Ladies and gentlemen,
do you believe in coincidence? Or do you rather belong to the faction that believes in predestination? The other day, as I was browsing the world wide web looking for travel guides in preparation for my summer holiday, I came across a book that, as soon as I discovered it, I immediately put in my electronic shopping basket. The title of the book was: The Grand Tour: Letters and photographs from the British Empire Expedition 1922 and contains letters and photographs by Agatha Christie, the Queen of Crime herself, edited by her grandson Mathew Prichard. In the foreword, Christie's grandson describes how in January 2012, exactly 90 years after the start of the expedition, he discovered his grandmother's letters and photographs of the journey and instantly set about creating a book from them. I myself discover the book now exactly 100 years after Christie's voyage around the world, not in January, but I think it's amazing enough nonetheless! Coincidence or not, I was very happy about the discovery and of course wanted to share this adventure with you right away. So let's set sail and join the Queen of Crime on her ten-month journey across several continents - Bon Voyage!
When Agatha Christie stepped onto the deck of the Kildonan Castle on 25 January 1922, she looked out over the green hills of Madeira Island. For four days, the writer suffered from seasickness and could not leave her cabin. The beauty of the island now seems all the more overwhelming to her, and even though there is no time to disembark for an exploration tour, this stage marks a first milestone for the participants of the British Empire Expedition. But before the journey continues, let's take a brief look back.
A one-time opportunity
The post-war years were a difficult time for Europe. Even in a country like Great Britain, the political changes that had accompanied the "Great War" were noticeable. The Empire was visibly losing power and importance. To counteract this, it was decided in 1921 to pay an official visit to the most important countries of the Empire in order to get an idea of the economic situation and once again to consolidate the supremacy of the British. The tour was to take place over ten months the following year, with an exhibition presenting the results again two years later. But who was to undertake this trip? As one can imagine, the government did not have to look far for volunteers for this particular endeavour. A certain Major Belcher, known for securing lucrative posts even if he did not always have the necessary qualifications, was in the right place at the right time this time as well - without hesitation he procured the leadership of the expedition. As a companion, he recruited Agatha Christie's husband Archie, whom he knew through their joint work at the Imperial and Foreign Corporation and valued for his skills in mathematics and accounting. Other participants in the travelling party were Mr Hiam, another colleague and friend of Belcher, together with his wife and daughter, and his secretary Mr Bates.
When Agatha Christie heard about the planned tour, she was immediately gripped by wanderlust. The writer had always dreamed of seeing the world and the British Empire Expedition seemed to be a unique opportunity to fulfil this dream. Agatha was able to convince the Major to accept her as an additional member of the travel party and shortly afterwards the planning could begin. Agatha's participation was not without problems, because the Christies had a two-year-old daughter whom they could not take with them. In addition, the couple's financial situation was not the best. Archie had to reckon with the fact that his post would not be kept free for him during his long absence, and even if Agatha had already had her first successes as a writer, their income was still meagre, so that both were understandably worried about the future. But the desire for travel and adventure finally prevailed and after the daughter was safely placed in the care of Agatha's sister, they could set off.
Setting Sails
In January 1922, the participants of the British Empire Expedition board the Kildonan Castle and as the first difficult days of choppy seas are overcome, the anticipation within the group makes itself felt. After the island of Madeira, the next land mass the passengers get to see is the coast of South Africa. But as great as the joy about the first stop on the journey is, it quickly dims again, because the company soon realises that Major Belcher is not an easy contemporary. Unpredictable moods that can escalate into outbursts of rage and snobbish behaviour test the patience of the group more than once. A steadily worsening injury to Belcher's leg, which he refuses to rest against medical advice, further strains the situation. Agatha's letters to her mother and sister comment smugly on Belcher's behaviour, but for the most part the participants seem to manage to overlook this and enjoy their stay nonetheless. Cities such as Cape Town, Pretoria and Johannesburg make a great impression, as do the famous Victoria Falls, which virtually enchant Agatha. In South Africa, the writer also discovers her passion for surfing, a sport she will often practise together with Archie during the ten months.
The next stop on the trip is Australia, which surprises Agatha with its plant diversity as soon as she arrives. The group visits various farms and fruit plantations. From Sydney they travel to Melbourne, then on to Hobart in Tasmania. They visit official dinners and Labour Day celebrations, a hydroelectric power station and a chocolate factory. Australia is followed by New Zealand, which Agatha describes as the most beautiful country she has ever seen. She is particularly captivated by the mountainous and green landscape around Wellington. It is now July, half of the journey is already behind them. On the other side of the world, the climate is wintry, and in many of the places visited it is raining or even snowing. The Empire Expedition visits a wool factory and the Cawthron Institute, where agricultural research is carried out.
From New Zealand, Agatha and Archie take a detour to Honolulu, Hawaii. But the holiday is not as relaxing as they had hoped. The surfing sport, which the two take up again enthusiastically after their stay in South Africa, is different from what they expected in Hawaii. The boards are heavier, the current and the waves much stronger, so that they have to stop after their first attempts, exhausted. In addition, the two underestimate the sun, so that they are plagued by the worst skin burns for days. In order not to have to give up surfing, Archie gets on the board in his pyjamas, which many Hawaiians take note of with amusement. But the series of misfortunes is unfortunately not over for the couple. Agatha contracts a nerve inflammation in her shoulder due to the overstraining of her arms while surfing, which will cause her terrible pain for weeks from then on. After fourteen days, the Christies return to their travel group. The next stop: Canada.
In Canada, Agatha and Archie start to worry about money. The stay in Hawaii was more expensive than expected and the couple's health is not the best either. Agatha continues to have severe shoulder pain, for which there seems to be no cure at first, and Archie catches a severe cold while visiting grain elevators in the mountains, which confines him to bed for many days with a cough, high fever and a nettlerash. Major Belcher is not spared either, his leg injury is compounded by kidney problems that also put him out of action for a while. But the streak of bad luck ends and the group can enjoy the last stops: Ottawa, the Rocky Mountains, Victoria and Niagara Falls. Although Agatha praises the beauty of the landscape and the cities, she emphasises several times in her letters that Archie and she are now getting tired of the journey and want to go home. By now it is November and they both want nothing more than to spend Christmas at home with their family. One last stop is made in New York, where Agatha visits her aunt, then they board the ocean liner Majestic bound for England.
Home again
A journey across three continents that spanned almost a whole year has certainly left lasting impressions on the participants of the British Empire Expedition. Not only the places visited, but also the ways of travelling and communicating have changed a lot since then. Distances such as from Europe to Africa can now be covered in a few hours by plane, whereas in the 1920s people still relied mainly on ships, which took days or even weeks. Letters and other mail were also transported by water, so that people often had to wait weeks for a reply from people back home. Telephones were not standard everywhere and telegrams were sent only in exceptional cases because they were expensive. In addition, many regions outside Europe were not yet so well developed for tourism and the information material was not as varied as it is today, so you needed a certain spirit of adventure if you wanted to venture on such a long journey.
The exhibition on the expedition was finally opened on 23 April 1924 and immediately enjoyed great popularity. By great demand, it was even shown again the following year. However, it was not financially worthwhile for the Empire. Admission prices that were too low led to losses of at least 1.5 million pounds.
Contrary to her own expectations, the British Empire Expedition was not to be Agatha Christie's only long-distance trip. Later in her life, she visited Syria, Iraq and Iran, Egypt, Turkey, Sri Lanka and the Soviet Union, among other places.
Have you got wanderlust now, ladies and gentlemen? Whether your summer holiday is still to come or you are spending the rest of the summer peacefully on the balcony or in the garden, enjoy yourself! And if you still need the right reading material, you now know what to look for.
Yours,
Marleen Tigersee
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