Queen’s sympathy for Hollingworth over child abuse scandals

Letters between the Queen and Peter Hollingworth reveal her ‘sympathy’ amid criticism of his handling of abuse claims.

Queen Elizabeth II with Governor-General of Australia Dr Peter Hollingworth, Prime Minister John Howard during royal visit to South Australia in February 2002.

Queen Elizabeth II expressed “much sympathy” with governor-general Peter Hollingworth in response to mounting criticism over how he handled child sexual abuse claims while he was Anglican archbishop of ­Brisbane, once secret vice-regal letters ­reveal.

“She can imagine just how unsettling such an issue must be for you both especially given how difficult it is to have such a controversial issue handled with sensitivity and fairness in today’s media,” Sir Robin Janvrin, the queen’s private secretary, wrote to the then governor-general in January 2002.

The queen had expressed “much sympathy” for Dr Hollingworth after he forwarded his statement regarding civil action taken against the Anglican Diocese of Brisbane by a victim of sexual abuse at Toowoomba Preparatory School in 1990.

The Queensland Supreme Court ruled that the diocese failed its duty of care and was ordered to pay compensation. Dr Hollingworth denied covering up abuse but earlier this year an Anglican Church ­tribunal found him guilty of widespread misconduct.

In a May 2002 letter, Dr Hollingworth claimed that he was a tall poppy and his actions as archbishop of Brisbane would be vindicated.

“I will continue to serve you and the people of Australia to the very best of my ability, trusting that the media will now allow me to do the job I was appointed to do,” he wrote after a lengthy trip to the UK, Turkey, France and The Netherlands.

“There is a saying in Australia that we have a practice of ‘cutting down tall poppies’. I also believe that if tall poppies can survive the experience of being cut down they are usually allowed to re-grow if they are able to do so. I hope one day to be vindicated, if ever the truth can be told about my actions in former times.”

Dr Hollingworth wrote repeatedly to the queen during 2001 and 2002, claiming that he was an innocent victim of a ­campaign mounted by the media and activists.

“Although it will not satisfy the activists and the Brisbane Courier-Mail, it will, I hope, reassure the community about my actions at the time,” he told the queen about the statement regarding Toowoomba Preparatory School in December 2001.

In a February 2002 letter, Dr Hollingworth railed against “extreme media interest” in child abuse claims while he was archbishop. He accused advocate Hetty Johnson, who had called for his resignation and was planning further protests, of “publicity-seeking exercises”.

The Australian revealed in June that Dr Hollingworth’s correspondence with the queen while he was governor-general between June 2001 and May 2003 had disappeared and that neither Government House nor the ­National Archives of Australia knew where it was.

Following this reporting, the Office of the Official Secretary to the Governor-General wrote to Dr Hollingworth who acknowledged he had kept the correspondence.

These official records were then transferred into the custody of the National Archives. However, the National Archives has determined that only records from 2001 and 2002 are now in the open access period.

In Dr Hollingworth’s December 2001 letter to the queen, he noted John Howard’s election victory was “a significant achievement” which reflected his “energy and tenacity” and commented on debate in Australia about how much the result turned on the September 11 terrorist attacks and the MV Tampa refugee controversy.

He noted that Kim Beazley was an “academically inclined” opposition leader and his successor, Simon Crean, was “more pugnacious” but less “charismatic”.

In his September 2001 and May 2002 letters, Dr Hollingworth noted the Howard government’s treatment of refugees was “distressing” for some Australians and may have damaged the “international reputation” of the country but overall the mandatory detention policy was popular with voters.

The typically fawning letters which provide routine updates on politics and elections are always addressed to “Your Majesty, Madam” and signed-off with “I have the honour to remain Madam, Your Majesty’s, dutiful servant”.

In May 2003, Dr Hollingworth resigned as governor-general following a report tabled in the Queensland parliament that found he mishandled complaints and let a known pedophile priest continue in the church.

These matters were an embarrassment for Buckingham Palace and the Howard government.

The opposition called for Dr Hollingworth to resign or his commission to be withdrawn. No letters so far released deal with his resignation as governor-general.

It has been convention for all governors-general since Sir Richard Casey (1965-69) to deposit their vice-regal correspondence in the National Archives. It is highly unorthodox for Dr Hollingworth to have kept this correspondence in his personal possession.

The Australian has reported exclusively on the correspondence of Baron Casey and his successors, Sir Paul Hasluck (1969-74), Sir Zelman Cowen (1977-82), Sir Ninian Stephen (1982-89) and Bill Hayden (1989-96) since 2022. The correspondence of Sir John Kerr, who served from 1974 to 1977, was released by the National Archives at a public event in 2020.