Queen Elizabeth commanded adulation, nowhere more so than in Australia. With her passing comes the long-anticipated question of the future of the British monarchy without her.

Much is at stake. The House of Windsor has a unique historical, constitutional, political, military, cultural, social and psychological footprint. Just by “being there” – in the words of the Peter Sellers film character, Chauncey Gardiner – Queen Elizabeth influenced the political mood and tone in other Commonwealth countries, including Australia.