TRAVELS WITH THE DUKE
whether it was riding elephants or meeting dignitaries, prince philip was an intrepid Traveller, full of energy and enthusiasm
During his busy life, the Duke of Edinburgh travelled the world several times as part of his royal duties. He notched up 229 visits to Commonwealth countries and 408 visits to other nations. Here are just a few of his most memorable globe-trotting moments...
australia – 1954
The royal couple embarked on an ambitious six-month Commonwealth tour to mark the coronation of June 1953. The Queen and Prince Philip visited several countries, including New Zealand, where they stayed for a month before heading to Australia – the first of many official visits there – for two months, when an estimated three-quarters of the population flocked to see them.
“They were greeted with a frenzy that is hard to imagine today,” former New Zealand prime minister David Lange recalled in 2005.
Bay of isles – 1957
In the year he was formally made a British prince, and as part of the Commonwealth Trans-antarctic Expedition, Philip became the first member of the royal family to cross the Antarctic Circle. He joined the expedition during his solo world tour aboard the royal yacht Britannia and, to commemorate the trip, which saw him encounter king penguins on the Bay of Isles, designed a linocut.
It shows an amusing image of what appears to be the Duke – complete with red nose – wrapped up against the elements as a seal and a penguin look on. On his return, the prince, a keen photographer, published his book Birds From Britannia.
solomon islands – 1959
This was just one of several far-flung destinations Philip visited during his 1959 world tour of scientific institutions – and was the first time a member of the British royal family had ever been to the Solomon Islands. The Duke of Edinburgh’s arrival was greeted with much pomp and ceremony, and silence from the crowd – to show respect.
ethiopia – 1965
Prince Philip and the Queen took time out for a spot of sightseeing during a royal tour of this African nation. They took in the dramatic views over the Blue Nile Falls, as guests of Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie.
Jamaica – 1966
On a royal visit to Jamaica, the Duke took an adventurous river-rafting trip on the Rio Grande
with Princess Anne. Four days earlier, on 4 August, he had opened the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in the island’s capital, Kingston.
Prince Philip had already visited Jamaica that year as part of a Caribbean tour with the Queen. Then they stopped off in Nassau, capital of the Bahamas, Saint Lucia and the West Indies.
Fiji – 1977
A six-week Commonwealth tour marking the Queen’s Silver Jubilee took in New Zealand, Australia, Tonga, Papua New Guinea, the West Indies, Canada and Fiji. Here, the royal couple were treated to a display of traditional Fijian dancing aboard the Britannia.
Bahrain – 1979
An avid ornithologist, Prince Philip was captivated by a falconry demonstration when he joined the Queen on a state visit to Bahrain in the Persian Gulf.
The South Pacific – 1982
The pair shared a laugh while watching a performance by traditional dancers during the first royal visit to the South Pacific island nation of Tuvalu. Wearing flower garlands, both the Queen and the prince seemed relaxed and comfortable seated on low stools as they enjoyed a traditional feast.
On Tanna, one of the islands of the Vanuatu archipelago, the locals worship Prince Philip as a god.
india – 1983
During the second of three visits to India, Philip visited the Kanha Game Reserve where he rode on an elephant and observed tigers. He and the Queen stayed in the guest wing of the Rashtrapati Bhavan Palace in Delhi, once home to the British viceroy, where the dinner menu was altered to suit their taste, with little or no Indian food served.
china – 1986
Accompanying the Queen on a visit to the Far East, Philip not only took in the Great Wall of China, but toured the Forbidden City in Beijing, which he later – and controversially – described as “ghastly”, and the tombs of the Ming emperors.
The couple then set sail for Hong Kong aboard the Britannia.
South africa – 2000
With his youngest son, Prince Edward, at his side, Philip travelled to Cape Town. There, they met Nelson Mandela at Drakenstein Prison, where the former South African president had spent the last stretch of his 27-year incarceration.
Australia – 2002
There was an awkward moment on this royal trip when Philip asked William Brim, the founder of Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park in Cairns, “Do you still throw spears at each other?” Fortunately, William didn’t seem offended by the question, replying, “No, we don’t do that any more.”
Australia – 2011
The Queen and Prince Philip made their 16th official visit to Australia, where she opened the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Perth. And on the final day of their trip, the Duke of Edinburgh couldn’t resist showing off his culinary skills at a “great Aussie barbecue” by flipping a steak on a sizzling grill.