These portraits of the Duke and Duchess of York were created in 1925, two years before they toured New Zealand together.

In February 1927 the Duke and Duchess of York arrived in Auckland aboard the 'HMS Renown' for a month-long tour of New Zealand. At the time the Duke, Prince Albert, was second in line to the British throne after his brother Prince Edward. Edward abdicated after his accession in 1936 however. Prince Albert then ascended to the throne, and adopted the regnal name George VI. The Duke and Duchess of York were the parents of the present queen, Elizabeth II, who was less than a year old at the time of the tour. During the 1927 tour the Duke and Duchess travelled extensively throughout the country, although after the Duke was obliged to continue the tour alone after Duchess fell ill with tonsillitis in Nelson.

These portraits come from the ‘WHAT’ series of records held at Archives NZ, which contains records of uncertain provenance.

Series reference: AGGM 25027 WHAT

These records are being presented by Archives New Zealand across our Twitter, Flickr and Youtube pages to coincide with the Royal Visit of 2014. Throughout the tour we will be showcasing records relating to previous Royal tours, dating back to early as 1869. For further updates on historic Royal tours follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/ArchivesNZ