From Harper’s Weekly, because I couldn’t write it better myself:
Penguin Nils Olav, the Norwegian King’s Guard mascot since 1972, was knighted in front of a crowd of several hundred people and 130 guardsmen. Nils, who shat himself during the ceremony, was, read the proclamation from King Harald the Fifth, “in every way qualified to receive the honour and dignity of knighthood.”
Named in honour of King Olav V, Nils the penguin lives an apparently happy life in Scotland’s Edinburgh Zoo. Unbeknownst to most of his adoring fans, the penguin is really Nils Olav II, selected after the original mascot’s death in 1987. By that time, he had risen through Norway’s military ranks from private to corporal, and then again to sergeant. According to Wikipedia — and I’m inclined to believe them on this — “he is the first penguin to hold this rank in the Norwegian army.”
Today, Nils enjoys the rank of Colonel-in-Chief, and outranks the vast majority of the Norwegian army.
Have I mentioned that I love Harper’s Weekly? Almost as much as I love Norway.
Photo via Futility Closet.
1 response so far ↓
1 B // Aug 21, 2008 at 10:41 pm
Makes sense to me.
Clearly the Scottish are the first to realize the potential military applications of penguins. Once again they show us the way…
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