Address to His Majesty The King

Tuesday September 20, 2022

Mr BELL (Mount Gambier) (15:12): I also rise to support the motion. On behalf of the constituents of Mount Gambier, we pay our respects to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and sincerely mourn her loss.

On the seventh day of September we woke unknowingly to the final day of the Elizabethan age. On the eighth of September we woke to a day that would mark the end of an era, not only for the United Kingdom, Australia and all the realms and territories of the commonwealth, but also for the entire world, with the passing of Her Majesty.

Looking back, it was on 26 February 1954 that Her Majesty the Queen first stepped onto South Australian soil in my hometown of Mount Gambier, welcomed to the state in what was remarked upon as a true country welcome by not only the 10,000 residents of Mount Gambier but also by an estimated 30,000 extra who had travelled far and wide to be in her presence in our town.

The Queen and her husband Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, were driven along crowded streets to a location near the edge of the crater, looking out to the natural wonder of the Blue Lake. It was here that she was tasked with the simple planting of a sapling to serve as a reminder of her visit and as a representation of the monarch.

The small sapling was given the monumental task of representing the institution of a historical reigning monarch, the relationship our commonwealth holds to it and the life of a reigning Queen, birthed with no expectation of the crown, that resulted in a devotion of over 70 years serving her people. I regret to admit that this tree no longer stands, and I argue that it no longer stands because of the weight of responsibility it once held.

But as we look back in mourning and remembrance, I make the claim that it never did and never could stand to act as a symbol for what was its intended purpose, as the monarch, unlike it, has stood tall against the passing of time; the commonwealth, unlike it, has continued to grow and prosper; and our Queen, unlike it, brought the world to a halt in mourning.

I am pleased to note that, just three days before Her Majesty's passing, 16 native blue gums were planted in replacement of this tree, so now let us again watch as each tree grows in an attempt to represent the institution of a historical monarch, the service of a great ruler and the life of a woman spent in devotion to others. As we now experience the end of the world's second Elizabethan age, for a final time we must invoke the timeless prayer and anthem, God Save the Queen, for now we must proclaim, God save the King.

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