The Queen Elizabeth Stakes, formerly known as the Queen's Plate, AJC Plate, and AJC King's Cup, is an Australian Turf Club Group 1 Weight for Age thoroughbred horse race run over a distance of 2,000 metres at Randwick Racecourse, Sydney, Australia, in the autumn during the ATC Championships series.^[1] Prize money in 2013 was A$500,000 and was increased to A$4,000,000 in 2014 to become the richest race of the Sydney Autumn Carnival and as of 2020 the third richest WFA race in Australia (after the W. S. Cox Plate and the Everest).^[2]

The origins of this race are firmly associated with colonial Sydney and the growth of thoroughbred racing in the colony during the 1840s and 1850s. The Australian Jockey Club initiated an autumn race meet which coincided with the Easter holiday period and created several races which exist even today. One of these races was the Queen's Plate in honour of Queen Victoria which was first run in 1851 over a distance of about 3 miles.
Through the early 20th century the race continued to hold its prestige, but with the decline in long distance racing, the AJC focused on the Sydney Cup as the premier long distance event of the AJC Autumn Carnival.^[3] By the mid 1950s the race had changed its name and had its distance shortened.^[1] Distance was changed several times until today's distance of 2000 metres in 1986.^[1]

The ATC focused on the Queen Elizabeth Stakes as it became the A$4,000,000 signature event of a new Sydney autumn racing series called "The Championships", attracting international entries.^[2]

• 1851–1872 - Queen's Plate^[4]
• 1873–1927 - AJC Plate
• 1928 - AJC King's Cup^[5]
• 1929–1933 - AJC Plate
• 1934 - AJC King's Cup^[6]
• 1935–1954 - AJC Plate
• 1954 onwards - Queen Elizabeth Stakes^[4]

In February 1954, Queen Elizabeth II visited Australia^[7] and the Australian Jockey Club consequently named a new race in her honour.^[8] She was present at Randwick on 6 February 1954 and witnessed 33/1 long shot Blue Ocean win the race with a track record of 2 minutes 27+3⁄4 seconds for the 1+1⁄2 miles race.^[7][9]

On the last day of the 1954 AJC Autumn Carnival was the last-named race for the AJC Plate, as Lancaster won the Weight for Age 2-mile race.^[10] The next year, on the last day of 1955 AJC Autumn Carnival held on 16 April 1955, the fourth race on the card was the Queen Elizabeth Randwick Stakes over a distance of 1+3⁄4 miles.^[11]

• Front cover of the 1934 AJC Kings Cup racebook
• Inside cover of the 1934 AJC Kings Cup showing raceday officials
• Starters and results of the 1934 Kings Cup showing the winner, Rogilla
• Starters and results of the 1934 Kings Cup
• 1934 AJC Kings Cup racebook showing semaphore flags
• Back cover showing charges at the entrance gates

• Front page 1954 AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes racebook
• 1954 AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes showing raceday officials
• Starters and results 1954 Queen Elizabeth Stakes
• Starters and results 1954 Queen Elizabeth Stakes
• Starters and results 1954 Queen Elizabeth Stakes. showing the winner, Blue Ocean
• 1954 AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes showing Band Entertainment program

Only Carbine (1889–91), Trafalgar (1909, 1911–12), David (1921–23) and Tulloch (1958, 1960–61) have won the race 3 times. Winx (10-1 on/1-10) as heavy favourite won the race for a third successive time on 13 April 2019.

The 19th century horse trainer Etienne L. de Mestre won the race 9 times, in 1862, 1868, 1870, 1871, 1873, 1874, 1876, 1878 and 1879.^[12]

• List of Australian Group races
• Group races