New Procession ushers in Slipper era

New Procession ushers in Slipper era

Australian Parliament, Canberra, ceremonial robes, Chamber, House of Representatives, lobby, mace, medieval ritual, parliament, Parliament House, procession, public display, ritual, serjeant-at-arms, Speaker, weapon

This article from the online edition of ABC News reports on a change in Australian parliamentary procedure. A longer and more formal procession from the lobby of Parliament House to the Chamber of the House of Representatives has been introduced by Peter Slipper (the Speaker) on Tuesdays, the article explains, so that visitors and members of the public are better able to witness the ceremonial opening of parliamentary proceedings. An image of Slipper, in his ceremonial robes, following the Serjeant-at-Arms and the official mace accompanies the article. The mace plays an important and symbolic role in the House of Representatives, as in the British House of Commons. The association of the mace with parliament most likely originates from the medieval period, when the King’s bodyguards, also known as serjeants-at-arms, were each armed with a mace. Gradually, the mace became associated with the customs and rituals of parliamentary ceremony rather than with its former use as a weapon.

Griffiths, Emma

ABC News Online

ABC News Online

14 February 2012

ABC

Hyperlink; Newspaper Article

English