File reveals royal yacht mislaid and Dublin builders 'most unsatisfactory'

Preparations for Queen Victoria’s Dublin visit in April 1900 were last minute and frantic

A NEWLY revealed file relating to Queen Victoria’s visit to Ireland in 1900 shows that the British admiralty temporarily “lost” the royal yacht and that Dublin building contractors were “most unsatisfactory”.

The queen arrived on board the royal yacht at Kingstown (Dún Laoghaire) on April 4th, 1900.

Official papers from an Irish Office of Public Works (OPW) file – never published before – record that officials in Dublin were frantically trying to contact the authorities in London – just days before her arrival – to get the measurements of the royal yacht. The information was needed in order to prepare berthing and landing facilities at Kingstown harbour.

Although the British empire was at the height of its powers and “Britannia ruled the waves”, original telegrams show that the admiralty in London had temporarily lost track of the royal yacht – just days before the queen was due to sail.

In response to a telegram from Dublin inquiring about the ship’s whereabouts, the royal navy headquarters claimed the yacht was already “in Dublin”.

Puzzled officials in Dublin telegraphed back requesting an explanation. Two days later, and rather sheepishly, the admiralty admitted the yacht had been located off the south coast of England. Its carpenter, a Mr Price, was hurriedly dispatched to Dublin to assist with preparation.

Some of the preparations were very last minute. Workers rushed to complete a special wooden structure and an enclosure area for VIP guests on the pier. But OPW officials were unhappy with the quality of the workmanship and tried – unsuccessfully – to get the bill reduced, the builders claiming they had done “their best under circumstances of exceptional pressure”.

Another document describes official anxiety over the “very high” cost of decorations for the pier provided by the Switzer department store. Security was tight: orders were issued that the berths in the harbour be “examined by divers”.

Mr Reid, chairman of the Dublin, Wicklow and Wexford Railway Company, was requested to “do all he could to minimize the whistling of the engines and the noise from shunting while Her Majesty was at Kingstown”. Mailboats in the harbour were ordered “not to sound the steam horns except in case of absolute necessity”.

The Harbour Commissioners sent a telegram to a maritime flagmaker in Southampton ordering special flags but received a curt reply, by telegram, from Messrs SW Wolff stating “we are quite unable to make the flags required, we are so busy”.

Other documents reveal efforts to ensure “the better class yachts” from around Dublin should be “got in to the harbour” for the visit; plans to “illuminate the town with fairy lights and Roman Candles and have some gas illuminations in the windows as well” since “there was no electric light in Kingstown”; and the allocation of tickets for the arrival ceremonies, with priority given to councillors on the urban district councils of Kingstown, Dalkey and Killiney and the yacht clubs. The Royal St George Yacht Club received 50 tickets.

The file is among a number of historic collectibles to be sold by fine art auctioneers Whyte’s in Dublin this Saturday.