The First British Royal Visit to the US—and What Was on the Menu

In June 1939, more than 150 years after the American Revolution, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (the parents of Queen Elizabeth II) became the first reigning British monarchs to visit the United States. The five-day visit came on the eve of World War II. President Franklin D. Roosevelt hoped that positive coverage of the royal tour would win support for an Anglo-American alliance against Nazi Germany. His secret weapon may have been hot dogs.

King George VI and Queen Elizabeth’s historic U.S. visit happened during a time of incredible political tension on the global stage. In 1936, George inherited the throne after the surprise abdication of his brother Edward, just as Britain and Europe faced the growing threat of Adolf Hitler. In the U.S., many politicians and citizens were staunch isolationists opposed to another costly European war.

When Roosevelt learned in 1938 that the king and queen were planning a visit to Canada the following year, he invited the royal couple to extend their trip to the States, writing:

Roosevelt knew war with Germany was on the horizon, but he also faced strong domestic opposition to committing American troops to defend Britain and other European allies. Roosevelt’s goal with the royal visit was to portray the king and queen as “regular people” with whom Americans could identify and empathize.

Although Roosevelt promised George and Elizabeth a few days of “rest and relaxation,” the U.S. State Department insisted on treating the tour as a formal state visit, including a reception at the Capitol, plus dinner and entertainment at the White House. Thousands of people lined the streets of Washington to catch a glimpse of the royal couple, although a few congressmen boycotted the reception as “propaganda” to lure the U.S. into another war.

The rest of the royal visit was carefully curated by Roosevelt and the White House. The king and queen sailed down the Potomac River on the presidential yacht to visit Mount Vernon, George Washington’s home. They laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery and visited a Civilian Conservation Corps work camp in Virginia.

After two days in the hot and muggy capital, they were off to the Roosevelts’ country estate in Hyde Park, New York.

The highlight of the royal visit was a casual picnic arranged by Roosevelt on a hilltop at Hyde Park. After the formalities and politics of Washington, D.C., Roosevelt wanted the royal couple to mingle with everyday Americans. For the picnic, the president invited his gardeners, cooks and other staff to bring their families.

The menu for the picnic—also handpicked by Roosevelt—included hot dogs, an “exotic” American dish for the royals. When Queen Elizabeth asked how to eat a hot dog, Roosevelt reportedly replied: “Very simple. Push it into your mouth and keep pushing it until it is all gone.” She used a knife and fork, instead.

The next day, the headline in The New York Times read: “KING TRIES HOT DOG AND ASKS FOR MORE; And He Drinks Beer With Them.”

While press coverage of the royal visit focused on photogenic events like the state dinner and the hot dog picnic, Roosevelt and King George also held serious talks about how the U.S. could come to Britain’s aid if war broke out. The Canadian prime minister also came to Hyde Park to discuss strategy. The timing was critical; Britain and France declared war on Germany just three months later.

The first royal visit to the U.S. worked exactly as Roosevelt had hoped. It forged a human connection with the British people that made it easier for the president to win support in Congress for legislation like the Lend-Lease Act, which provided critical military aid to Britain before the U.S. officially entered World War II.