Passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother

31 March 2002

The Governor-General and Mrs Hollingworth express their great sadness at hearing of the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.   On behalf of all Australians, the Governor-General sends his condolences to Her Majesty The Queen and to all the Royal Family.

Born five months before our Federation as a nation there is a very real way in which we can say "She has always been with us." 

With her husband, the then Duke of York, she visited Australia in 1927 and opened Australia's Parliament House in the fledgling national capital.

She won a special place in the hearts of all those who fought for the allies in the Second World War for the courage and leadership she and King George VI showed especially during the Blitz and the Battle of Britain.

As The Queen Mother, over the last fifty years, she will be remembered with the greatest affection for the wonderful way she combined the performance of her public duties with her joyous humour and irrepressible love of life.

We shall miss her dearly.

A condolence book will be available at Yarralumla for those wishing to sign it from 2.00pm today and from 10.00am to 4.30pm on Easter Monday.  An electronic version will be made available as soon as possible on www.gg.gov.au.