Knatchbull Memorial Plaque

In 1975 Lord Mountbatten unveiled a plaque to mark the opening of the new dining hall. His grandson Nicholas Knatchbull, aged 10, was in the audience for the ceremony.

On June 10, 2004, Nicholas' godfather, HRH the Prince of Wales, unveiled a plaque in his memory, alongside the one Lord Mountbatten unveiled. Hundreds of current and former Dragon staff and pupils, together with Nicholas' friends and family attended. Afterwards, Nicholas's identical twin brother Timothy hosted a lunch at the Cherwell Boathouse, and showed a 1975 BBC film about the Dragon.

Details of the ceremony can also be viewed on Prince Charles' web site: click here to view

From the Oxford Mail, Friday 11th June 2004

Bursary set up in pupil's honour

Prince Charles visited Oxford yesterday and paid an emotional tribute to his godson, who was killed in an IRA bomb explosion 25 years ago.
The Prince of Wales arrived by helicopter at the Dragon School to unveil a plaque in memory of former pupil Nicholas Knatchbull, 14. A line of pupils greeted the Prince on the school sports field and he spent 20 minutes chatting to them and shaking their hands.
Nicholas, a former pupil at the school, was killed alongside his grandfather, the Queen's cousin, Lord Louis Mountbatten, when a bomb exploded on their fishing boat off Mullaghmore, County Sligo, in August, 1979.
The family had been spending the summer at the earl's castle in the north west of the Irish Republic when the attack happened. A local boy employed to work on the boat, Paul Maxwell, 15, was also killed. Yesterday would have been his 40th birthday.
The IRA admitted planting the bomb and Thomas McMahon was later convicted of the three murders.
During the ceremony in the school hall, Prince Charles recalled that at the age of 16 he was asked to become godfather to Nicholas and his identical twin, Timothy.
He described the twins, his first godchildren, as "hilarious" and said they were always pulling his leg. He added: "They were very special because as children when I read to them in bed sometimes they actually paid attention.
"They even paid attention to the book I wrote for my brothers when they were small -- The Old Man of Lochnagar. Not everyone paid attention."
Standing beside the plaque that Lord Mountbatten himself unveiled when he officially opened the school's dining room, Prince Charles said: "As you can imagine, I was absolutely struck dumb, almost destroyed, when I heard about this terrible disaster 25 years ago.
"When I think about it now of course, one realises just how much we miss all those who lost their lives on that fateful occasion. But Nicky's spirit still lives on."
The Prince also spoke of his "enormous pleasure" that since the loss of his twin, Timothy had found happiness with his wife, Isabella.
He said: "They were so close that Timothy had such a difficult time the last 25 years in being the one left behind."
Timothy was joined at the ceremony by old school friends, former teachers and his mother, Countess Mountbatten of Burma. His father, Lord Brabourne, could not make it because of illness.
A bursary has been set up in memory of Nicholas and will be used to pay school fees for children who could not otherwise afford to attend the Dragon School.
Pupil Minnie Brown, 11, was among the children who performed two songs for Prince Charles during the ceremony.

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