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Sights of Wonder:

Photographs from the 1862 Royal Tour

 
In February 1862, Albert Edward, Prince of Wales (1841-1910), later crowned King Edward VII, embarked upon a four-month long visit to what was then considered ‘the East’. Orchestrated by his parents, Queen Victoria and Albert, Prince Consort, the tour took the prince and his party from Egypt to the Holy Land, Constantinople (Istanbul) and Greece. Its principal aim was to educate the prince in matters of history, religion, politics and statesmanship in order to prepare him for his expected role as king.
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Albert Edward, Prince of Wales (1841-1910) by Abdullah Frères, Constantinople [Istanbul, Turkey], 1862
Carte-de-visite, 87 x 54 mm. Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2020

Below is a video provided by the Royal Collection Trust which explains the wet collodion photographic process used by Francis Bedford while touring with the prince. As a process it had only been invented in the 1850s, just over 10 years before it was used by Bedford during the Royal Tour with such skill