From the office of ROLAND ROCCHICCIOLI

THE Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary — later Queen Elizabeth II — was born at 2:40 am 21 April 1926 at 17 Bruton Street, Mayfair.

Elizabeth was the first child of Prince Albert, Duke of York (later King George VI), and his wife, Elizabeth, Duchess of York (later Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother).

This year — 2026 — marks the centenary of The Queen’s birthday. For those baby boomers born in the roseate hue of WW2, the panoply of the Monarchy was the bedrock of our lives. We were the children of the Empire. Viewed through the prism of 2026 it seems antiquated how — as a matter of conventional practice — the personal pronoun was not used when talking about ‘The Queen’. That linguistic eccentricity did not change until the late 1960s early 1970s.

Under the stewardship of Australia’s Prime Minister — the late Sir Robert Menzies — 1949-66 — republicanism was the destructive fiction peddled by communists and socialists. We were a jewel in the Crown of the far-flung Empire. Talk of being anything other than part of the British Empire was deemed treasonable.

The National Anthem — God Save The Queen — was played in cinemas. Men doffed their hats and everyone stood to attention. It was an age of respect for those institutions which determined the character and form of our lives. It would be folly to suggest flawlessness, but there was a zeitgeist of certainty — a deep-rooted regard which permeated society.

The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh visited in 1954. For 58-days Australia came to a celebratory halt. Of our 9-million population, 7-million turned-out to see The Queen. The Nation was obsessed with every detail of the tour. Amalgamated Wireless Australia (AWA) helped make history when it filmed The Queen setting foot on Australian soil and relayed the footage to the Spastic Centre in Mosman. The royal arrival became the first televised event in Australia.

On Coronation Day — 1953 — The Queen spoke to Her peoples. She said, in part: “Throughout my life, and with all my heart, I shall strive to be worthy of your trust.” Supporter — or not — of the Monarchy is irrelevant. HM believed She was ordained of God, and dedicated Her life to the service of Her people. In that anointed commitment She never wavered. Surely, history will come to recognise the late Queen as Elizabeth the Steadfast.

As part of that same broadcast, there was an eerily prophetic note in Her Majesty’s sentiments: “Parliamentary institutions, with their free speech and respect for the rights of minorities, and the inspiration of a broad tolerance in thought and expression — all this we conceive to be a precious part of our way of life and outlook.” Today, democracy has never been more fragile. Totalitarians and narcissists contaminate. It is the age of strong-arm tactics and the force of the gun.

Marking The Queen’s centenary celebrations in London, King Charles said, “Much about the times we now live in I suspect may have troubled her deeply, but I take heart from her belief that goodness will always prevail, and that a brighter dawn is never far from the horizon.”

In 1954 HM said: “Australia may well seem the promised land, for it is a spacious country with a healthy, vigorous people and vast natural resources. Only a pessimist would set bounds to its future.”

We would do well to heed Her late Majesty’s words! Contact: [email protected]