Johnston and Hoffmann
Johnston & Hoffmann’s Royal Tour Souvenir Album. India, 1905–1906. Containing a Complete Pictorial Record of All the Principal Events in the Indian Tour of Their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales
Johnston and Hoffmann, Johnston & Hoffmann’s Royal Tour Souvenir Album. India, 1905–1906. Containing a Complete Pictorial Record of All the Principal Events in the Indian Tour of Their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales, Calcutta: Johnston and Hoffmann; printed by Cassell & Co. Ltd., London, 1906, first edition
191 pages including coloured double portrait frontispiece of the Prince in naval uniform and the Princess in tiara, profusely illustrated with photo plates and index; original red cloth gilt, the front board with gilt blocked elaborate title and devices of the order of the Star of India and the Prince of Wales’s crest, all edges gilt.
7.5 x 9.75 in (19.5 x 25 cm)
The Prince and Princess of Wales's significant tour of India and Burma is captured in this exceptional small pictorial record, which is expertly printed on high-quality art paper. The Prince and Princess of Wales's fond memories of the tour were a significant factor in their subsequent return to India in 1911 as George V and King Emperor for the spectacular Delhi Coronation Durbar and tour. The number of pages dedicated to the pictorial representation of the sites visited, as recorded by one of India's foremost photographic studios, is as follows: Bombay (6) , Indore (5), Udaipur (3), Jaipur (9), Bikaner (4), Lahore (10), Peshawar (5), Jammu (5), Amritsar (3), Delhi (11), Agra (6), Gwalior (10), Lucknow (5), Calcutta (29), Rangoon (7), Mandalay (8), Madras (17), Bangalore (5), Hyderabad (15), Benaras (10), Nepal (1), Quetta (10), Karachi (8). Additionally, there are numerous images of special events and individuals associated with the tour, such as military units, processions, durbars, portraits of Indian Princes, local residents, and the Prince hunting, in addition to views of the cities. This is a valuable reference work due to the comprehensive descriptions of the photographs, which frequently identify all of the subjects.
The future George V and Queen Mary's 1905-06 Royal Tour began in Bombay and travelled via Rajasthan to Lahore, Peshawar, Jammu, Amritsar, and Delhi. From Delhi, they went to Agra, Gwalior, Lucknow, Calcutta, Rangoon, and Mandalay. Then to Madras, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Benares, the Nepal Terai for shikar, Quetta and Karachi.
During his eight-month tour to India, possibly the longest of any Royal, George was reputedly horrified by the racial inequality he witnessed and advocated for more Indian participation in governance. Queen Mary was attracted to Indian artefacts and collected them throughout her life. The couple returned for the durbar in 1911.
NON-EXPORTABLE