Man Charged for Vandalising Queen Victoria Statue During Royal Visit

The Queen Victoria Building in the central business district in Sydney, Australia, on July 20, 2021. AAP Image/Mick Tsikas

New South Wales (NSW) Police have charged a man for allegedly vandalising the Queen Victoria statue in Sydney during the Royal visit.

The statue is in front of the Queen Victoria Building (QVB), an iconic Sydney landmark constructed in 1898 during the queen’s reign.

Police established a crime scene on Oct. 22 after they were called to the area at 5:30 a.m. after receiving reports that a statue had been vandalised. Footage of the iconic statue showed red paint splashed all over it.

Paint bottles were seized at a property in Strathfield after a search warrant was executed at about 10 p.m. that evening. The Public Order and Riot Squad assisted the police.

“A 26-year-old man was arrested at the home and taken to Burwood Police Station,” NSW Police said in a statement.

“He was charged with destroying or damaging property and face blackened/disguised with intent to commit an indictable offence.”

The Military History Society of New South Wales repeated their “longstanding condemnation” of attacks on public monuments in a post to X, calling for authorities to take action.

The man was granted conditional bail and is due to appear at the Burwood Local Court on Nov. 12.

Queen Victoria holds special significance in Australia’s history. During her reign, Australia was comprised of six British colonies.

However, in 1900, Queen Victoria signed the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act, enabling these separate colonies to federate and unite to form Australia on Jan. 1, 1901. She was succeeded by her son King Edward VII after her death on Jan. 22, 1901.

King’s Tour Comes to an End

King Charles III and Queen Camila have just wrapped up their royal visit to Australia, which included multiple events in Sydney and Canberra.

They were seen waving from a plane as they departed from Sydney Airport.

Britain's King Charles III and Queen Camilla wave as they depart from Sydney Airport in Sydney on Oct. 23, 2024. David Gray/AFP via Getty Images

On Oct. 22, at the Sydney Opera House, the king and queen greeted thousands of adoring fans who were seen waving Australian flags and presenting flowers. The king also visited the Melanoma Institute of Australia and the Homes NSW Cowper Street development.

During a speech at Parliament House Canberra on Oct. 21, the King said he was proud to follow in the footsteps of his late mother Queen Elizabeth II, who spoke of the warmth she received from her first visit in 1954.

“This was a feeling which, I know, she returned in equal measure. My own first visit came in 1966 ... when I had, indeed, the life-shaping—and life-affirming—opportunity to continue part of my education in Victoria. And, ladies and gentlemen, what an education it was,” he said.

King Charles III meets members of the public at the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia, on Oct. 22, 2024. Chris Jackson/Getty Images

The king discussed various disasters, including the Black Summer of 2019 and 2020, the relentless floods of 2022 and 2023, and tropical cyclones Jasper and Kirrily in 2023 and 2024, and linked them to climate change.

“The disasters were not in themselves new at all; life here has always entailed these extremities of survival and endurance. Yet, in their magnitude and ferocity, as well as their frequency, they are new,” he said.

“The regular roll of unprecedented events is an unmistakeable sign of climate change, to which Australia is so particularly vulnerable.”

The king will now head to Samoa for a Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).