In the summer of 1939 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth embarked on a momentous tour of Canada, the United States and Newfoundland. The tour was the first time that a reigning sovereign of Canada had set foot on Canadian soil and also marked the first visit of a reigning British sovereign to the United States.

The Royal party arrived in Quebec on 16 May where they were welcomed by the Prime Minister of Canada, William Mackenzie King, and the premier of the province of Quebec, Maurice Duplessis. They then travelled to Ottawa, where the King and Queen attended Parliament and gave Royal Assent to several bills and statutes before moving onward to Toronto. On 24 May the party attended Empire Day celebrations in Winnipeg which also coincided with the sovereign's official birthday, the first such time that the Canadian sovereign had been present in the country for that occasion.

They then travelled across the prairies, arriving in Regina, the capital of Saskatchewan, the following day, and Calgary on 26 May, before crossing the Rocky Mountains and reaching Vancouver on 29 May. That evening, the party sailed to Victoria, capital of British Columbia, where the King gave a speech reflecting on the journey so far.

Upon leaving Victoria, they travelled eastwards, crossing the Prairie Provinces once again and arriving in the United States via Niagara Falls, where the King and Queen were received by President Roosevelt. The American leg of the tour visited Washington, New York and Roosevelt's private estate of Hyde Park, where, at a party hosted by the President, the King and Queen tasted hotdogs for the first time.

The King and Queen left New York on 12 June to visit the Maritime Provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island before travelling to Newfoundland, then a separate dominion in the British Empire, on 17 June.

The tour was a remarkable success with large crowds turning out to see the King and Queen wherever they went. Sadly, the happiness and enthusiasm which greeted the tour was not to last. War was declared between Britain and Germany in September, starting a conflict which would last for six years.

This book is the published account of the tour, it contains press photographs and copies of the speeches given by the King at various stages throughout the journey.