Royal Tour of 1927

The above photograph [1] was taken by Stephen Cribb (1875-1963) of Southsea, Hampshire, England.[2] Cribb was an official photographer for the British Admiralty during the late Victorian and Edwardian periods. He began his career in 1893 when he started working for Mills & Co. of Portsmouth, a photographic publisher. Around 1900, he began working for himself, operating from his house at 57 Montgomerie Road before building a studio at 61 St. Andrew's Road, Southsea, in 1904.  Stephen Cribb was the son of Joseph Stephen Cribb (1840-1936), a shipwright who worked in the Portsmouth dockyard. 

The Royal party

Enlarged detail of the photograph showing the royal party. Prince George, Duke of Kent (left), the Duchess of York (centre), to her right, the Duke of York, to his right, with his back to the camera, the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII). 

The photograph was taken on the morning of the 6th of January 1927 after the royal party had travelled by special train from London's Victoria Station to Portsmouth. It shows the Duke and Duchess of York being welcomed aboard the battlecruiser, HMS Renown, the ship that was to transport them on a 34,000 mile, six-month, world tour. At 1:00 pm, the Royal Standard was raised to the masthead to mark their presence, and the ship departed at 1:45 pm. [3]

A Stephen Cribb Postcard

[1] The original black and white is 21 x 16 cm.
[2] His embossed stamp appears on the lower right hand corner, and an ink stamp appears on the verso, which reads: "Stephen Cribb, Photographic Publisher, 61, St. Andrews Road, Southsea". 
[3] Canberra Times 6 January 1927 shows the tour's itinerary and preparations for departure.