or indeed a one-hundred-and-twenty something, but rather he ceaselessly ambles around his park/sanctuary with never a thought of going beyond his limits, totally unlike the Emperor confined a mere 6 or so miles away on Longwood plateau. How’s he doing? Apparently, just great (but I’m not sure how the vet really knows that).
I must add that, since 1972, Jonathan has had company. A first female arrived from the Seychelles, Myrtle, and she too quartered the lawns until her death in 2016. And she was joined in 1991 by Frederika (who turned out to be a male and was then renamed Frederik!) who was brought to the island by the French navy at the end of the 60s. The sailors thought s/he would make a great mascot, until s/he turned out not so much. So they gave him to the French Domains on St Helena, who in turn gifted him to the Governor.
Since then, two other tortoises, also from the Seychelles – called David et Emma – have come to the gardens at Plantation House. An important detail: despite the fact that the males and females often mate (and the neighbours complain), they can never fertilise their eggs because the climate and terrain are unfavourable.
Does Jonathan in his moments of quietness (which are many, it must be said) go over the old times? And, though a good French tortoise (being from the Seychelles) but having become 110% British over time, does he think with particular pride of that day in 1947 when he was petted by King George VI, the Queen and Princess Elizabeth who, as queen, has recently beaten another record, namely, the longest ever reigning British monarch?
He’s definitely ‘tortoise’ something we won’t forget, wouldn’t you say?
Thierry Lentz, May 2019 (translation by Peter Hicks)
Thierry Lentz is a historian and director of the Fondation Napoléon
Here is a video of Jonathan (source: AFP ; duration: 2min09)