Visiting the Family and Introducing the Royals: British Royal Tours of the Dominions in the Twentieth Century and Beyond

Until the early twentieth century, colonial tours by British royals were rare, and the 1911 Delhi Durbar, where George V and Mary were crowned Emperor and Empress of India, marked the first time a reigning monarch had visited his overseas realms. As the century progressed, such imperial visits becom...

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Main Author: Robert Aldrich
Format: Article
Language:deu
Published: Winchester University Press 2018-06-01
Series:Royal Studies Journal
Subjects:
Online Access:https://rsj.winchester.ac.uk/articles/141
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author Robert Aldrich
author_facet Robert Aldrich
author_sort Robert Aldrich
collection DOAJ
description Until the early twentieth century, colonial tours by British royals were rare, and the 1911 Delhi Durbar, where George V and Mary were crowned Emperor and Empress of India, marked the first time a reigning monarch had visited his overseas realms. As the century progressed, such imperial visits become increasingly frequent, and Elizabeth II is the most widely travelled monarch in history. Royal tours of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa were different from those to other outposts because of the ‘Dominion’ status of the four countries (until South Africa became a republic in 1961), and because of the kinship felt to bind the monarch to settler populations. Such tours provided opportunities for the sovereign and family members to manifest the monarchy in the flesh to distant ‘relations’, wave the flag of Empire (and the Commonwealth), and express appreciation for the sacrifices of Dominion soldiers in the South African War and the World Wars. Tours, however, evolved in response to changing conditions in the Dominions, the Empire and the wider world, as well as the particular personalities of royal visitors and the political intentions of their hosts. There were also great differences in ways in which various groups—such as men and women— figured in and responded to tours. Furthermore, the changing place in the tours of Māori in New Zealand and Indigenous people in Australia reveals much about the position of native populations in the Dominions and their special relationship with the monarchy.
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spelling doaj.art-ebe265a20da74de19241bc75492ecc8c2022-12-22T02:59:59ZdeuWinchester University PressRoyal Studies Journal2057-67302018-06-015111410.21039/rsj.141142Visiting the Family and Introducing the Royals: British Royal Tours of the Dominions in the Twentieth Century and BeyondRobert Aldrich0University of SydneyUntil the early twentieth century, colonial tours by British royals were rare, and the 1911 Delhi Durbar, where George V and Mary were crowned Emperor and Empress of India, marked the first time a reigning monarch had visited his overseas realms. As the century progressed, such imperial visits become increasingly frequent, and Elizabeth II is the most widely travelled monarch in history. Royal tours of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa were different from those to other outposts because of the ‘Dominion’ status of the four countries (until South Africa became a republic in 1961), and because of the kinship felt to bind the monarch to settler populations. Such tours provided opportunities for the sovereign and family members to manifest the monarchy in the flesh to distant ‘relations’, wave the flag of Empire (and the Commonwealth), and express appreciation for the sacrifices of Dominion soldiers in the South African War and the World Wars. Tours, however, evolved in response to changing conditions in the Dominions, the Empire and the wider world, as well as the particular personalities of royal visitors and the political intentions of their hosts. There were also great differences in ways in which various groups—such as men and women— figured in and responded to tours. Furthermore, the changing place in the tours of Māori in New Zealand and Indigenous people in Australia reveals much about the position of native populations in the Dominions and their special relationship with the monarchy.https://rsj.winchester.ac.uk/articles/141british empirecolonialismcommonwealthqueen elizabeth ii
spellingShingle Robert Aldrich
Visiting the Family and Introducing the Royals: British Royal Tours of the Dominions in the Twentieth Century and Beyond
Royal Studies Journal
british empire
colonialism
commonwealth
queen elizabeth ii
title Visiting the Family and Introducing the Royals: British Royal Tours of the Dominions in the Twentieth Century and Beyond
title_full Visiting the Family and Introducing the Royals: British Royal Tours of the Dominions in the Twentieth Century and Beyond
title_fullStr Visiting the Family and Introducing the Royals: British Royal Tours of the Dominions in the Twentieth Century and Beyond
title_full_unstemmed Visiting the Family and Introducing the Royals: British Royal Tours of the Dominions in the Twentieth Century and Beyond
title_short Visiting the Family and Introducing the Royals: British Royal Tours of the Dominions in the Twentieth Century and Beyond
title_sort visiting the family and introducing the royals british royal tours of the dominions in the twentieth century and beyond
topic british empire
colonialism
commonwealth
queen elizabeth ii
url https://rsj.winchester.ac.uk/articles/141
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