Overview

The origins of HM Yacht Britannia date back to 1938 yet it was not until 5th February 1952 that the Clydeside yard John Brown & Co Ltd was awarded the building contract. She was launched by HM The Queen on 16th April 1953 and commissioned on 7th January 1954. During her 44 years of active service Britannia steamed a total of 1,087,623 nautical miles conducting 696 Royal visits overseas and 272 in home waters. Among her numerous deployments she sailed to the Antarctic in 1956/57. She was used to open the St Lawrence Seaway in 1959 and in January 1986 while on passage for the Queen's State Visit to New Zealand and Australia she was diverted to assist in the evacuation of refugees from Aden. At home she became the focus of national events such as the Queen's 1977 Silver Jubilee Fleet Review and in 1994 she embarked an unprecedented number of Heads of State for the 50th commemorations of the D Day landings. Britannia's final International period of Royal Duty came in 1997 when the Prince of Wales presided over the formal hand over of Hong Kong to China. In addition to her official duties Britannia provided the Royal Family with a place to relax in particular the Royal Family's annual cruise of the Western Isles and was also increasingly used with considerable success to promote British industry abroad. She was decommissioned on 11th December 1997 and subsequently preserved in Leith. This Official History of the Royal Yacht is being prepared by Richard Johnstone-Bryden and has the full unprecedented support of Her Majesty the Queen and HRH Duke of Edinburgh. As part of his research the author has interviewed a cross section of those involved in the story of this great ship from members of the Royal Family through to the junior Royal Yachtsmen as well as those who built her and those involved in her preservation. Moreover, many of the photographs have been made available by the MOD and Royal Archives including a number of informal photographs of the Royal Family.

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Reviews

Britannia was present at many historic events during the late 20th century, but until now her own history has never been fully told. Marine author Johnstone-Bryden puts that right with an affectionate 'This is Your Life' type of account that begins with the ship's conception in the 1930s and takes us through to that emotional day in 1997 when both the Queen and Princess Royal wept at the decommissioning ceremony. While the Royal Yacht became one of the most prominent symbols of British pride and tradition on her near-1000 official sailings, little information was ever released to the public about what life was really like aboard this floating palace-cum-embassy. The details, revealed to Johnstone-Bryden by the Queen, Prince Philip, Prince Charles and other members of the Royal Family as well as their guests and crew members, are surprisingly unstuffy. Amid all the pomp and ceremonials of state visits, laughter was never far away. The Royal Family found it easy to relax while at sea, and they made sure that everyone from the ship's most notable VIPs to the youngest apprentice galley assistant joined in. Photographs from the royal archives, never before seen publicly, show such things as Prince Philip dressed up as a Beatle complete with wig and guitar, the royal children playing at being sailors, and the Queen and Prince Philip helping to make a gigantic Christmas pudding. None of this may be the stuff of history in itself but it shows a side of the Royal Family few have previously witnessed. Lighthearted photographs and anecdotes take their place with the more formal stuff of state visits as Britannia criss-crossed the globe on numerous occasions. VIPs tell of their memorable visits to the Royal Yacht, and crew members go into detail of what the Queen is like as a boss. The tales and chronological details of Britannia's history are entertaining and sometimes controversial - as in the revelation of the Queen's irritation with John Major over his dithering about whether the ship should be replaced. Prince Philip reveals his own irritation, albeit in a muted way, when in a foreword he writes: 'She (Britannia) managed to project the very best of British characteristics to people all over the world, which also produced significant tangible and intangible contributions to the British economy.' He and the Queen obviously have no truck with the idea that Britannia became an extravagance the nation could not afford. Those reading this sumptuous, lavishly illustrated book might well come to agree. (Kirkus UK)

Author Information

Richard Johnstone-Bryden is a marine photographer and author who contributes to leading yachting magazines. His previous books include HMS Ark Royal (IV) (Sutton, 1999) and the forthcoming History of the Fleet Air Arm in the Twentieth Century (Fleet Air Arm Museum).

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