Queen Elizabeth II with Mayor of Rotorua Ray Boord, followed by the Duke of Edinborugh and Prince Charles walking down the Rotorua Lake reserve, in 1977. Photo/RDP Staff Photographer
Queen Elizabeth II with Mayor of Rotorua Ray Boord, followed by the Duke of Edinborugh and Prince Charles walking down the Rotorua Lake reserve, in 1977. Photo/RDP Staff Photographer
OPINION
"Although the sea has separated us in one respect, the same sea has linked, and still does link, the various members of the British Commonwealth of Nations."
These words are from a missive prepared on behalf of Tauranga to be given to Queen Elizabeth II when she visited thecity for the first time in 1963.
It echoes what the British royals have always meant to me on a personal level: connection to the British half of my family tree, across oceans.
Queen Elizabeth at Arawa Park, Rotorua, January 1954. The Bishop of Aotearoa places the Korowai on the Queen's shoulders. Photo / New Zealand Archive photograph
Today, my family in New Zealand and in the UK will be joined again in grieving the death of the Queen.
She reigned longer than any British monarch, sitting on the throne twice as long as I've been alive.
On her 21st birthday, she made what she called a "simple declaration" to her empire while visiting South Africa.
"I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong."
Four years later, in Kenya, she learned of her father's death and that she would become queen at just 25.
It turned out that the life of service she would give to the Commonwealth would be a very long one.
I believe she truly has given all of herself to this role in the years since her coronation at such a young age.
Queen Elizabeth made multiple visits to the Bay of Plenty in her time, but it's clear to me she had a special affection for Rotorua in particular.
She visited the city, a geothermal wonderland that has been described as the cultural heart of Māoridom, no fewer than four times.
She described a Māori welcome on her first visit in 1954 as her "first full meeting with the Māori people in their own homeland".
She witnessed Māori performances and practices, toured Whakarewarewa, saw the Pohutu geyser erupt, attended church and walked the lakefront.
Queen Elizabeth II and Duke of Edinburgh at the corner Fenton and Arawa St in Rotorua in 1954. Photo/RDP Staff Photographer Rotorua Museum Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa.
The pictures from that time are wonderful; people lining the routes in their hats and Sunday best with little posies to give. Barely a camera in sight, just people drinking in the spectacle.
I've seen a couple of modern royal walkabouts in New Zealand – Prince William and Kate in Wellington in 2014 then Prince Harry and Meghan in Rotorua in 2018. Legions of cellphones lined the rope lines.
These walkabouts are a fascinating sight. It's as much about being a spectator as it is to briefly imagine yourself as the subject of the spectacle - born into enormous privilege and power, but a life that is not entirely your own.
The power of the celebrity alone the royals wielded then and still wield now is awesome.
Queen Elizabeth II used hers with an amazing grace and dignity that befitted her sovereign position.
Through scandals, tragedies and changing political climes, she was the constant and stable force holding the house together.
