Queen Sālote returned to Tonga on 5 October 1953 after attending the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in London.
She had become an overnight celebrity in the United Kingdom after refusing to close the hood of the carriage during the coronation procession, and subsequently becoming soaked through due to the rain. Like Elizabeth, she was a Queen in her own right, and she became known as the “tallest Queen of the smallest Kingdom.”1
Queen Elizabeth was now coming to Tonga for a return visit. The visit had originally been scheduled for just three hours on a Sunday but was extended to two whole days – Saturday, 19 December, and Sunday, 20 December 1953. The news of the extension was announced just 50 days before the visit. Preparations for the visit went full steam ahead. The Royal Palace would be where Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip would stay. Queen Sālote stayed with her son as the palace was being renovated in preparation for the royal visit. Two modern bathrooms were installed, and locals in Nuku’alofa were asked to house the 70 members of the press that would be covering the visit.
There was to be a feast on Saturday for 1,000 guests, and for that, the pigs would need to be fattened; extra crops were also reserved. Songs were written and dances were rehearsed. Queen Sālote requested everyone to wear neat but colourful clothing and ta’ovala.2
When the day came, Queen Sālote went down to the wharf to personally welcome Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. She wore a fine-mat reputed to be more than 600 years old.3 They had arrived by flying boat from Fiji during the Commonwealth Tour of 1953-1954. It was the first time a British monarch had set foot in Tonga.
After inspecting the Tongan guard of honour, the royals travelled to the war memorial where Queen Elizabeth laid a wreath.
They then headed to the Mala’e, where leading members of Tongan society were introduced to Queen Elizabeth. Queen Sālote’s son, the Crown Prince, played host during the following feast for all the guests. Dances and songs were performed around them.
At a specially built stand, the royals watched several performances, including dances that Queen Sālote had specially created for the occasion. During the evening, Queen Sālote was also invested with the order of Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO). Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip then withdrew to the Royal Palace for a good night’s rest.
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip were awakened by the sounds of nose flutes – traditionally used for the overlords of Tonga. Queen Sālote arrived later in the morning to show her visitors around the palace grounds. While there, she introduced Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip to Tu’i Malila, the tortoise said to have been given to the Tongan royal family by Captain Cook in 1777. The tortoise died in 1966, reportedly at the age of around 188 years.
On Sunday morning, the royals attended a service at the newly completed Centenary Church. A private lunch at Queen Sālote’s country residence followed while the crew of the Gothic and the Black Prince were being feasted nearby. They had arrived to take the royal guests away.
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip were carried by launch to the Gothic after a farewell at the water’s edge.
As per tradition, the royal family then boarded a government barge, which accompanied the Gothic to the open sea.
Farewell messages were exchanged between the two vessels as they sailed towards the open sea.
The visit had been a great success.
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