Backward Glance - Royal Visits

The Sunshine Coast has welcomed many royal visitors over the years, although we had to wait a little while for our first guests.

One of the first royal visitors to Queensland was Prince George in 1901, when he and his wife Mary visited from May 20-25.

During their visit, he laid the foundation stone at St John’s Cathedral in Brisbane and also opened the first Australian Federal Parliament in Melbourne.

He and the Royal party travelled to Australia by a British Naval ship HMS Ophir.

Edward, Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII) visited Queensland from July 26-August 5, 1920 on behalf of his father, King George V, to thank Australians for the part they had played in World War I.

Prince Edward arrived in Australia on board the HMS Renown in April 1920, having left England the previous month.

HMS Renown was constructed in Glasgow in 1916, it was regarded as one of the largest and fastest battle ships of the British Navy at that time.

As he travelled extensively throughout Australia, a special purpose royal train transported the prince to designated towns.

The train platforms were decorated and the route lined with ex-servicemen and loyal subjects who all wanted to greet the “Digger Prince” as he was known.

Special emphasis on the North Coast Line was the soldier settlement at Beerburrum, the largest settlement established for veterans who had returned home from World War I.

Between 1916 and 1929, more than 500 returned servicemen and their families lived in Beerburrum.

There were about 70 families living in the soldier settlement district from Elimbah to Beerburrum when the Prince of Wales briefly stepped off the royal train during his visit in August 1920.

The Prince of Wales’ interest in the people, and his informal and good humoured style, saw his popularity soar.

His particular concern was for the repatriation of soldiers, especially the wounded.

The Prince of Wales also served in World War I and was awarded the Military Cross in 1916.

This perhaps accounts for some of the public support shown for his visit two years after the cessation of World War l.

Loud shouts of “Digger” accompanied him throughout his visit and was one of the highest compliments in Australia at that time.

Crowds lined streets, roads and railway lines to catch a glimpse of him.

There was a mishap in Western Australia when the Prince of Wales, accompanied by Lord Louis Mountbatten, was involved in a train crash.

During the tour, their railway carriage overturned near Bridgetown.

This did not faze either of them and they made light of the incident as they walked up the railway tracks to a waiting train.

The prince had climbed out of the overturned carriage clutching important papers with a smile on his face and a cocktail shaker in his hand.

Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, the third son of George V, visited Australia for an extensive tour in 1934.

He toured the North Coast region and stayed at Buderim House for a while.

This was the Duke’s headquarters while he visited many places of interest in the region.

Buderim House boasted extensive tropical gardens and provided many pleasurable memories of his visit.

Opposite Buderim House was the lovely “Marimba”, then the home of Dr Shaw.

This residence was provided for the Duke’s staff whilst they were in the district.

An article in the Nambour Chronicle on December 14, 1934 reported that the Duke, accompanied by Dr Shaw, drove to Mooloolaba jetty from Buderim House and boarded Charles Clarke’s motor launch “Miss Bondoola”.

The party was taken across the river where they rode horses to the beach, returning later to the launch and back to the jetty.

Crowds lined the foreshore to catch a glimpse of this special visitor.

In 1959, Princess Alexandra of Kent came to Australia and visited many states.

One of the highlights was the visit to Queensland for the centenary celebrations.

The Premier of Queensland, Frank Nicklin, described her visit as a shining highlight.

A special royal train carried Princess Alexandra from Gympie to Nambour on September 3, 1959.

She travelled in the Vice-Regal carriage drawn by a diesel engine.

The carriage of the train was filled with red roses.

This was the first time that the Princess had travelled on a Queensland train.

After her arrival at Nambour, the Princess was welcomed to the dais through a guard of honour and then attended a civic reception.

She departed Nambour by car for Caloundra, via Maroochydore, Alexandra Headland, Buderim, Tanawha and the Bruce Highway.

She spent the night at Caloundra’s seaside headland at the Stumm family home, prior to attending an early reception at Caloundra’s Perle Hotel.

One of the most memorable visits to the Sunshine Coast region was in April 1983 when Lady Di and Prince Charles came for a visit.

Crowds lined the streets for a glimpse of the royal couple.

They visited Yandina’s Buderim Ginger factory and spent some time at Woombye’s Big Pineapple.

A buffet luncheon was royally prepared for the couple with female staff resplendent in different coloured flowing “Muumuu” dresses, which were all part of the tropical atmosphere.

Keeping a watchful eye on the royal couple was a large contingent of security, including Queensland police officers.

Amongst those police officers was a young Constable Mal Meninga, now well known as a favourite Queensland sporting legend.

Our reigning Queen, Elizabeth II opened the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) at the Hyatt’s Coolum resort in March 2002.

People lined the streets to catch a glimpse of Her Majesty, amid heavy security.

In 2003, as a 19-year-old, Prince Harry came for a private visit to the Sunshine Coast.

Prince Harry, wearing Australian flag board shorts, was seen surfing with friends while keeping a low profile.

Just like his son, Prince Charles went swimming at our Sunshine Coast beaches in 1974.

Keep an eye out on the Sunshine Coast beaches over the next month.

You never know who might be out having a surf and enjoying the sunshine.

Thanks to Sunshine Coast Council’s Heritage Library Officers for the words and Picture Sunshine Coast for the images.

Image details

Hero Image: Princess Alexandra of Kent at Civic Reception, during her visit to Nambour, 3 September 1959

Image 1: Duke of Gloucester passing welcoming crowds in Currie Street during his visit to Nambour, 8 December 1934

Image 2: Crowds waiting on the Mooloolah River bank to welcome the Duke of Gloucester on his return for a trip along the River board Charles Clarke's motor launch 'Miss Bondoola', Mooloolaba, December 1934

Image 3: Public reception for the Prince of Wales in Station Square, Nambour, 2 August 1920

Image 4: Public reception at Nambour for the Prince of Wales during his tour of Queensland in August 1920

Image 5:Public reception for Prince Charles and Princess Diana, Currie Street, Nambour, 12 April 1983

Image 6: Prince Charles and Princess Diana on a guided tour of the Buderim Ginger Growers Factory, Yandina, April 1983

Image 7: Crowds gathered to welcome Prince Charles and Princess Diana during their tour of the Sunshine Plantation, Woombye, April 1983

Image 8: Prince Charles and Princess Diana aboard the ‘nutmobile’ at the Sunshine Plantation complex, Woombye, 12 April 1983