by Heidi Bock on 31 May, 2012
As I have just joined the Museum, I have been exploring and discovering the interesting facts about the 1954 Royal Tour and this majestic Daimler.
In 2004, we held an exhibition called Royal Romance that examined Australia’s passionate response to Queen Elizabeth II’s first visit in 1954, and whether the nation has fallen out of love since.
It is incredible to see the effort that went into the 1954 Royal Tour.
| 510,000 | pounds approximately in total contributed by the federal government |
| 500,000 | miles registered by the cars of Royal Visit Car Company |
| 200,000 | pounds contributed by the federal government for the use of the yacht Gothic |
| 200,000 | people filled the streets in the city Sydney when decorations for the Royal Tour were illuminated for the first time |
| 96,475 | pounds spent by the federal government on decorations and illuminations for Australian towns and cities visited by the Queen |
| 20,000 | cars participated in the gridlock that choked the city of Sydney when decorations for the Royal Tour were illuminated for the first time |
| 10,000 | air miles travelled by the Queen |
| 10,000 | cartons of canned fruit from Shepparton taken aboard Gothic |
| 5000 | cartons of tomato juice taken aboard Gothic |
| 3237 | bags of milk powder taken aboard Gothic |
| 3200 | passengers travelled by air during the Royal Tour |
| 2000 | road miles travelled by the Queen |
| 1500 | cases of canned meat taken aboard Gothic |
| 600 | hours flown by the RAAF |
| 363 | flights made by the RAAF |
| 257 | civil air flights |
| 207 | car journeys made by the Queen |
| 130 | hours spent by the Queen in motor cars |
| 100 | speeches made by the Queen in towns and cities she visited |
| 57 | hours spent by the Queen in aeroplanes |
| 35 | air flights by the Duke |
| 33 | air flights by the Queen |
| 20 | tons of freight in total for civil air passengers |
| 5 | engagements per day |
See more on the Royal Romance exhibition by visiting http://www.nma.gov.au/exhibitions/royal_romance/home
I’m looking forward to visiting the workshop next week and seeing the Royal Daimler for the first time.
My father was a plain clothes detective who was part of the security for the Queens 1954 visit. He was an escort on the flight from Sydney to Melbourne, went to the Royal Ball and to the Royal Race Meeting at Randwick (I have his numbered security badge to the Race Meeting).
The following year, Christmas 1955, my dad had a near fatal stroke and was paralysed at home for the following 9 years. I was just 10. The momento is a treasured trinket of my “old life” when Dad was my hero. I do not know what to do with this trinket as I am getting old and I know my family will not treasure it as I do. I would like it to go to someone who would care for it.
My father was a well known and respected member of the Vic Police Force and was the detective on a number of high profile murder cases, i.e. the 3 trials of John Bryan Kerr and the Jean Lee murder case, she was the last woman hanged in Victoria.
Valerie Currer
NSW Southern Highlands
Error: Sorry that should of course read “The Royal Race Meeting at Flemington”.
Valerie Currer
What a wonderful story Valerie. Sounds like your dad had an amazing working life. I think the Royal Daimler prompts a lot of memories for many Australians. I just spoke with one gentelman here in Canberra who recalled being almost bowled over by the car as a 15 year old school boy in Sydney. He saw that the car was making an exit from the Sydney Cricked Ground, raced from his position in the stalls and ended up in front of the Royal Daimler, to his and the driver’s great surprise!
Does anyone else have a tale to tell relating to the Royal Tour and the majestic Daimler?