__NOTOC__ Queen Elizabeth II Island, formerly Aspen Island, is an

artificial island An artificial island is an island that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure to those th ...

located within

Lake Burley Griffin Lake Burley Griffin is an artificial lake in the centre of Canberra, the capital of Australia. It was completed in 1963 after the Molonglo River, which ran between the city centre and Parliamentary Triangle, was dammed. It is named after Wal ...

, in Canberra,

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. I ...

, Australia. It lies within the

Parliamentary Triangle The National Triangle, which is referred to as the Parliamentary Triangle, is the ceremonial precinct of Canberra, containing some of Australia's most significant buildings. The National Triangle is formed by Commonwealth, Kings and Constitutio ...

. The island is located on the south-eastern side of the Central Basin of Lake Burley Griffin and is linked by a footbridge to the mainland at Kings Park. The Australian National Carillon is situated on the island, and the footbridge is named after John Douglas Gordon, who played the inaugural recital. Queen Elizabeth II Island is the largest of three islands at the south-eastern end of the Central Basin. The two smaller adjacent islands are unnamed.

History

The island was originally

gazetted A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper. In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers ...

as ''Aspen Island'' on 21 November 1963, and named after the

aspen Aspen is a common name for certain tree species; some, but not all, are classified by botanists in the section ''Populus'', of the '' Populus'' genus. Species These species are called aspens: *'' Populus adenopoda'' – Chinese aspen (Chin ...

tree, of which some are classified by botanists in the

section Section, Sectioning or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

'' Populus'', of the poplar genus. On 1 January 2022, prime minister

Scott Morrison Scott John Morrison (; born 13 May 1968) is an Australian politician. He served as the 30th prime minister of Australia and as Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2018 to 2022, and is currently the member of parliament (MP) for th ...

announced that Aspen Island would be renamed ''Queen Elizabeth II Island'' in June 2022 as part of the Australian celebrations of the

Platinum Jubilee A platinum jubilee is a celebration held to mark an anniversary. Among monarchies, it usually refers to a 70th anniversary. The most recent monarch to celebrate a platinum jubilee is Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and the other C ...

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

Queen of Australia Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

. The island was renamed on 4 June in a ceremony presided over by the newly elected prime minister Anthony Albanese.

Gallery

Aspen Island.jpg, The north-west end of Queen Elizabeth II Island, during summer. Aspen Island November 2014.jpg, Queen Elizabeth II Island viewed from the Kings Avenue Bridge

References

Artificial islands of Australia Geography of Canberra Islands of the Australian Capital Territory Lake islands of Australia Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II Tourist attractions in Canberra {{Canberra-geo-stub

History

Gallery

See also

References