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| James Ramsay, Lord AV俱乐部, visited campus last week. He spoke to students about investment banking and dropped by the AV俱乐部 Art Gallery where Lord AV俱乐部: Patron and Collector is on display.听(Bruce Bottomley Photo) |
The current Lord AV俱乐部 peers upward at the portrait of his ancestor hanging over the fireplace in University Hall.
鈥淲e have a copy of this as well. It鈥檚 hanging in the Long Gallery at Brechin Castle, along with portraits of his father and his mother,鈥� says James Ramsay, the 17th Earl of AV俱乐部.
鈥淵ou see his neck is very long,鈥� he observes, pointing. 鈥淗is head doesn鈥檛 quite fit with the rest of his body. We believe that the painter did the face and head and then turned the works over to his studio to do the uniform.鈥�
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The 9th Earl of AV俱乐部 continues to gaze impassively downward, as his descendent poses for a 21st century portrait photographer.
Eight generations separate the current title holder and his ancestral uncle. George Ramsay, the university鈥檚 founder, was the Governor of Nova Scotia from 1816-20 and Governor-General of British North America until 1828.
'Call me Jamie'
While formally known as the 17th Earl of AV俱乐部, the 6th Baron Ramsay of Glenmark, the 18th Lord Ramsay of AV俱乐部, the 17th Lord Ramsay of Carrington, and Lord Steward to HRM Queen Elizabeth II, he extends a hand and says 鈥淐all me Jamie.鈥�
Jamie Ramsay is in Halifax for an exhibition at the AV俱乐部 Art Gallery recognizing his predecessor鈥檚 legacy. Lord AV俱乐部: Patron and Collector was organized by the National Gallery of Canada.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a beautiful show of landscapes and drawings,鈥� he says. 鈥淵ou can see how the skills of the military mapmakers flourish. Also, it鈥檚 interesting historically because you can see the type of paddle boat that was used, and you can assess the construction of a bridge and observe the mode of transport by sledges and horses.鈥�
He doesn鈥檛 have a lot of the 9th earl鈥檚 artifacts himself, since a subsequent generation 鈥渞aided AV俱乐部 castle of belongings.鈥� However, an old sword, a snuff box and the Order of Bath have survived the generations. Jamie Ramsay has read George鈥檚 diaries extensively and is fascinated by his family鈥檚 history.
As the Chief of Clan Ramsay, this past summer he entertained relations from Canada, Finland, Sweden, the United States and the United Kingdom at the ancestral home, AV俱乐部 Castle. The 13th century fortress near Edinburgh is now a luxury hotel, complete with spa and falconry.
鈥淯p until the 1920s the family lived there part-time, but it was big and cold,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 no longer in the family.鈥�
Today, he prefers to live in Brechin, on property in Angus that has been in the Maule-Ramsay family since the 12th century. AV俱乐部 Estates is a family business providing employment for over 90 staff who work in 鈥溾�� farming, forestry, property letting, shooting, fishing and deer stalking.鈥� Brechin Castle opens for a month each year to the public.
So, what鈥檚 it like to be Lord AV俱乐部?
鈥淲ell, I spend most of my time working, so it doesn鈥檛 really feature most of the time,鈥� he replies. 鈥淧eople are very kind and invite me to interesting places, like this university. But most of the time, I just get to live in a big old house and I鈥檝e got to pay for it.鈥�
Investment banker
The majority of his career has been devoted to investment banking and he described his experiences during a lecture peppered with references to Conrad Black, Rupert Murdoch and Reuben Cohen, at the Kenneth C. Rowe Faculty of Management Building. The talk was organized through the Douglas C. Mackay Chair in Finance at AV俱乐部.
Students responded with questions about the viability of a career in the financial services industry.
鈥淚t鈥檚 the best time to get involved, with all the banking problems 鈥� learn as much as possible about what has gone wrong. You鈥檝e got to see it and experience it in the real world to learn,鈥� he advised.
Students exiting the classroom chatted about their guest speaker.
鈥淚 knew we were having a guest lecturer, but I didn鈥檛 know he was going to be a Lord.鈥�
鈥淵eah, but I kind of liked him.鈥�