Royal tours of Australia
Consequently, Edward's son Prince George, Duke of Cornwall and York, and his wife, Princess Mary, were assigned to undertake the voyage instead.
[13] In New Zealand, the Yorks enjoyed the local fishing[14] in the Bay of Islands accompanied by Australian sports fisherman Harry Andreas.
On 6 March 1948 it was announced that the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth would embark on a royal tour of Australia and New Zealand the following spring, accompanied by their daughter Princess Margaret.
An attempt to reschedule the tour, in scaled-back form, for early 1952 also foundered and plans for Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip to visit instead were put on hold when the King died in February of that year.
[16] Elizabeth II was the first reigning monarch of Australia to set foot on Australian soil, coming ashore at Farm Cove, Sydney, on 3 February 1954.
She had two years earlier been en route to Australia when her father died while she was on a private visit to Kenya, forcing her to return to the United Kingdom.
[18] Elizabeth was so popular with the Australian people they came out in their thousands, lining the streets for an opportunity to see her drive past or attending formal events where she was the honoured and most distinguished guest.
Adoring crowds hoped for the opportunity to shake her hand, give her a posy of fresh flowers or to engage in a short conversation with her as she walked by.
[19] At the conclusion of the tour the Prime Minister, Robert Menzies, stated in an article published in the Sydney Morning Herald: It is a basic truth that for our Queen we have within us, sometimes unrealised until the moment of expression, the most profound and passionate feelings of loyalty and devotion.
She travelled to the Australian Capital Territory, Brisbane,[21] Sydney, Melbourne, Tasmania, Adelaide and Perth, as well as many provincial and country areas during the time of her visit 14 February – 7 March.
"[citation needed] Cities and towns visited included Hobart,[24] Melbourne,[25] Sydney,[26] Canberra,[27] Darwin,[28] Kununurra,[28] Perth,[29] Adelaide,[30] Brisbane,[30] Coolangatta,[30] and Koolan Island.
Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester and his wife Alice visited the Australian Capital Territory, Victoria, New South Wales, Tasmania and Queensland between 20 March and 26 April 1965.
[33] The Queensland tour began on 12 April when the royal yacht Britannia entered Moreton Bay at Caloundra, sailing into Newstead Wharf.
Her Royal Highness Princess Anne accepted an invitation to spend three days on a working sheep station in south-west Queensland.
[32] After several days of engagements in the city of Brisbane, Queen Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh commenced their regional tour flying to Longreach on Wednesday 15 April.
The following day, on 16 April, HRH The Duke of Edinburgh was taken on an underground tour of the Mount Isa mine while Queen Elizabeth stayed above ground.
The Marshalling Area around R62 Shaft Winder Tower was cleaned, and a display was set up using operational mining equipment from underground so the queen could see it in action.
Their Royal Highnesses were taken to the Anglican Parish Hall at the intersection of Sydney and Gordon Streets for a civic reception, held in honour of their arrival.
[35] The rare collection item – 'James Cook University Development: Pimlico to the First Chancellor archival footage, 1960 – 1970' was one of the Treasures selected for the anniversary year.
According to the formal schedule, the Royal Yacht Britannia arrived off Green Island on the morning of 21 April, after leaving Townsville the day before.
Following the re-enactment, the queen officially opened the newly renovated James Cook Museum which was established in 1888 as the St Mary's Convent and boarding school run by the Sisters of Mercy originally from Dungarvan, Ireland.
To catch a glimpse of the Royal family, spectators crowded the wharf car park and lined the streets along the official route to the airport.
This time the Queen returned to London on 28 February for a General Election in Britain, cutting short the tour, which the Duke of Edinburgh completed.
Wearing the full dress uniform of a commander of the Royal Navy, the prince read from the book of Ecclesiasticus chapter 44: "Let us now praise famous men .
Lady Diana Spencer, later Princess of Wales, made a short private visit to Australia with her mother and step-father to their sheep station at Yass, north of Canberra, in early February 1981.
Anne, Princess Royal attended the memorial in Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, Victoria on Sunday, 22 February 2009, for victims of the 2009 Victorian bushfires.
At a reception in her honour held at Parliament House in Canberra on 21 October 2011, the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, described the Queen as "a vital constitutional part of Australian democracy".
This country has made dramatic progress economically in social scientific and industrial endeavours and above all in self-confidence.The Queen visited Canberra, Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth during the tour.
In June 2018, Kensington Palace announced that Prince Harry and his wife the Duchess of Sussex would tour Australia around the time of the Invictus Games which was held in Sydney in October 2018.
[63] King Charles III and Queen Camilla arrived in Australia on 18 October 2024 to tour the Australian Capital Territory and parts of New South Wales.
