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The ROYAL YACHT ‘BRITANNIA’. USE YOUR COMPUTER. http://www.royal. gov.uk http://www.royal yachtbriitannia.co . uk http://www. britannia.com http://www. macmillan.com .
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USE YOUR COMPUTER • http://www.royal. gov.uk • http://www.royal yachtbriitannia.co. uk • http://www. britannia.com • http://www. macmillan.com
‘’ ’Britannia’ was unique. She was the first Royal Yacht to be genuinely ocean-going and able to bring her particular magic to maritime nations in every part of the world.’’ HRH Prince Philip
As 83rd in a long line of Royal Yachts that stretches back to 1660 and the reign of Charles II, ‘Britannia’ holds a proud place in British maritime history.
By the way, Charles II (r. 1660-1685) himself had 25 Royal Yachts, while five were simultaneously in service in 1831.
KING ALFRED’S LONGSHIPS • Do you know that King Alfred used his longships for the first time in English history in 897 against Danish raiders?
KING ALFRED The GREAT (871-899) • It is for his valiant defence of his Kingdom against a stronger enemy, for securing peace with the Vikings & for his farsighted reforms in the reconstruction of Wessex & beyond, that Alfred – alone of all the English Kings & Queens – is known as ‘’The Great”.
Plans to build a new Royal Yacht to replace the ‘Victoria and Albert III’ began during the reign of King George VI. But The King died in 1952, four months before the keel of the Yacht was laid. • His daughter, Princess Elizabeth succeeded him to the throne and the new Queen together with her husband, Prince Philip, took a guiding hand in the design of the Yacht.
The new yacht was built by the Clyde shipbuilders Messrs John Brown & Co at a cost of ₤ 2, 098, 000 to replace her 50-year-old predecessor, ‘’Victoria and Albert III.’’
‘’Britannia’’ was named and launched by The Queen on 16 April 1953 and was commissioned on 11 January 1954. • The name was The Queen’s personal choice. • In ‘’Britannia’s’’ first Royal voyage The Queen joined the yacht at Tobruk and sailed up the Thames to the Pool of London in 1954.
Her Majesty declared, ‘’I name this ship BRITANNIA, I wish success to her and to all who sail in her.’’
Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, looks on as Prince Charles and Princess Anne meet the Superintendent of Portsmouth Dockyard before boarding ‘’Britannia’’ for their first journey on the Royal Yacht.
‘Britannia’ sailed the oceans for 43 years and 334 days. • During that time she steamed a total of 1,087,623 nautical miles, carrying The Queen on 85 state visits and calling at over 600 ports in 135 countries.
SPECIFICATIONS of the ROYAL YACHT “BRITANNIA” • Max speed: 21,5 knots • Gross tonnage: 5769 tons • Length: 412 ft (125 m) • Foremast height: 133 ft (40,5 m) from waterline • Main mast height: 139 ft (42 m) • Number of overseas visits: 696 • Number of home visits: 272
‘Britannia’ was designed to accommodate its various functions as family home, Royal palace and naval ship. • The naval, functional areas of the ship, looked very much like a working naval warship. This was where the crew accommodation was located and was very much the ‘engine’ of the ship.
The rooms included a modest Drawing Room, containing a piano, which was often played during receptions , some of the furniture used on ‘Britannia’ came from its predecessor.
Equipped with reception rooms for up to 250 guests and accommodation for staff accompanying The Queen, ‘Britannia’ served as an official and private residence for the Queen and other members of the Royal family.
Members of the Royal family gather on the Verandah Deck on ‘Britannia’ for the traditional family photograph during the final Western Isles cruise in 1997.
The Royal tradition of the week-long Western Isles Cruise prior to the family’s summer stay at Balmoral was begun in 1955. • The Royal family were also keen to explore outlying areas of Scotland, and the annual trip provided a welcome break from official duties and from the gaze of the public. • Royal children, who were generally unable to swim in the sea for fear of a crowd forming around them, could swim in sheltered bays which could be spotted from the Yacht, and often impromptu barbeques or picnics were arranged.
Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh, took a four month voyage on ‘Britannia’, including a trip to the Antarctic. • He had created the book ‘’Birds from ‘Britannia’. It was published by LONGMAN (UK) in 1962.
’Britannia’ was designed to be used as a Royal Yacht in peacetime and as a hospital in time of war. • In 1986 she was called upon to assist with an evacuation from the beaches of Aden during a civil war in the former People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen.
‘Britannia’ became one of the best known ships in the world, travelling over a million miles and visiting every continent and most Commonwealth countries.
The Royal Yacht also conveyed The Queen to Russia in 1994 for the first visit there by a British Sovereign, as well as the first since the dissolution of the USSR in 1991.
The Royal Yacht was decommissioned in December 1997. • The flags were lowered for the last time and from that moment HM Yacht BRITANNIA was no longer in commission. • She is now known as BRITANNIA.
The Government decided that the final destination for the Royal Yacht would be at Leith, in Edinburgh. • The Yacht, as a ‘national treasure’, is now open to the general public. ‘Britannia’ is an exhibition ship. She attracts around 300,000 visitors a year and The Yacht is a conference centre from August 1998.
Ideas and project coordination an English teacher Nataliya Balakina • Khimki, Moscow region, 2006.
