Royal Tour 2016: Past royal visits to BC and Yukon

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Catherine, will tour British Columbia starting Sept. 24, making them the first members of the Royal Family to visit the province since 2014.

The royals have frequented British Columbia many times in the past, with the earliest visit dating back to 1882, when the Marquess of Lorne came to B.C. as Governor-General of Canada with his wife, Princess Louise, daughter of Queen Victoria.

Their visit was followed by the 1901 tour of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York, later King George V and Queen Mary. The couple toured Canada coast-to-coast as part of an Empire-wide voyage.

In 1939, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth came to B.C. on their six-week coast-to-coast tour of Canada. It was the first time a reigning monarch had visited Canada.

WATCH: Footage of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth on their official royal visit to British Columbia in 1939. 

The royal couple took an automobile tour through the city, making stops at Vancouver City Hall, Hastings Park and along Marine Drive.

The new generation of royals did not visit B.C. until 1951 when Princess Elizabeth–before she became Queen–and the Duke of Edinburgh paid a visit to Vancouver and Victoria on their coast-to-coast tour of Canada. Princess Elizabeth planted an oak sapling in Queen Elizabeth Park as part of the visit. The park was dedicated by Elizabeth’s parents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth on their 1939 tour. 

Princess Margaret, the Queen’s sister, visited a number of B.C. communities, including Prince George, Williams Lake and Vernon in 1958. While in Vancouver, she received an honorary Doctorate of Laws degree from the University of British Columbia.

In 1959, Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh took a six-week country-wide tour, making a stop in B.C. and Yukon, as well. It was the Queen’s first major tour as the reigning monarch.  

READ MORE: Busy schedule as details of Duke and Duchess of Cambridge B.C. royal visit revealed

Twelve years later, in 1971, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip and their daughter, Princess Anne, paid a visit to Victoria, Vancouver, Tofino, Kelowna, Vernon, Penticton,Williams Lake and Comox to celebrate the centenary of B.C.’s entry into Confederation. 

In a separate visit in 1982, Princess Anne visited Haynes Junction, Kluane Park and Whitehorse in Yukon.

In 1983, Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh visited B.C. again, going to Victoria, Vancouver, Nanaimo, Vernon, Kamloops and New Westminster to mark the end of the Queen’s American West Coast Tour. While in Vancouver, she officially launched the construction of the Expo 86 site, a landmark event in the province’s history. 

In a famous 1986 visit, Prince Charles and Princess Diana came to B.C. to officially open Expo 86. 

WATCH: A look back at Prince Charles and Diana’s visit to Vancouver. 

The couple also visited Victoria, Prince George, Kamloops, Nanaimo and several towns in Yukon. 

In 1987, the Queen and Prince Philip enjoyed a private retreat in Qualicum Beach followed by visits to Vancouver, Victoria and Esquimalt to participate in the opening sessions of the Heads of Government Meeting.

READ MORE: Details of Royal Couple’s visit to B.C. revealed

In 1994, the Queen and Prince Philip visited B.C. to open the Commonwealth Games in Victoria. The Queen also took a private retreat at Twin Island while Prince Philip visited Prince Rupert and Khutzeymateen Valley. 

In 1998, Prince William, Harry and Charles visited B.C. for a private holiday in Whistler and some engagements in Vancouver and Burnaby. 

WATCH: Just months after the death of their mother Princess Diana, Prince William and Harry travelled with their father, Prince Charles, to British Columbia. 

Global BC’s archived footage of their visit shows the amount of attention 15-year-old Prince William received from his young female fans in B.C., part of the so-called “Wills mania” that swept the world in the late 1990s. It was especially evident on his visit to Burnaby South Secondary School, where hundreds of teenage girls screamed his name trying to catch his attention.

In a separate visit in 2001, Prince Charles paid a visit to Whitehorse and Mayo, Yukon.

Year 2002 marked the Golden Jubilee Tour and saw the Queen’s last visit to British Columbia, when she made stops in Victoria and Vancouver. The Queen even got to drop the ceremonial puck at a hockey game between the San Jose Sharks and the Vancouver Canucks. 

In 2009, Prince Charles and Camilla travelled to B.C. on their first visit to Canada as a couple. 

The last royal visit to B.C. came in 2014 when the Earl and Countess of Wessex, Prince Edward and Sophie, visited Vancouver, Victoria and Kelowna.

For more on the Global News royal visit coverage, go here.