Britannia style
Grand staircase © Marc Millar
The Queen's personal taste in design can be seen on board
Britannia. Other royal residences were handed down to her
by previous Kings and Queens. Britannia was the one royal
residence for which both The Queen and Prince Philip had final say
in its design.
Built in Scotland
The Queen's father, King George VI commissioned
Britannia on 4 February, 1952. When he sadly died just two
days later, it became The Queen's duty to oversee this major
project. Clydebank shipbuilders, John Brown & Co, created
Britannia's distinctive smooth hull by carefully applying
multiple layers of paint over a special foundation. The Queen and
Prince Philip's inspiration for choosing Britannia's
signature blue paint was inspired by one of their wedding gifts,
the Racing Yacht Bluebottle.
1950s design
Walking on board Britannia, is like stepping back into
the 1950s. Sir Hugh Casson was the designer of the Royal
Apartments, having previously met Prince Philip when he worked as
the Coordinating Architect for the Festival of Britain. Sir Hugh
was originally invited to advise on the interior design after the
initial plans from Glasgow-based firm, McInnes Gardner &
Partners, were considered too lavish by The Queen and Prince Philip
in this post-war period. His simple elegance has stood the test of
time; the interior design was barely updated during her 44 years of
service.
Original artefacts
Although the Royal Yacht has been decommissioned, the majority
of items on board are original, kindly on loan to The Royal Yacht
Britannia Trust. Find out more about our
Collections.
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