British Consul Pankhurst Switzerland: Passport Form

British Consul Pankhurst Switzerland
You see here a blank form of a British consular passport from the late 19th century (18xx). The form is printed on exclusive paper with a watermark. The credentials identify James Pankhurst, Vice-Consul in Switzerland at Lausanne. The condition is fantastic, with minor defects at the folding.

Swiss official records indicate that Pankhurst was at his post from Sep 1886-1888. Otherwise, I didn’t find more details about him. The British Ambassador then was Francis Ottiwell Adams (1825–1889).

He served as Secretary of the British Legation in Japan from 1868 to 1872 and as British Ambassador in Switzerland from 1881 to 1888. As Ambassador to Switzerland, he was among the signatories of the Bern Convention of 1886.

Finding a blank passport form from the 19th century is pretty lucky.

The British consulate in Lausanne was finally closed in 1948, according records from the national archives.

DID YOU KNOW?
During the Cold War, the Swiss Army unit Projekt-26 received covert training from the British intelligence agencies MI5 and MI6. In the event of an invasion of Switzerland, P-26 planned to relocate its command center to Britain.

Tom Topol | Passport Historian & Author
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