Sri Lanka Navy mourns passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
As messages of condolence flood in at the end of British monarch’s 70-year reign, Sri Lanka Navy, pays its highest tribute to the life and service of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, passed away on 08th September 2022.
Just a couple of months after the coronation, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II embarked on her maiden royal visit to Sri Lanka on board SS Gothic in 1954 with Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh who was a WWII veteran. Serving in the Mediterranean Fleet of the Royal Navy as an officer, he had a stint in then Ceylon during WWII. The visit remains engraved as the first visit to Sri Lanka by a reigning monarch. During the visit, the Royals graced a ceremony where a jetty at the Colombo Harbour had been named after as ‘Queen Elizabeth Quay’.
As the Navy’s annals reveal, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip had visited HMCyS Vijaya which escorted SS Gothic to the Port of Colombo. Moreover, Prince Philip had been hosted to a banquet at the Wardroom of the Navy Headquarters. In the following year, Prince Philip revisited Ceylon on board HMY ‘Britannia’ and had spent a whale of time with the Royal Ceylon Navy Officers in the Wardroom of the Navy Headquarters.
Ships of the Royal Ceylon Navy, predecessor to the Sri Lanka Navy, being a dominion navy had been prefixed with the acronym HMCyS - Her Majesty’s Ceylon Ship attributed to her reign, until Sri Lanka became a republic in 1972.
After some 27 years, in 1981, Her Majesty the Queen made her second visit to the isle again to mark the 50th anniversary of Sri Lanka’s Universal Suffrage and to witness the construction of the Victoria Dam. On both those occasions, then Royal Ceylon Navy (1954), subsequently the Sri Lanka Navy (1981) had the rare privilege of according the Guard of Honour to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, arrived in with the Royal entourage.
The Queen also had a strong attachment to the Navy as a daughter, wife and mother of naval officers. She had publicly announced about this perennial connection at the commissioning ceremony of Royal Navy’s flagship HMS Queen Elizabeth. Thus, her father, husband and two sons have served the Royal Navy in different stages of their lives.
On the mournful occasion of the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the Sri Lanka Navy recalls those vivid memories of the past and its long-standing association with the Royal Navy, as a fitting tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Guard of Honour for the Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Colombo Harbour in 1954
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip getting on board HMCyS Vijaya for a visit
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip and Commander GRM de Mel on board HMCyS Vijaya
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip leaving HMCyS Vijaya after visit on board
Prince Philip in discussion with Hon. SWRD Bandaranaike and Commander of the Navy Commodore, GRM De Mel at the Navy Headquarters Wardroom in 1955
Initial officer complement of HMCyS Vijaya (Lieutenant R Kadiragamar (Captain of the Ship), Lieutenant E Sanmugarathnam, Lieutenant DV Hunter, Lieutenant A Caldera, Lieutenant R Proctor and Sub -Lieutenant E White)
Officer of the Guard Lieutenant Commander DK Dassanayake awaiting to accompany Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II to inspect the Guard of Honour (GOH) at Bandaranaike International Airport in October 1981
Officer of the Guard Lieutenant Commander DK Dassanayake and Commander of the Navy Rear Admiral AWH Perera accompanying Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for inspect the Guard of Honour
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II inspects the Guard of Honour
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II inspects the Guard of Honour
Letter of Appreciation received from HE the President JR Jayewardene for the excellent bearing and conduct of Guard of Honour to welcome Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II