King Charles III’s Australian visit ended Tuesday. The first visit to Australia by a reigning British monarch in over a decade saw protests and confrontation. Some Aussie citizens hope the debate over Charles’ trip is a step toward electing an Australian citizen as head of state.
On their last day in the country, King Charles and Queen Camilla watched dancers perform, cooked sausages at a barbecue lunch, and shook the hands of well-wishers outside the Sydney Opera House. Their final activity was an inspection of navy ships on Sydney Harbor in an event known as a fleet review.
British officials scaled Charles’ trip down from what a usual visit from a monarch might be because he is undergoing cancer treatment.
The visit was not without clashes. On Monday, Indigenous independent senator Lidia Thorpe yelled at Charles during a reception. She said he was not her king, and Australia was not his land.
Philip Benwell is national chair of the Australian Monarchist League. His group wants to maintain Australia’s constitutional link to Britain. He was standing near Thorpe when she started yelling at the king and demanding a treaty with Indigenous Australians.
“I think she alienated a lot of sympathy. If anything, she’s helped to strengthen our support,” Benwell claims.
Some people, including some Indigenous leaders, criticized Thorpe for shouting at the king and failing to show respect.
Thorpe stands by her actions. “I think what was unacceptable is the violence in that room, of the King of England praising himself, dripping in stolen wealth,” she told Australian Broadcasting Corp.
The royals encountered both protesters and supporters at other stops along their route.
In 1999, Australians decided to retain Queen Elizabeth II as head of state. Most people believe that’s because they disagreed about how to choose a president—not because they preferred a monarch.
Esther Anatolitis is co-chair of the Australian Republic Movement. The group wants an Australian citizen to replace the British monarch as Australia’s head of state. She admits that thousands turned out to see the royal couple. But she adds that the numbers were larger when Queen Elizabeth II first visited Australia 70 years ago.
Anatolitis also acknowledges that getting Australians to change the constitution would be difficult. They haven’t altered their constitution since 1977.
“It’s understandable that Australians would be welcoming the king and queen. We also welcome them,” she says. “But it doesn’t make any sense to continue to have a head of state appointed by birthright from another country.”
The Lamb . . . is Lord of lords and King of kings. — Revelation 17:14
