Nice & Curious Questions

Edwin S. Clay III and Patricia Bangs

Virginia Royalty

Kings and Queens in Virginia

There’s King and Queen County, named for William III and Mary II. King William III reigned from 1689–1702 and granted the charter for the college that bears the royals’ name. Right next door is King William County, also named for William III. King George County and Caroline County are nearby. Then, there are Prince George, Prince Edward and Prince William counties, as well as Louisa, all named for various royalty in the colonial period.

It makes sense, then, that more contemporary British rulers feel welcome in the commonwealth. Queen Elizabeth II first visited in 1951, while still a princess. Local press noted she had to miss her son Charles’ third birthday to make the trip. A Williamsburg resident tried to lure her south. “I have a very small house,” she wrote, according to The Washington Post (“Poor Little Prince Charlie to Pass 3rd Marker Alone,” October 21, 1951) “But I will be delighted to have Princess Elizabeth and her husband to stay at my home if they will come to Williamsburg. I feel sure that I can make them more comfortable than at a hotel.” Needless to say, the princess and Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, stayed at Blair House in Washington, D.C., and may have gotten no further than Mt. Vernon in their visit to the Old Dominion.

In 1957, Elizabeth returned as queen with Prince Philip for Jamestown’s 350th anniversary celebration. Richard M. Nixon, then vice president under Dwight D. Eisenhower, was the keynote speaker at the ceremony, as three Air Force jet planes streaked above the Jamestown festival site. The planes had retraced the route of the Jamestown settlers’ three ships from London to the New World (The Washington Post, “Queen to Visit U.S., Will Go to Jamestown,” May 12, 1957).

Prince Charles finally made it to Williamsburg in 1981, 30 years after his mother’s first visit. He spent three hours in the town, picking up an honorary fellowship at William and Mary. His marriage to Lady Diana only months away, Charles was met by “a contingent of screaming co-eds” (The New York Times, “A ‘Redcoat’ Prince Visits Colonial Virginia,” May 3, 1981). After the prince toured Williamsburg, one observer quipped, “If his forefathers had done things right, this could all have been his. I wonder when he goes in the Governor’s Palace, if he thinks of that.”

Times had changed when Charles returned for the 300th anniversary of William and Mary in 1993. He and Princess Diana had just separated, but with true Southern gentility, Virginians ignored his marital problems. “I don’t think his personal life is any of my business,” said one student. “I’m not in any position to judge him.”

The prince saw some irony in his second visit, as well. “In those days, I was young and relatively inexperienced,” he joked about his earlier trip. “In these days, I am middle aged and relatively inexperienced.” (The Washington Post, “Cheering Crowd Gives Charles a Welcome Respite,” February 14, 1993.)

It was Charles’ grandparents, however, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, who made the biggest splash in Virginia and elsewhere back in 1939. They were the first reigning British monarchs to ever visit the United States, and they did it in style. After a sea voyage from London, they arrived by royal train from Canada at Union Station with a staff of 160 and 300 trunks. According to the Post (“Elizabeth’s Parents (and Staff of 160) Dazzled 1939 Washington,” October 14, 1957), the luggage was simply marked “The Queen” and “The King.” The royal twosome brought a supply of water from Malvern Springs in England and the king’s favorite Scotch whiskey. After Franklin D. Roosevelt greeted the couple at the train station, a crowd of half a million watched their procession to the White House. Throngs followed them everywhere as they ventured across the Potomac to Mt. Vernon and Arlington National Cemetery. When they boarded the royal train for their return trip, 78,000 people bid them farewell!

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip may experience similar enthusiasm when crowds gather at Jamestown May 11–13 for the official 400th-anniversary celebration. It may be the 21st century, but Virginians still have ties to the crown as a former royal colony.

NEXT: Tea Leaves and Lifelines: Predicting the Future in Virginia

-- February 5, 2007