In July 2020, the National Archives of Australia released the long- suppressed letters between Sir John Kerr and Queen Elizabeth II written during the constitutional crisis that culminated in Gough Whitlam’s dismissal on 11 November 1975.
These 212 letters, written during Kerr’s tumultuous tenure as the Queen’s representative in Australia between August 1974 and December 1977, are a treasure trove. Including attachments such as newspaper articles, speeches, press releases and telegrams, they amount to over 1200 pages of new archival material.
The release of these letters demanded a new book-length account of the dismissal. They offer a fascinating insight into the most divisive and convulsive event in our political history.
We requested access to these letters in 2012 but were denied. They were deemed personal and private between the Governor-General and the Queen and her advisers. We pay tribute to academic Jenny Hocking for her dedicated efforts in launching legal action and her success in having these letters made available to all Australians. This is in the national interest.
In this book, we draw on other archival documents—including over 100 pages of Kerr’s personal papers and correspondence with Prince Charles that have not been made public before— coupled with new interviews with former Governors-General, Prime Ministers and Opposition Leaders to explore the letters and their significance.
Paul Kelly has had a life-long interest in the dismissal. He covered the crisis and dismissal on 11 November 1975 and a short time later was sacked as political correspondent for The Australian for his opposition to Kerr’s dismissal action and also for his opposition to Malcolm Fraser’s blocking of the budget.
Troy Bramston, born weeks after the dismissal, comes from a different generational perspective. He always believed the dismissal represented a serious breakdown in democracy and was unjustified. He has interviewed most of the key players and has made a number of significant archival discoveries in subsequent decades.
This is our second joint book on the 1975 crisis. We are committed republicans but our approach in this book is solely the search for historical truth. We are not interested in exploiting the crisis for ideological or political ends or promoting conspiracy theories. This is a critical event in Australia’s history and our purpose is no more and no less than to discover and document what happened. This book is about the truth of the Palace letters.
Paul Kelly and Troy Bramston,
24 August 2020