would give S.J. Hungerford, president of the Canadian National, a free hand in the whole royal trip. But in a typically Canadian gesture, both railways divided the trip — on land and sea, in hotels and lodges — between them, so that, if Their Majesties arrived at a Canadian National station, as in Montreal at Jean Talon, they would leave from Windsor Station, where the CPR had its headquarters. From Vancouver to Victoria they crossed on a CPR ferry the Princess Marguerite, but, on the return voyage, they used the government-owned ship Prince Robert. The trip west would be made on CPR tracks, the return journey on CNR tracks. Neither railway was to be given preference, and the King and Queen were told not to mention either in speeches or interviews. So important were the two railway presidents that, when Their Majesties stepped on shore at Wolfe’s Cove on May 17, after the Prime Minister and Minister of Justice Ernest Lapointe, the next to be introduced were Beatty and Hungerford.
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When the royal train couldn’t stop: Their Majesties leaning out of the carriage, May 1939.
Of the royal train’s twelve cars, six were prepared in the Point St. Charles shops of the Canadian National Railways and six at the Angus Shops of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The former included the Governor General’s two private cars, in which the King and Queen travelled; No. 7, which the Lord-in-Waiting and the Lord Chamberlain used; the Canadian National compartment cars “Atlantic” (No. 6) and “Pacific” (No. 4), in which other members of the royal party were accommodated; and one of the new Canadian National diners, the most modern type recently put in service by the Canadian National and capable of seating forty people. The Canadian Pacific Railway also supplied the private car “Wentworth” (No. 5), which was used by the Prime Minister and his official staff; the Chambrette car “Grand Pré” (No. 8), which accommodated the Train Office and provided sleeping quarters for a number of officials; a Chambrette car (No. 3) for the personal servants of Their Majesties and the Mounties; a compartment sleeping car (No. 9), which was used chiefly by the protective forces, but also included a barber shop; a combination baggage and sleeper for part of the train staff (No. 11); and a baggage car (No. 12). In one end of the baggage car, an electric power plant was installed to furnish power for the passengers’ needs and to provide a refrigerated storage compartment for food supplies.
The King’s sitting room in Car No. 1 of the royal train used in the 1939 tour.
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The map in the sitting room on which Their Majesties plotted their progress across Canada in the royal train.
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Canadian National Railways locomotive No. 6400, which hauled the royal train in 1939.
The King and Queen travelled at the rear of the train, as far from the noise and soot of the locomotive as possible. Car No.1 contained two main bedrooms with dressing rooms and private bath, a sitting room or lounge for the King and Queen, and two bedrooms for members of the Royal Staff. The living room was furnished with green chairs and apricot-coloured upholstery. It had a radio and small library that was appropriately stocked with books by Canadian authors such as Bliss Carmen, Mazo de la Roche, and Stephen Leacock. Popular authors of the day like Pearl S. Buck, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, and of course John Buchan (the Governor General) were also represented — as was a translation of Hitler’s Mein Kampf. Family photos and mementos were scattered about, including two little canoes that had been given by a First Nations community for the princesses. There was also a set of specially designed maps of North America that rolled up and down like blinds. In the tiny but fully equipped dining room, the china was a white Limoges pattern with bands of maroon and gold surmounted by an embossed crown.
Perhaps reflecting his naval upbringing, His Majesty’s rooms were in blue and white chintz. Close at hand were his field glasses and cine camera — he was constantly running in to grab it and record sightings of moose and deer that he thought his daughters would like to see. His bathroom was done in pale blue. The Queen’s sitting room was blue-grey with damask coverings and curtains of dusty pink. Her bedroom was in soft peach with brocaded satin drapes. On her bedside table were her The Book of Common Prayer and a pile of the ghost-story books that she loved. Her bathroom was in lavender.
Car No. 2 had a large lounge, as well as an office, a dining room and kitchen, and two bedrooms with a bathroom for members of the Royal Staff. Car No.7 had two main bedrooms with bath, lounge, dining room, kitchen, and also a bedroom for servants. The cars “Pacific” and “Atlantic” accommodated the ladies-in-waiting and other persons of Their Majesties’ staff. “Atlantic” had six rooms with lounge and a shower. “Pacific” had five rooms, a lounge, and a shower. The lounges on “Atlantic,” “Pacific,” and car No. 7 were used as sitting rooms for all members of the royal party.
The exterior colour scheme of this “Buckingham Palace on wheels” (so dubbed by the press) was royal blue, with silver panels between the windows and a horizontal gold stripe above and below the windows, the blue extending above the windows to the roof line, which had a gun-metal colour. The last two cars of the train, cars Nos. 1 and 2, were dubbed “The Married Quarters” by the press. Their two carriages, in which the King and Queen travelled, bore the royal coat of arms in the centre of each car below the windows. The other cars in the train bore the royal cypher and crown in the centre below the windows, and a royal crown at each of the blue stripe between the top of the windows and the roof line. All of the cars were air-conditioned, which was more and more appreciated as the Canadian summer began.
It had been on the King’s express command that a buzzer was installed between the engine and the royal cars, and the locomotive engineer had instructions that, whenever he saw a crowd at any station ahead where they were not going to stop, he was to press the buzzer and slow down. This was a signal for Their Majesties to run out to the observation platform and wave. Through the trip, Her Majesty spent much time arranging the bouquets of flowers that were handed to her at every station. The King and Queen also spent time talking, reading, or playing games of solitaire. They also listened to the radio9 and talked on the phone to London and their daughters — facilities were provided at all stops for an outside telephone service. On one such phone call, Princess Elizabeth assured them that she was looking after Margaret, and her sister burst out with the news that she had passed her Girl Guide tracking test. Outside Port Arthur, the royal couple heard that Her Majesty Queen Mary had had an accident in her old Daimler. In between calls, His Majesty worked away on his “boxes,” the dispatch cases from London.
The royal train heads through the Rockies on its way to the Pacific coast during the 1939 Royal Tour.
The royal train was preceded, throughout the tour, by a pilot train, its purpose to protect and serve those on the train behind them. It carried the press, photographers, members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and excess baggage that could not be accommodated on the royal train. The pilot train consisted of twelve cars, of which the Canadian National furnished seven. These included: one drawing-room sleeper, and three baggage cars. Two of the baggage cars were specially equipped to carry the baggage of the royal party, and the third baggage car was converted into a unit that included an electric power plant for generating all electric current, a darkroom for photographic purposes, and a postal-service section. The Canadian Pacific furnished five cars,
