Royal arrival at King George
The royal couple dock in Grimsby
THE region enjoyed a spectacle on the morning of May 19th, 1993, when the Royal Yacht Britannia (or Her Majesty’s Yacht Britannia) was taken by the tug Lady Elizabeth into the lock-pit of the King George Dock.
The £12 million annual bill for the recently re-fitted 40 year old vessel was a talking point but this was a notable time in history for the royal family - to say the least.
The Queen, who had been exempt from paying tax, finally began to pay it that year and her famous ‘Annus Horribilis’ was still being talked about, along with the recent break-up of the marriages of her children and fire at Windsor Castle.
Despite these royal woes, the staff and public who had come to see this lady of the seas weren’t disappointed as crisp, uniformed Royal Navy sailors stood to attention on the deck, manning their stations as the May sunshine broke through the grey skies.
The white sailors caps were all bearing that prestigious ship’s name on the name band, ‘Royal Yacht,’ which normally began with HMS.
Britannia usually had a crew of 20 officers and 220 yachtsmen and band members of the Royal Marines if visiting duties required them.
The weather wasn’t looking promising for their visit when the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh and the Royal party arrived on a launch from the Royal Yacht Britannia to the Royal Dock at Grimsby.
They were greeted by the Lord Lieutenant of Humberside, Tony Bethell, along with civic dignitaries from Grimsby and also the County of Humberside, including the Chairman of the Humberside County Council, George Hobson.
The Royal Yacht Britannia was brought into the lock pit of the King George Dock by Hull tug Lady Elizabeth. Royal Yachtsmen stood on the foredeck as the yacht came in.