Queen' Elizabeth's secret letters were released against her wishes, says Australian historian

Queen Elizabeth's secret correspondence with her private secretary and the Governor General for Australia Sir John Kerr ahead of political turmoil in the country was released under a court order.

The communication took place in the period leading up to the Dismissal, an event which saw Sir John dismiss the then Prime Minister Gough Whitlam in 1975 after he failed to get his budget passed.

Sir John's move to remove the prime minister has been called into question by the general public, with people expressing their desire to know as to what extent the British royal family was involved.

Historian Jenny Hocking, who played an important role in the legal battle to have the secret "Palace Letters" released, has discussed the matter in a conversation with Express.co.uk.

"The letters between the Queen, her private secretary Sir Martin Chateris and Sir John Kerr were deemed personal letters and, despite being kept in archives in Canberra, were not available for the public to read," the publication reported.

Hocking told the media outlet that this was the first time any of the Commonwealth nations have been successful in specifically overturned the “convention of royal secrecy” and the first time the letters of a reigning monarch have been released against their wishes.

Hocking said it became evident in the court that the British monarch did not want the letters to be released.