The Prince of Wales’s
Visits to Aden 1875-76
In 1875 the Prince of Wales (the future King Edward VII)
left England aboard HMS Serapis, bound for India to
celebrate Queen Victoria’s appointment as Empress of
India. The Serapis was a Royal Naval troopship,
completed in 1866 and modified for use as a Royal Yacht.
Travelling on the Serapis was George Wheeler, the
special correspondent of the ‘Central News’. He wrote a
chronicle of the round trip and this is his entry for 1st
November 1875:
“Anchored off Aden. The only man-of-war in harbour, the
Vulture, was dressed for the occasion. The Prince and
suite went on shore at 9.30 and remained till the cool
of the evening as the guests of brigadier-general
Schneider, the political resident. Salutes were fired
from the guns at Steamer Point, and a guard of honour
from the 25th Regiment (2nd
battalion) was drawn up at the ‘bunder’ or
landing-place. His Royal Highness obtained his first
glimpse of the native infantry of India while on shore
here. Other troops, natives of Aden and its
neighbourhood, mounted on horses and camels, escorted
HRH to the European camp.
The Parsees are a flourishing body in Aden, and their
chief representative read an address to HRH on the pier.
The Dutch consul, Mr Salmon, also read an address. The
gallant King’s Own Borderers entertained the Prince at
breakfast, and he was afterwards taken to see the
far-famed freshwater tanks, and the fortifications,
which latter are built on the land side of Aden, with
the view of repelling attacks of Arabs. Several Arab
chiefs, including the Sultan of Lahej, whom the Prince
presented with a silver medal, and all the officers
political and military at the station, were received at
a levee held within the residency in the afternoon. As
the Serapis steamed away in the evening, Aden was
illuminated with Indian lamps, and bonfires blazed forth
from her promontories.”
|
HMS Serapis |
The timing of the Serapis’s call at Aden on the way back
from India was somewhat unfortunate. She arrived at Aden
on Sunday the 19th March at 8 pm and sailed
at 0230 the next day. The Prince of Wales did not land. |
The
Resident, Brigadier-General Schneider, waited on HRH.
Schneider was accompanied by the two staff officers from
the army garrison and by his acting 1st Assistant,
Captain Sealy. A royal salute was fired on Monday
morning. Guards of honour from the 55th Foot
and the 6th Native Infantry, together with
the Aden Troop, had been in readiness at Steamer Point
in the expectation that the Serapis would not arrive
until early on the Monday and that HRH would land for a
few hours. One visit to Aden was enough!
