royaltour1954

Daily newspapers filled their columns with royal updates and ‘tiny details,’ describing events on the Queen’s schedule. On 17 March on one of these occasions, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was greeted by more than 3,000 women who attended a reception for her in Brisbane’s City Hall, accompanied by Mrs. Gair, wife of the Queensland Premier, The Honourable V. C. Gair. Representatives from 18 women’s organisations were presented to the Queen and another 130 organisations carried flowers and bouquets as floral tributes to give to Her Majesty. These were later distributed among various hospitals in Brisbane. Source: www.slq.qld.gov.au/blog/hear-ye-hear-ye-its-1954-and-her-...

" "I am very glad to be with you today and to have this opportunity of meeting representatives of the women's organisations of Queensland. "The wide scope of Interest you represent is sure evidence of the valuable part that is being played by the women of Queensland in this State, and in the national life of Australia, to an ever-increasing degree since the war, and no doubt because of it the influence of women is being extended beyond the home. "This is right, for there is a great deal that women can do in many spheres of public life, not only in arts and in medicine, and in education, but also in commerce and in the business of Government. "Indeed. I do not think that there is any field of human activity in which the influence of women cannot be joined profitably to that of men for the two are complementary, and together create a balanced attitude to life and its problems. THOSE GREAT VIRTUES "But woman's paramount duty will always be in the home and towards her family where the virtues that make for human welfare and happiness have their origin. "It is there that women are not only most useful but also find their truest fulfillment. "I wish you all every possible success in the work you are doing here in the great cities and outposts of settlement, and I pray the family life of Queensland will always continue to bring happiness and strength to her people." Source: trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/212330864?searchTerm=c... The Queen addressed the women's audience at City Hall, Brisbane 1954.

That time the Queen and Prince Philip popped into Bundy IT WAS the biggest news of the year when newly-crowned Queen Elizabeth and her husband the Duke of Edinburgh came to the Rum City. By Sandra Godwin and Vanessa Marsh THE biggest news of the year - if not the century - was the visit by newly-crowned Queen Elizabeth and her husband the Duke of Edinburgh in 1954. During the nine weeks before the March 11 visit, the NewsMail published no fewer than 57 articles about the impending visit in 40 days. On January 8, there was the news that March 11 had been gazetted as a public holiday. Then there were all the updates on planning: the procession route, the ceremony, decorations, and protocol, as well as the continuing bun fight over who was to be presented to the royal visitors. "If only we had television," was the comment of many Bundaberg people who listened to the broadcast of the Queen's arrival in Sydney on February 3. After two people collapsed and died in the crash as one million people tried to see the Queen in Melbourne on February 24, Bundaberg hotels were asked to regulate the number of people they allowed on their balconies in the interests of safety. To mark the royal visit, the NewsMail on March 10 published a six-page supplement "devoted exclusively to the discovery, development, and aspirations of Bundaberg and district in all its phases, it will constitute an enduring memento of the greatest day in our history". The excitement built to a fever pitch as people prepared for "the greatest thrill of their lives". The city's illumination and decorations were complete, and fine weather was promised. "Nearly 70,000 people from the Wide Bay and Burnett gave Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh an unforgettable welcome in Bundaberg yesterday", the NewsMail read on March 12. The big crowd was so enthusiastic that it cheered the progress of the plane after its departure from Brisbane was broadcast at 10.40 am. Ten thousand people were at the airport. Hundreds had slept there overnight while many others began to arrive and take up their positions long before daybreak. The airport presented a wonderful scene with six mammoth royal airliners and a fleet of 10 royal vehicles occupying the tarmac. The 300 police on duty sweltered in their winter uniforms but did a splendid job. Source: www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/bundaberg/that-tim...

A significant proportion of the Australian population saw the Royal couple during the tour. It was an extraordinarily popular event. The Queensland itinerary featured Brisbane on 9-10 and 16-18 March, and the regional cities Bundaberg and Toowoomba on 11 March, Townsville on 12 March, Cairns on 13 March, and Mackay and Rockhampton on 15 March. The Queen traveled 2600 km by plane, and the Townsville–Cairns–Mackay legs on the Royal yacht. Despite the distance, the Queen’s trip never took her inland from the Queensland coast further than Toowoomba, but many Queenslanders traveled inland to see their Queen. Elizabeth II commented that ‘what has impressed me the most was the long distances people traveled to see me. From Brisbane, the couple visited Bundaberg, Toowoomba, and, briefly, Oakey on 11 March. This journey included a 640 km flight and a 100 km car trip. People all over the state traveled to the major regional centers to catch sight of the Queen. In Toowoomba, schoolchildren rode milk trucks, and adults traveled in trucks and buses to see the Royal couple for only a fleeting moment. The federal government's Royal Visit commemorative book published just after the tour described one of the highlights of Toowoomba as the royal couple witnessing 'the grotesque, age-old ceremonial of the corroboree performed by full-blood Aborigines who have traveled from the Northern Territory for the occasion.' Source: www.qhatlas.com.au/content/queen-queensland-1954