It is said and widely believed that Jonathan, the tortoise, is the oldest living creature on the planet, believed to be over 190 years old. He is a giant Seychelles tortoise, said to have arrived on the island in 1882, with his birth estimated at 1832.
Jonathan, and his companions, there are three of them, all of the same species, live in a protected enclosure in the gardens of Plantation House, the official residence of the Governor of St Helena. (The Governor governs St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Islands). No offspring have ever resulted from Jonathan’s female companions, but eggs are often to be found.
Unfortunately, we do not have any photos of our visit to Jonathan in 1982, but all of us remember him vividly.
My tour of Plantation House was with about twelve others, and we had a tour guide, who took us through the various rooms and explained the history of the house, including a corridor with dozens of portraits of past governors. I noted quite quickly, that there has only ever been one woman governor so far. She served from 2016 to 2019. She currently works as a guide in London.
The last room we were guided into was the library, and occupying it were four people and a dog. The dog, a black Labrador, belonged to the Governor and his family. Three adults, one of whom was the Governor’s wife, were restoring old books, carefully, together at a table, and the fourth was a teenager, the daughter of one of the restorers. As an avid reader and lover of books, libraries and book stores, I was fascinated. No one dared speak first; so of course, I had to start. I asked one question after another, and then some of the remaining group members joined in too. Apart from the Governor’s wife, they are volunteers from abroad, spending time every day, for about six months, dedicating their time to rebinding and restoring the books in the library.
Our tour ended with a sit down tea with scones and fruit cake. As soon as we were finished, we were led outside to visit the gardens and Jonathan and his mates.
Dates: January 2026.
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