King George VI in Revelstoke

King George VI in Revelstoke

Starting tonight, the movie The King’s Speech will begin playing at the Roxy Theatre in Revelstoke. I’m looking forward to seeing it. The movie focuses on King George VI and the way in which he overcame his stammer. King George VI made two visits to Revelstoke, one in 1927 as Duke of York, and then as king in 1939.

In August of 1927, the Duke of York was travelling with his older brother Edward, who was the Prince of Wales and the heir to the throne. Edward had made a previous trip to Revelstoke in 1919, when he unveiled a plaque to the fallen soldiers of the First World War, and a cairn part-way up Mount Revelstoke. When it was discovered that the two princes would be travelling through Revelstoke in1927, it was arranged to have them stop and officially open the newly completed road to the summit of Mount Revelstoke.

Before the opening ceremony, Prince Edward, Prince of Wales, and Prince Albert, Duke of York, inspected a line-up of over 60 returned soldiers. The Revelstoke Review of August 17, 1927 reported, “Both Princes shook hands with the veterans, asking each the name of his war-time unit. Prince George, due to an injury to his right hand occasioned by too much hand-shaking in the east, used his left hand when gripping the hands of the returned men.”

In December of 1936, Albert became King George VI when his brother Edward abdicated to marry the twice-divorced Wallis Simpson. In 1939, just prior to the outbreak of World War II, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (later to be known as the Queen Mother) toured many of the colonies, including a cross-country tour of Canada. When their train pulled into Revelstoke at the end of May in 1939, over 9,000 people were in attendance, having waited for hours in the pouring rain. The Royal Tour was a major event for the people of Canada, and the Revelstoke Review reported on the feelings of the citizens. “And it didn’t matter that the people were drenched to the skin after several hours in an unprecedented downpour of rain. It was merely incidental that new hats and other finery were ruined and it made to difference to the playing of the National Anthem that the fifty odd bandsmen sputtered water after every note. Indeed, what did it matter. The King and Queen had come.”