When I was researching about Annerley for blog posts I came across the history of Princess Alexandra Hospital located in this suburb. The institution was named to honour Princess Alexandra who visited to celebrate Queensland’s centenary year in 1959. 100 years earlier Queen Victoria signed the Letters Patent to create the colony of Queensland on 6 June 1859. Queensland officially separated from New South Wales later that year on 10 December 1859 when the Letters were published in the inaugural issue of the Queensland Government Gazette. You can read an interesting article about it on Queensland State Archives’ website.
After reading about the visit of Princess Alexandra I couldn’t stop browsing about other royal visits in the Sunshine State and today I’d like to share with you some of the findings. The first reigning monarch to visit Australia was Queen Elizabeth II in 1954. However, before 1954 there were many visits by other members of the royal family and this is the focus of this post. In part 2, I’m going to write about the visits after 1945.
1868 Prince Alfred
The first royal visit was in 1868 by Prince Alfred the second son of Queen Victoria, Duke of Edinburgh who visited Australia while on the ‘round-the-world’ voyage on HMS Galatea. One of the most remembered events of the almost 6-month stay in Australia, was an assassination attempt at Clontarf, NSW, by Irishman, James O’Farrell.
Prince Alfred spent about a week in Brisbane and was greeted by the community. During the stay he laid the foundation stone of the original Brisbane Grammar School at Roma Street, the School was originally to be named Prince Albert School.
In the Brisbane Courier [23 March 1868, p.5] the visit was reported as “such a thorough interruption of the ordinary routine of life in this little community of ours as occurred from Monday morning until Saturday afternoon, such a restless, feverish excitement as seemed to pervade all classes during the whole time, may at the fist be pleasing on account of its novelty but it soon exhausts itself and becomes positively wearisome.“
1881 Prince Albert and Prince George (later King George V)
The only other royal visit during colonial times was in 1881 by Prince George and Prince Albert during their three-year tour of the British Empire visiting the Americas, the Falkland Islands, South Africa, Australia, Fiji, the Far East, Singapore, Ceylon, Aden, Egypt, the Holy Land and Greece between 1879 and 1882. You can read a compilation of Princes’ private journals, letters, and notebooks here.
For the visit, a public holiday was declared, and Princes had many attractions arranged. One of them was a ride to One-tree Hill (Mt Coot-Tha). “Unfortunately, the day was too dull to admit of a good view from the summit, but, nevertheless, the city and suburbs, as well as the squadron at anchor in the Bay, could be plainly seen.” – reported The Brisbane Courier [10 August 1881, p.3]. Another one was a picnic at Enoggera Reservoir with about 220 guests invited. At the Brisbane Grammar School, Princes planted a Moreton Bay Fig tree in the school grounds to commemorate their visit to the colony. In their address, they referred to their uncle’s earlier visit in 1868 and his association with the foundation of the School.
1901 Prince George (later King George V) 2nd visit
In 1901 Prince Edward was planning a round-the-world tour but the death of Queen Victoria required a change of plans and Prince George with Princess Mary embarked on a trip instead. One of the Prince’s main tasks in Australia was to inaugurate the first Australian Federal Parliament in Melbourne. They also spent 5 days in Queensland and some of the duties were laying the foundation stone of St John’s Cathedral and opening Brisbane Agricultural Show.
Later in 1936 after the then King George V death, the King George Square was renamed in his honour.
1920 Prince Edward (later King Edward VIII)
Prince Edward visited Australia on behalf of his father, King George V, to thank Australians for the part they had played in World War I. Travelling by train he visited many towns in Southern Queensland.
One of the few official functions was laying the foundation stone of the Brisbane City Hall. “Distant cheering heralded to those in the square the approach of the Royal Highness – cheering which increased in volume, and reached a deafening climax, when the royal car swung into the square, and stopped opposite the carpeted approach to the official dais, in the centre of which was the enormous foundation stone, hewn from granite quarries at Greymare, in the Warwick district. (…) The Mayor then presented his Royal Highness with an inscribed trowel, made of 15-ct Queensland gold, with a Queensland maple handle, in which was set Queensland opal.” – The Telegraph [30 July 1920]
1927 Duke of York (later King George VI) and Duchess of York (later The Queen Mother)
The primary duty of Prince Albert on this visit was to open the provisional Parliament House in Canberra, on 9 May 1927.
The royal couple wanted to see as many people as possible and to meet returned soldiers, new settlers, war widows, bereaved mothers, and school children.
“The tour has been extraordinary. We are astonished it the whole heartedness of the welcome. It has been a real revelation to us – a different type of thing from what we are used to. I may call it (but don’t misunderstand me) a marvellous exhibition of undisciplined loyalty. It is a fine thing, and the Duke has been greatly impressed. He was tremendously touched by the reception given him by the Diggers at the Wintergarden Theatre on Wednesday night” said Chief of Staff to the Duke and Duchess of York – Queensland Times [9 April 1927 p.9].
1934 Prince Henry, The Duke of Gloucester (third son of George V and later Governor-General of Australia 1945–7)
The main objective of Prince Henry’s visit was to open the centenary celebrations of Victoria on 18 October 1934. Yet he spent 10 days in Queensland. His itinerary was busy visiting Stanthorpe, Toowoomba, Gatton, Ipswich, and Brisbane. At Archerfield Aerodrome, he declared the overseas service of Qantas open.
In 1945 he returned to Australia as the first and only royal governor-general.
I hope you liked this post. In Part 2 I’m going to write about the royal visits in Queensland after 1945. And the first one was very important as Queen Elizabeth II was the first reigning monarch to visit Australia.
References:
Queensland State Archives – Royal visits to Queensland, an historical essay
- National Archives of Australia – Royalty and Australian Society
- State Library of Queensland – Prince George visits Queensland
- Brisbane Grammar School – Visiting Royalty
- Tales from Colonial Queensland – The Visit of Prince Alfred to Queensland 1868
