Skip Main Navigation
Eventbrite
Browse Events
Organise
Help
Log InSign Up
Menu
Page Content
This event has ended.
30th Annual Lionel Murphy Memorial Lecture

Oct.

18

30th Annual Lionel Murphy Memorial Lecture

by Centre for Commercial Law

Actions and Detail Panel

Sales Ended

Date and time

Wed., 18 October 2017

6:00 pm – 7:00 pm AEDT

Location

The John Curtin School of Medical Research, Finkel Theatre

131 Garran Road

Acton, ACT 2601

Australia

View map

Description

The Secret History of the Dismissal of the Whitlam Government: The Palace Connection

The dismissal of the Whitlam government by the Governor-General Sir John Kerr in 1975 remains one of the most contentious episodes in Australian politics. The history of the dismissal is no less contentious and has never been settled. In the decades since, long-held secrets have unraveled and dramatic archival revelations have transformed our knowledge and understanding of the dismissal. The role of High Court justice Sir Anthony Mason as Kerr’s confidante and guide, and Kerr’s secret communications with Prince Charles and the Queen’s private secretary, remained hidden from us for nearly 40 years until revealed in 2012 in Jenny Hocking’s biography of Gough Whitlam.

Now Jenny Hocking is pursuing the release of the ‘Palace letters’, correspondence between Kerr and the Queen, her private secretary and Prince Charles regarding the dismissal, through a Federal Court action against the National Archives of Australia. The Palace letters are embargoed on the instruction of the Queen until at least 2027, and potentially indefinitely. Speculation that the Palace was at least aware of, and at worst involved in, the dismissal has only intensified with the refusal to release the Queen’s correspondence with the Governor-General at such a significant time in our history.

Kerr always claimed that in dismissing Whitlam he acted in order ‘to protect the Queen’. In the 2017 Lionel Murphy Memorial Lecture, Professor Jenny Hocking asks: Why would the Queen need protecting from an Australian political issue? What are the implications of this for our national autonomy as a constitutional monarchy? What did the Palace know about the dismissal? And why is the Queen refusing to lift her embargo on the Palace letters? Here for the first time, Jenny Hocking will discuss the latest revelations from the archives and will reveal the final piece in the secret history of the dismissal of the Whitlam government – the Palace connection.

Professor Jenny Hocking FASSA is Research Professor and Australian Research Council Discovery Outstanding Researcher Award (DORA) Fellow in the National Centre for Australian Studies. She is a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia and in 2014 was appointed the inaugural Distinguished Whitlam Fellow with the Whitlam Institute, Western Sydney University.

Event ended

30th Annual Lionel Murphy Memorial Lecture


Follow this organiser to stay informed on future events

Centre for Commercial Law

Event creator

Events you might like

  • CoEDL End of Centre Public Lecture

    CoEDL End of Centre Public Lecture
    CoEDL End of Centre Public Lecture

    Wed, Sep 28, 6:00 PM
    The Shine Dome • Acton, ACT
    Free
  • Public Lecture: Our Future in a Warming, Water-Stressed, World

    Public Lecture: Our Future in a Warming, Water-Stressed, World
    Public Lecture: Our Future in a Warming, Water-Stressed, World

    Wed, Sep 21, 12:00 PM
    Finkel Lecture Theatre, John Curtin School of Medical Research • Acton, ACT
    Free
  • APSA Annual Conference 2022

    APSA Annual Conference 2022
    APSA Annual Conference 2022

    Sun, Sep 25, 3:00 PM
    RSSS Auditorium, Level 1 • Acton, ACT
    $100 - $500
  • The Mulvaney Lecture 2022 presented by Professor Sue O’Connor

    The Mulvaney Lecture 2022 presented by Professor Sue O’Connor
    The Mulvaney Lecture 2022 presented by Professor Sue O’Connor

    Thu, Nov 3, 6:30 PM
    T2, Cultural Centre, Kambri • Acton, ACT
    Free
  • Alice Tay Lecture on Law & Human Rights: Padma Raman, PSM, & ANROWS CEO on

    Alice Tay Lecture on Law & Human Rights: Padma Raman, PSM, & ANROWS CEO on
    Alice Tay Lecture on Law & Human Rights: Padma Raman, PSM, & ANROWS CEO on

    Wed, Aug 24, 6:00 PM
    146 Ellery Cres • Acton, ACT
    Free
  • Michael Fussell Memorial Charity Day

    Michael Fussell Memorial Charity Day
    Michael Fussell Memorial Charity Day

    Sat, Oct 8, 11:30 AM
    Portsea Oval, Duntroon, Canberra • Campbell, ACT
    $0 - $212.09
  • ANU College of Law Visitor Seminar: Professor Melissa Crouch

    ANU College of Law Visitor Seminar: Professor Melissa Crouch
    ANU College of Law Visitor Seminar: Professor Melissa Crouch

    Wed, Aug 24, 1:00 PM
    Phillipa Weeks Staff Library, ANU College of Law, Building 7, Room 7.4.1. • Acton, ACT
    Free
  • AIIA Tech and Sustainability Conference

    AIIA Tech and Sustainability Conference
    AIIA Tech and Sustainability Conference

    Wed, Sep 14, 9:30 AM
    Parliament House Theatrette • Canberra, ACT
    Free
  • ACT Management Forum with Ramez Katf (CIO ATO) & 2022 iAwards

    ACT Management Forum with Ramez Katf (CIO ATO) & 2022 iAwards
    ACT Management Forum with Ramez Katf (CIO ATO) & 2022 iAwards

    Tue, Sep 6, 11:30 AM
    QT Canberra • Canberra, ACT
    $162.79 - $1,444.84

Site Navigation

Use Eventbrite

  • How it Works
  • Pricing
  • Event Blog

Plan events

  • Online Registration
  • Low Cost Ticketing Solution
  • Event Management Software

Find events

  • Browse Acton Events
  • Get the Eventbrite App

Connect with us

  • Report This Event
  • Help Centre
  • Terms
  • Privacy
  • Accessibility
  • Community Guidelines
Eventbrite + Ticketfly

© 2022 Eventbrite