The Glanville inheritance
The Glanville Fritillary is only found in the south of the Isle of Wight in the UK. This was roosting on valerian in a brisk sea-breeze.
I particularly liked getting the underside and topside of the butterfly in one shot.
By Ian Pratt, solicitor and Butterfly Conservation member - From Butterfly - March 2009.
UPDATE: the One Show on BBC1 featured a short film about Eleanor Glanville and the butterfly named after her. The piece aired on Monday 27 July 2009 at 19.00.
As a solicitor, keen photographer and Butterfly Conservation member living on the Isle of Wight, I would be spoilt for choice if I were asked which was my favourite butterfly. Would it be the Silver-Washed Fritillary, the White Admiral, the Adonis Blue, the Small Tortoiseshell or the speciality of the Isle of Wight, the Glanville Fritillary? I like them all, but the Glanville Fritillary, which is a highly restricted species in the UK confined to the south coast of the Isle of Wight, has an interesting legal story linked to it.
The Glanville Fritillary was named after Lady Eleanor Glanville, who was a rather eccentric English butterfly enthusiast in the 18th century and the first to capture British specimens in Lincolnshire. Such was her interest in butterflies that when she died her children tried to set aside her will on the basis that no one in their right senses would be as keen on butterflies as she was. Apparently they succeeded in that application! Today keen butterfly enthusiasts are not seen as eccentrics but rather as part of the mainstream environmental awareness movement of the 21st century. Anyone who is interested in butterflies is concerned for the future of the planet.
In those moments when the future looks particularly bleak, you may ask, “Why should I make a will?” There are a good number of reasons for doing so.
Firstly, if you do not make a will, the rules of intestacy will apply, which means that when you die your assets will be divided between your relatives according to statutory rules, and therefore may go to people you do not wish to benefit. In the event that you die without relatives then your estate would go to the Crown – i.e., the Treasury’s coffers – instead of, for example, to favourite charities if you had made a will.
Secondly, you can appoint your own executors, who will put into effect the terms of your will and these will be people you trust implicitly.
Thirdly, you can appoint guardians for any minor children you may have should you die before they reach 18 years of age.
Making a will also enables you to put in hand tax planning measures to avoid, as far as possible, inheritance tax depleting your estate. Remember also that if you are neither married nor in a civil partnership your partner will not inherit automatically on your death and therefore if you make a will you can ensure that your partner is provided for.
Finally, in a will you can leave bequests of certain items or cash legacies to people who have been important to you during your lifetime.
The National Consumer Council recently did research which revealed that more than 27 million people in England and Wales do not have a will. Also, 30 per cent of individuals aged 65 and over, that is nearly two million people with a life expectancy of less than 20 years, have not made a will!
The cost for making a will can be around £100 for a single will and £150 for mirror wills.
Contact your own solicitor to discuss your requirements, but make sure the solicitor is a specialist in this area of work.