<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_II" id="mwATY" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Elizabeth II">Elizabeth II</a>, in her capacity as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchy_of_Australia" id="mwATc" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Monarchy of Australia">Queen of Australia</a>, signs <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Letters_patent" id="mwATg" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Letters patent">letters patent</a> allowing Australia to become the first <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_realm" id="mwATk" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Commonwealth realm">Commonwealth realm</a> to institute <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria_Cross_for_Australia" id="mwATo" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Victoria Cross for Australia">its own Victoria Cross</a> in its honours system.<sup about="#mwt96" class="mw-ref reference" data-mw='{"name":"ref","attrs":{},"body":{"id":"mw-reference-text-cite_note-16"}}' id="cite_ref-16" rel="dc:references" typeof="mw:Extension/ref"><a href="./January_15#cite_note-16" id="mwATs" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 16;"><span class="mw-reflink-text" id="mwATw">[16]</span></a></sup>
<span class="mw-reference-text" id="mw-reference-text-cite_note-16"><cite about="#mwt93" class="citation book cs1" id="CITEREFAustralia._Parliament._Senate2001">Australia. Parliament. Senate (2001). <a class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=Gb5DAQAAIAAJ" id="mwCEc" rel="mw:ExtLink nofollow"><i id="mwCEg">Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).: Senate</i></a>. Commomwealth Government Printer. p.<span id="mwCEk" typeof="mw:Entity"> </span>23698.</cite><span about="#mwt93" class="Z3988" id="mwCEo" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&amp;rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&amp;rft.genre=book&amp;rft.btitle=Parliamentary+Debates+%28Hansard%29.%3A+Senate&amp;rft.pages=23698&amp;rft.pub=Commomwealth+Government+Printer&amp;rft.date=2001&amp;rft.au=Australia.+Parliament.+Senate&amp;rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DGb5DAQAAIAAJ&amp;rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AJanuary+15"></span></span>