After years of delay, Queen Elizabeth II statue unveiled at Queen's Park

Thestar.com
Nov. 8, 2023

Almost two months after landing at Queen’s Park, a statue of Queen Elizabeth II was unveiled Tuesday between the determined beat of four Wikwemikong First Nation drummers and a military band playing “God Save The King.”

“Like all historical statues, it asks us to think about the relationship between the present and the past,” Ontario Lieut.-Gov. Elizabeth Dowdeswell told a ceremony dedicating the 3,500-pound bronze statue, recalling her official audience with the Queen at Buckingham Palace.

“The very first thing we spoke about … was actually the path to reconciliation. One of the most powerful and most tangible things she did was to approve chapels royal in Ontario, places that foster dialogue between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples,” Dowdeswell recalled as a crowd of about 250 looked on in blustery winds.

“I reflect on the role of the Crown and on its relationships with Indigenous Peoples, a relationship that stretches back for hundreds of years and one that her majesty took very seriously,” she added at the event timed to coincide with Treaties Recognition Week.

Following an opening blessing by Chief R. Donald Maracle of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte, who offered a prayer for peace amid “troubled times” in the world, Dowdeswell and Premier Doug Ford paid tribute to the Queen, who died at age 96 in September 2022.

“It celebrates her 70 years of dedication and service to the people of Canada, the United Kingdom in the entire Commonwealth.” Ford said.

“It will serve as a lasting symbol of our traditions and values, and we hope that educates and inspires visitors to Queen’s Park today and for generations to come.”

Sitting in front of the legislature’s west wing beside the visitors’ entrance, the statue by Ontario sculptor Ruth Abernethy depicts the Queen on the Senate throne in Ottawa during a 1977 speech that focused on national unity a year after the separatist Parti Quebecois was first elected.

On her lap is a bouquet of maple leaves, representing Canada’s provinces and territories.

The statue was delivered in mid-September and boarded up until Tuesday’s official unveiling that followed years of delay.

While the project was conceived and approved almost a decade ago, when the Liberal government of Kathleen Wynne offered the location, a private fundraising effort soon faltered and the statue sat in storage long past its planned 2017 installation date.

Last year, the forgotten plight of the statue came to the attention of Legislative Affairs Minister Paul Calandra, and the legislature’s Board of Internal Economy approved up to $1.5 million to rescue the statue from storage, pay the artist and mount it on a stone plinth.