Palmerston (cat)

Palmerston
A black and white cat sits regally on a traditionally upholstered chair
Palmerston in 2017
Chief Mouser to the Foreign & Commonwealth Office
Held title
13 April 2016 – 7 August 2020
MonarchElizabeth II
Prime MinisterDavid Cameron
Theresa May
Boris Johnson
Foreign SecretaryPhilip Hammond
Boris Johnson
Jeremy Hunt
Dominic Raab
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byVacant
Personal details
Born2014 (2014)
Died12 February 2026(2026-02-12) (aged 11–12)
Hamilton, Bermuda
OccupationMouser
GenderMale
NicknamePalmy[1]

Palmerston (2014 – 12 February 2026) was a black-and-white tuxedo cat who was the resident Chief Mouser of the UK's Foreign & Commonwealth Office. He held the role for four years, from 2016 until his retirement in 2020. He briefly came out of retirement in 2025, when he was taken to Bermuda with Andrew Murdoch, his owner since retirement, who had taken on the position of Governor of Bermuda.

Biography

Palmerston was born in 2014. He was from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home and was named after the former Foreign Secretary and Prime Minister Lord Palmerston. In 2016 he began working as Chief Mouser of the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) at Whitehall in London, and was employed at the King Charles Street building.[2]

The inception of the position of Chief Mouser at the FCO followed from the position Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office, Larry, and from visits from George Osborne's cat Freya who made regular visits to the office.[3]

Palmerston was in the news on 3 May 2016, as it was reported that he had caught his first mouse.[4] On 11 July 2016, Palmerston was caught on camera in a stand-off between himself and Larry in and around Downing Street.[5][6] On 26 July 2016, Palmerston was caught sneaking into Number 10, when the black door was left open. He was later evicted by resident police.[7] On 1 August 2016, a journalist caught Palmerston and Larry having a serious cat-fight, which led to Palmerston having damage to his ear and Larry losing his collar.[8]

On 7 August 2020, Palmerston retired as the FCO's Chief Mouser, moving to the countryside to "spend more time relaxing away from the limelight"; his "resignation" was announced on Twitter.[9][10]

On 3 February 2025, it was reported that Palmerston had come out of retirement to take up a role in Bermuda as "feline relations consultant" to the new Governor of Bermuda, Andrew Murdoch, who had owned Palmerston since his retirement.[11][12]

Palmerston died on 12 February 2026.[13][14][12]

See also

References

  1. ^ Solomon, Alva (13 February 2026). "Palmerston, island's top cat, mourned by Government House". The Royal Gazette. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  2. ^ Helena Horton (13 April 2016). "Palmerston the cat arrives for work at the Foreign Office". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  3. ^ Ashton, Emily (11 April 2016). "The Foreign Office Is Getting Its Own Cat and It's Called Palmerston". BuzzFeed. Archived from the original on 14 April 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  4. ^ Horton, Helen (3 May 2016). "Palmerston the diplocat catches first mouse since joining the Foreign Office". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 September 2017. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  5. ^ Etchingham, Julie. "Who's the new top cat in Downing Street tonight - Larry in stand off - join us @ITV news at ten". Twitter, @julieetchitv. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
  6. ^ Kuenssberg, Laura. "Here is the exclusive video..." Twitter, @bbclaurak. Archived from the original on 14 July 2016. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
  7. ^ Horton, Helena (26 July 2016). "Boris Johnson's cat evicted from 10 Downing Street after sneaking in when the door was open". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 28 July 2016. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  8. ^ Horton, Helena (1 August 2016). "Number 10 cat Larry loses collar in 'most brutal fight yet' with Foreign Office's Palmerston". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 20 February 2018. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  9. ^ Palmerston [@DiploMog] (6 August 2020). "! Important News !" (Tweet). Retrieved 7 August 2020 – via Twitter.
  10. ^ Parkinson, Justin (7 August 2020). "Foreign Office cat Palmerston retires to countryside". BBC News. Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  11. ^ Bell, Johnathan (3 February 2025). "Fame follows Governor's celebrity cat to Bermuda". The Royal Gazette. Archived from the original on 7 February 2025. Retrieved 4 February 2025.
  12. ^ a b "Former Foreign Office chief mouser Palmerston dies in Bermuda". ITV News. 14 February 2026. Archived from the original on 15 February 2026. Retrieved 14 February 2026.
  13. ^ Palmerston [@DiploMog] (13 February 2026). "Palmerston, Diplocat extraordinaire, passed away peacefully on 12 February. "Palmy" was a special member of the Government House team in Bermuda, and a much loved family member. He was a wonderful companion, with a gentle nature, and will be sorely missed" (Tweet). Retrieved 14 February 2026 – via X (formerly Twitter).
  14. ^ Fatima, Zahra (14 February 2026). "Former Foreign Office cat Palmerston dies in Bermuda". BBC News. Archived from the original on 16 February 2026. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmerston_(cat)