Republicans hope a renewed interest in the Queen's role in Australian politics sparked by the release of the so-called Palace letters will lead people to question constitutional monarchy.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The National Archives on Tuesday released more than a thousand pages of correspondence between former governor-general Sir John Kerr and Buckingham Palace, including exchanges in the lead up to the dismissal of Gough Whitlam's government on November 11, 1975.
While Sir John writes immediately after the dismissal that he deliberately chose not to inform the Queen of his decision ahead of time, in the week beforehand her private secretary Sir Martin Charteris discussed the powers the governor-general had available to him.
Australian Republic Movement chair Peter FitzSimons said he was gobsmacked by the contents.
"Just as this most important moment in Australian political history builds to a climax it seems they ask Australia's unelected head of state to look away," he told AAP.
"If her role is to oversee, she needs to see what is going on, surely? Otherwise, what is the point?"
Historian Jenny Hocking, whose years-long legal battle led to the letters' release, said their nature would inevitably make people think about where Australia should go as an independent, autonomous nation.
She backs a republic.
Labor leader Anthony Albanese said the dismissal continued to be a blight on the character of the nation.
"The actions of the governor-general ... to put himself above the Australian people, is one that reinforces the need for us to have an Australian head of state, reinforces the need for us to stand on our own two feet," he told reporters.
"The fact that we have waited 45 years for correspondence between the Queen and the Palace, and the governor-general in Australia, says that there is something very wrong with our structures of government."
But supporters of the monarchy were not concerned.
Veteran Liberal senator Eric Abetz said the letters confirm the Palace neither got involved nor knew about Sir John's decision.
"The letters confirm Sir John acted impartially, with skill and wisdom," he said, nearly quoting from one of Sir Martin's missives.
Australian Monarchist League chair Philip Benwell said informing the Queen's secretary of political events was in no way seeking instruction.
Constitutional expert Anne Twomey said the correspondence "blows away the silly conspiracy theories ... this was all a conspiracy of the British and the establishment and the Queen".
"We just have to live with the fact it was an Australian who dismissed an Australian government under our current constitution," she told ABC TV.
Australian Associated Press
