The Unofficial British Royal Family Pages

Sunday 28 March 2004

The Crown and The Commonwealth

Elizabeth II is queen of sixteen independent countries (the full list is at the end of this article), usually referred to as her realms. In each country she is a separate legal entity, and has a separate title, although all the titles have two common elements, namely that she is queen of "her other Realms and Territories" and "Head of the Commonwealth". Apart from Britain itself only two (Canada and Grenada) explicitly mention that she is Queen of the UK.

In all these realms, the constitutional position of the Crown is much the same, although it is more clearly defined and limited in some of those with written constitutions. In all except the UK, Her Majesty is represented by a Governor General, who is a local citizen appointed by the crown, usually for five years. The appointment is made "on the advice" of the local Prime Minister, who may consult others, depending on local practice.

The Governor General acts in the Queen's name. Official documents requiring the head of state’s approval bear the Queen's name (not that of her Governor General), although the signature may be that of the Governor General. For practical constitutional purposes, the Governor General is the Head of State, and performs the Crown’s functions, such as giving the royal assent to acts of parliament and appointing and dismissing ministers, without having to consult the Queen. Even controversial acts (such as Sir John Kerr's dismissal of Prime Minister Whitlam in Australia in 1975), are carried out without consulting Her Majesty in advance.

Nevertheless, ministers of all realms are still the Queen's ministers, and they have direct access to her when the opportunity arises (e.g. when they are in London or when she is visiting their realms).

The idea that a country, such as Canada, can be independent and yet still owe allegiance to the Head of State of another country is mystifying to some, and that perception is part of the motivation behind some of those who advocate republics. The argument is that a “grown up” country should have its own head of state rather than one who reflects their colonial past. The realms are fully independent, so much so that in theory, the Queen can be at war with herself (it happened in 1947-48 when George VI, King of India, was at war against George VI, King of Pakistan).

The current role of Governors General began to develop in 1867 when the Dominion of Canada was created with a large measure of independence, although the UK government retained responsibility for foreign relations. The Governor General represented both the Queen and her British government, and he was always a Briton.

The term "dominion" was chosen for Canada because "Kingdom of Canada" was thought to be too monarchic for the republican-minded Americans to the south, but it became the generic term for self-governing states within the British Empire. Other dominions followed - Australia in 1901, New Zealand in 1907 (the only one, other than Canada, officially called “the Dominion of ……), South Africa in 1910 and the Irish Free State in 1922, each with its own Governor General.

The move from semi-independent to full and equal independent status for the dominions was agreed on at an Imperial Conference in 1926, and was given legal effect by the Statute of Westminster, passed by the British Parliament in 1931. Although the dominions became equal partners in the British Commonwealth, the Crown remained indivisible, a common point of allegiance for the whole Commonwealth and Empire. The king continued to have only one title everywhere - "of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Dominions beyond the Seas, King, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India".

As a consequence of the full and equal independent status, it was no longer deemed appropriate for the Governor General to represent both the Crown and the British government, and so the office of High Commissioner was created to assume the latter role. Commonwealth countries (whether realms or republics), are still represented in each others' capitals by high commissioners rather than ambassadors. Since the Second World War, it has become the norm to appoint local citizens as Governor General, although there was talk of Prince Charles taking on the role in Australia in the 1970s. He would not have been the first royal (or nearly royal) Governor General. Others have included HRH The Duke of Connaught, son of Queen Victoria (Canada 1911-16), HRH Prince Arthur of Connaught, grandson of Queen Victoria (South Africa 1920-23), HRH The Duke of Gloucester, uncle of the Queen (Australia 1945-47), The Earl of Athlone, brother of Queen Mary (South Africa 1923-30, and Canada 1940-46) and Earl Mountbatten of Burma, uncle of Prince Philip (India 1947-48).

Ireland began the move away from Commonwealth-wide acceptance of the king as head of state when it adopted a new constitution in 1937. While not proclaiming itself a republic, it ignored the office of Governor General and established that of President of Ireland. It formally declared itself a republic, and left the Commonwealth, in 1949.

New dominions were established after World War II in India, Pakistan and Ceylon. In 1950, India became a republic but wanted to remain in the Commonwealth. Prior to the declaration of the republic, Commonwealth countries agreed on a new arrangement by which a republic could remain in the Commonwealth, but all member states recognized the British monarch as Head of the Commonwealth, even if not the head of their own state. Pakistan followed India's lead in 1955, and the majority of subsequent newly-independent members have become republics either on independence or later.

After the accession of Elizabeth II in 1952, Commonwealth countries agreed that the monarch's title should reflect the equal status of all members, as well as her role as head of the Commonwealth. It was also agreed that she should have a distinct title in each country, but all with a common reference to “her other Realms and Territories” and “Head of the Commonwealth”. Each country legislated to provide its own title for the Queen during 1953 (some have subsequently made further amendments to remove references to the UK). Thus, in London, she is "Elizabeth II, by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of her other Realms and Territories, Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith", while in Canberra she is "Elizabeth II, by the Grace of God Queen of Australia and her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth".

During Elizabeth II's reign, the principle that the Crown is one and indivisible has eroded, and the general legal opinion today is that the Crown of New Zealand, for example, is quite separate from that of the UK, albeit worn by the same person. The term "dominion" has also lost favour, and "realm" came into use for those Commonwealth countries of which Her Majesty is Queen. The terms are not exact equivalents, though - the UK is a realm but was never a dominion.

Queen Elizabeth II takes her role as Head of the Commonwealth very seriously, and maintains an active interest in the affairs of her other realms and the Commonwealth itself. She’s a frequent traveller to her realms (about 20 official visits to Canada so far, for example), and attends the bi-annual Commonwealth Heads of Government meetings, where she has private audiences with all her Prime Ministers. She played a part in bringing the parties together for the Lancaster House Conference in 1979, which resolved the Rhodesia problem and led to its independence as Zimbabwe the following year. However, her power is very limited. She was in no position to prevent a revolution in Grenada in 1979, or to prevent two coup d’etats in Fiji in 1987, which led to it becoming a republic and leaving the Commonwealth.

The future of the Queen’s realms remains uncertain. Slowly, countries are moving towards republican status, with locally-chosen presidents. Malta, Mauritius and Trinidad & Tobago are among those who have dropped allegiance to the British monarch, having originally retained it at independence, and others are likely to follow.

The move towards republics hasn’t been entirely smooth, however. In Australia, republicans suffered a set-back in the referendum of 1999, largely because they were divided amongst themselves about what kind of president would replace the Queen. Even where the Queen remains Head of State, ties to her (or at least to Britain), have loosened in symbolic and practical ways. A number of realms, such as Canada, Australia and New Zealand, have adopted their own honours systems rather than share the British one; more countries are terminating the role of Her Majesty’s Privy Council in London as their final court of appeal; royal symbols, such as the Queen’s portrait on banknotes, have been reduced or removed. Even the monarch’s role as Head of the Commonwealth is not certain - it is not written into law that the British monarch should hold the position, and there are those who advocate alternatives.

As countries increasingly assert their own identities, and regional alliances such as the European Union continue to take on more significance than old Commonwealth ones, only time will tell whether the British monarch will retain a multi-national status in the future.

- Paul James

Her Majesty's Realms:

Antigua and Barbuda
Australia
The Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Canada
Grenada
Jamaica
New Zealand
Papua New Guinea
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
The Solomon Islands
Tuvalu
The United Kingdom