King Charles III has chosen to use in a departure from his mother,who chose St Edward’s Crown for her official symbol.
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk’s office says a change to the Queensland flag (pictured behind her left shoulder) is “not being contemplated at this time”.Matt Dennien
Elizabeth II’s decision resulted in a change to the Queensland state badge and,by extension,the flag in 1963. Before that,the Tudor Crown featured on both.
But despite tradition dictating the Queensland state badge be updated to reflect the monarch’s preference,a Palaszczuk government spokesman said a change back to the Tudor Crown was “not being contemplated at this time”.
King Charles III’s cypher,featuring the Tudor Crown.Buckingham Palace
“Although the style of the crown in the King’s cypher is different from that used in the previous reign of Queen Elizabeth II,both are depictions of the royal crown,and the use of one rather than the other is not incorrect,” he said.
“The Queensland state badge was last altered in 1963 following the accession of Queen Elizabeth II in 1952.”
Shortly before the Queen’s death,Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships Minister Craig Crawford said.
Questions to the premier’s office about whether Palaszczuk shared those views went unanswered.
Former premier Rob Borbidge,who led Queensland’s conservative Coalition government between 1996 and 1998,said tradition was important,so the state badge should be “kept current” and reflect the King’s choice.
That was especially the case,Borbidge said,because it would mean reverting to Queensland’s original badge and flag.
Then-premier Rob Borbidge with the Queensland flag in June,1998.Robert Rough
“Obviously,you don’t want to be throwing money at things that are largely symbolic – you don’t want to pull the flags down one day and replace them the next – but as flags wear out,you’ve got to buy new flags anyway,” he said.
“I would think the cost of changing the crown on the flag would be quite minimal.”
Australian Republic Movement Queensland convenor Andrew Fraser said taxpayers should not have to foot the bill to change the state’s symbols every time the royals “change their silly hat”.
“If these symbols need to be changed,surely they should be changed to reflect the aspirations and history of Queensland,not those of a foreign monarchy,” he said.
“This is the perfect opportunity to update our state symbols so they represent us and our extraordinary history spanning tens of thousands of years.”
The state opposition,meanwhile,was content to let the crown be.
“Queenslanders will rightly honour the new monarch with his coronation,” said Deputy Opposition Leader Jarrod Bleijie,a staunch monarchist.
“The insignia on the current flag honours the monarch and can do so moving forward.”
St Edward’s Crown,the centrepiece of the United Kingdom’s Crown Jewels,is stored at the Tower of London and will be lifted onto the King’s head during his coronation this weekend.
Henry VIII’s Tudor Crown was destroyed during the English Civil War in 1649 but has continued to be used in royal heraldry,including by Elizabeth II’s father,George VI.
Introduced in 1876,when Queensland was a self-governing British colony,the state flag consists of the British Blue Ensign with the badge to the right of the Union Jack.