The Royal Trains were special train carriages used by New Zealand Railways during

royal visit A state visit is a formal visit by a head of state to a foreign country, at the invitation of the head of state of that foreign country, with the latter also acting as the official host for the duration of the state visit. Speaking for the host ...

s to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, which occurred in 1901, 1920, 1927, 1935 and 1954. Each Royal Train was preceded by a pilot train, a similar arrangement to that used in Britain.

The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall, 1901

The train was built and used for the visit of Prince George Frederick Ernest Albert (George V) (1865–1936) and his Duchess, who travelled on 25 June 1901 by rail from

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

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. They then returned to Lyttelton via the same route before embarking for

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

on 27 June 1901 on HMS ''Ophir'', a purposely converted

ocean liner An ocean liner is a passenger ship primarily used as a form of transportation across seas or oceans. Ocean liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes (such as for pleasure cruises or as hospital ships). Ca ...

of the

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. Decoration on the front of the locomotive used during the Duke of Cornwall and York's 1901 visit. ATLIB 285730.png, Decoration on the front of the locomotive, 1901 Dining area inside the royal train carriage, used during the Duke of Cornwall and York's 1901 visit ATLIB 141121.png, Dining area inside the royal train carriage, 1901 Lounge area inside the royal train carriage, used during the Duke of Cornwall and York's 1901 visit ATLIB 141117.png, Lounge area inside the royal train carriage, 1901 Royal coat of arms on the carriage used during the royal visit of the Duke of Cornwall and York, 1901 ATLIB 274387.png, Royal coat of arms on the carriage, 1901

The Prince of Wales, 1920

View of the train used for the Royal visit of 1920

George V's eldest son Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David (Edward VIII), Prince of Wales used the same train to travel from

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. The city lies on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authority encompass ...

on 27 April 1920. The journey was disturbed by a rail strike, causing him to return to Auckland. He stayed there on , Britain's newest and largest battleship at the time, until he finally travelled in the Royal train to Wellington on 5 May 1920. Afterwards, Edward embarked on the ''Renown'' for the town of Picton on the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

Duke and Duchess of York, 1927

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952. ...

and his wife,

Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was the l ...

, travelled by train and car to

on 24 February 1927, where a World War I memorial was unveiled. They then visited many cities on the North Island. In

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

, the Duchess fell ill with

tonsillitis Tonsillitis is inflammation of the tonsils in the upper part of the throat. It can be acute or chronic. Acute tonsillitis typically has a rapid onset. Symptoms may include sore throat, fever, enlargement of the tonsils, trouble swallowing, and en ...

and could not continue on the journey. The Duke travelled alone by train and car to

on the west coast, where he received the

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. On 22 March 1927, he and his wife continued their journey to Australia.''Royal Visits: The Duke and Duchess of York, 1927''
In: ''An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand'', first published by A. H. McLintock in 1966. Retrieved on 5 May 2018. Royal train near Dunedin, on the Royal Tour of the Duke and Duchess of York, 1927. ATLIB 291090.jpg, Royal train near Dunedin on the Royal Tour of the Duke and Duchess of York, 1927 Royal train near Dunedin, on the Royal Tour of the Duke and Duchess of York, 1927. ATLIB 266806.png, Royal train near Dunedin on the Royal Tour of the Duke and Duchess of York, 1927

Royal passenger cars

In 1927 two passenger cars were built in the

Petone Workshops The Petone Workshops were a government-owned railways maintenance and repair facility located in Petone, in Lower Hutt in the Wellington region of New Zealand's North Island. It took over construction and maintenance of rolling stock in the We ...

for that year's royal tour by the Duke of York (later King George VI); they were then hired to tourists or used as Ministerial cars. In 1934 two passenger cars were built for the tour of the Duke of Gloucester. They were later used by the Governor-General and refurbished for the 1953 royal tour by Queen Elizabeth II. With separate rail networks, one car was required for each island.

The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall, 1901

The Prince of Wales, 1920

Duke and Duchess of York, 1927

Royal passenger cars

References

Further reading