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Royal tours of Canada
Since 1786, members of the Canadian royal family have visited Canada, either as an official tour, a working tour, a vacation, or a period of military service. The first member to visit was the future King William IV in 1786. In 1939, King George VI became the first reigning monarch to tour the country.
Originally, official tours were events predominantly for Canadians to see and possibly meet members of their royal family, with the associated patriotic pomp and spectacle. However, nearing the end of the 20th century, such occasions took on the added dimension of a theme; for instance, the 2005 tour of Saskatchewan and Alberta by Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, was deemed to be a vehicle for the Queen and Canadians to honour "the spirit of nation builders" and the couple's tour in 2010 was themed "honouring the Canadian record of service—past, present, and future."
Between 1951 and 2018, 24 members of the royal family toured the country; at least one per year from 1957 to 2018. Queen Elizabeth II undertook the most tours of any member of the royal family: 22 between 1951 and 2010, followed by her son, Charles, who conducted his first in 1970.
Official royal tours have always been vested with civic importance, providing a regionalised country with a common thread of loyalty. The Saskatchewan Office of Visual Identity and Protocol states that, "royal visits lend the prestige of the royal family to worthy causes such as health care, education, the arts, the disabled, multicultural groups, and the volunteer sector. And they attract national and international attention to Saskatchewan's resources, industry, culture, and tourism."
Royal tours can take more than a year to organize. The planning is coordinated by the Canadian secretary to the King. The regions to be visited are decided by a rotational formula. Themes are decided upon by the King's secretary together with the minister of Canadian heritage and the Office of the Prime Minister. Traditionally, the coincidence of a royal tour and a federal election is avoided, so no incumbent politician can attempt to use the relevant member or members of the royal family to shore up support for him or herself.
Beginning with the royal tour undertaken by Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh (later Queen Elizabeth II) in 1951, unique badges were created for Elizabeth's official tours of Canada. Though none were produced between 1951 and 1970, one was devised for each of the Queen's tours thereafter, until her last in 2010. The same was done for tours carried out by Elizabeth's consort, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, beginning in 1985, and by their children; the first for Prince Charles was designed in 1975, the first for Princess Anne in 1979, the first for Prince Andrew in 1985, and the first for Prince Edward in 1987. The initial badge for tours by the Queen Mother was produced in 1979, and those for Princess Margaret and Princess Alexandra both came in 1980; the first for Prince William was devised for his royal tour in 2011.
The badge for Princess Elizabeth consists of a gold maple leaf surrounded by a gold circle bearing the words a mari usque ad mare (the official motto of Canada), along with "Canada" and the year, 1951. Since the 1970s, the designs commonly employ the royal person's royal cypher (typically the initial of their Christian name surmounted by the appropriate heraldic crown or coronet) along with a maple leaf, rendered in various styles, on a particular background shape and combination of colours. Only Charles's badges differed by using the Prince of Wales's feathers in place of a cypher and a maple leaf as its own element; the sole exception is the badge for his tour to mark the Queen's Platinum Jubilee in 2022, which was shaped to match the Canadian jubilee emblem. For the two royal tours conducted by Prince Andrew and his wife, Sarah, Duchess of York, in 1987 and 1989, the cypher used was their initials intertwined. For the 1976 tour of Canada by Queen Elizabeth II, during which she opened the Summer Olympics in Montreal, the badge design included the Olympic Rings.
The badges were initially conceived by Bruce Beatty for the Department of the Secretary of State of Canada. Beginning in 2012, the concept was attributed to Cathy Bursey-Sabourin, Fraser Herald. They are worn as a pins by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police security detail and logistics personnel during official Canadian royal tours (as opposed to working, private, or provincial tours).
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Royal tours of Canada AI simulator
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Royal tours of Canada
Since 1786, members of the Canadian royal family have visited Canada, either as an official tour, a working tour, a vacation, or a period of military service. The first member to visit was the future King William IV in 1786. In 1939, King George VI became the first reigning monarch to tour the country.
Originally, official tours were events predominantly for Canadians to see and possibly meet members of their royal family, with the associated patriotic pomp and spectacle. However, nearing the end of the 20th century, such occasions took on the added dimension of a theme; for instance, the 2005 tour of Saskatchewan and Alberta by Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, was deemed to be a vehicle for the Queen and Canadians to honour "the spirit of nation builders" and the couple's tour in 2010 was themed "honouring the Canadian record of service—past, present, and future."
Between 1951 and 2018, 24 members of the royal family toured the country; at least one per year from 1957 to 2018. Queen Elizabeth II undertook the most tours of any member of the royal family: 22 between 1951 and 2010, followed by her son, Charles, who conducted his first in 1970.
Official royal tours have always been vested with civic importance, providing a regionalised country with a common thread of loyalty. The Saskatchewan Office of Visual Identity and Protocol states that, "royal visits lend the prestige of the royal family to worthy causes such as health care, education, the arts, the disabled, multicultural groups, and the volunteer sector. And they attract national and international attention to Saskatchewan's resources, industry, culture, and tourism."
Royal tours can take more than a year to organize. The planning is coordinated by the Canadian secretary to the King. The regions to be visited are decided by a rotational formula. Themes are decided upon by the King's secretary together with the minister of Canadian heritage and the Office of the Prime Minister. Traditionally, the coincidence of a royal tour and a federal election is avoided, so no incumbent politician can attempt to use the relevant member or members of the royal family to shore up support for him or herself.
Beginning with the royal tour undertaken by Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh (later Queen Elizabeth II) in 1951, unique badges were created for Elizabeth's official tours of Canada. Though none were produced between 1951 and 1970, one was devised for each of the Queen's tours thereafter, until her last in 2010. The same was done for tours carried out by Elizabeth's consort, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, beginning in 1985, and by their children; the first for Prince Charles was designed in 1975, the first for Princess Anne in 1979, the first for Prince Andrew in 1985, and the first for Prince Edward in 1987. The initial badge for tours by the Queen Mother was produced in 1979, and those for Princess Margaret and Princess Alexandra both came in 1980; the first for Prince William was devised for his royal tour in 2011.
The badge for Princess Elizabeth consists of a gold maple leaf surrounded by a gold circle bearing the words a mari usque ad mare (the official motto of Canada), along with "Canada" and the year, 1951. Since the 1970s, the designs commonly employ the royal person's royal cypher (typically the initial of their Christian name surmounted by the appropriate heraldic crown or coronet) along with a maple leaf, rendered in various styles, on a particular background shape and combination of colours. Only Charles's badges differed by using the Prince of Wales's feathers in place of a cypher and a maple leaf as its own element; the sole exception is the badge for his tour to mark the Queen's Platinum Jubilee in 2022, which was shaped to match the Canadian jubilee emblem. For the two royal tours conducted by Prince Andrew and his wife, Sarah, Duchess of York, in 1987 and 1989, the cypher used was their initials intertwined. For the 1976 tour of Canada by Queen Elizabeth II, during which she opened the Summer Olympics in Montreal, the badge design included the Olympic Rings.
The badges were initially conceived by Bruce Beatty for the Department of the Secretary of State of Canada. Beginning in 2012, the concept was attributed to Cathy Bursey-Sabourin, Fraser Herald. They are worn as a pins by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police security detail and logistics personnel during official Canadian royal tours (as opposed to working, private, or provincial tours).