110-525: Crown Honours Lists are lists of honours conferred upon citizens of the Commonwealth realms . The awards are presented by or in the name of the reigning monarch, currently King Charles III , or his vice-regal representative. Honours have been awarded at New Year since at least 1890, in which year a list of Queen Victoria 's awards was published in The London Gazette on 2 January. There
220-555: A court that encompassed mostly Britain and not the Commonwealth as a whole, was in favour of the idea, but it did not attract wide support. Another thought raised was that viceregal appointments should become trans-Commonwealth; the governor-general of Australia would be someone from South Africa, the governor-general of Ceylon would come from New Zealand, and so on. The prime ministers of Canada and Australia, John Diefenbaker and Robert Menzies , respectively, were sympathetic to
330-562: A royal proclamation . Otherwise, all royal powers, including the royal prerogative , are carried out on behalf of the sovereign by the relevant viceroy. In the United Kingdom, the king appoints Counsellors of State to perform his constitutional duties in his absence. Similarly, the monarch will perform ceremonial duties in the Commonwealth realms to mark historically significant events. Citizens in Commonwealth realms may request birthday or wedding anniversary messages to be sent from
440-711: A state visit to the United States as king of Canada . While the idea was embraced in Canada as a way to "translate the Statute of Westminster into the actualities of a tour", throughout the planning of the trip that took place in 1939, the British authorities resisted at numerous points the idea that the King be attended by his Canadian ministers instead of his British ones. The Canadian prime minister (still Mackenzie King)
550-515: A 'United Empire'." The meeting did produce a five-year trade agreement based upon a policy, first conceived in the 1900s, of Imperial Preference : the countries retained their import tariffs, but lowered these for other Commonwealth countries. During his tenure as Governor General of Canada, Lord Tweedsmuir urged the organisation of a royal tour of the country by King George VI, so that he might not only appear in person before his people, but also personally perform constitutional duties and pay
660-471: A combined area of 18.7 million km (7.2 million sq mi) (excluding the Antarctic claims which would raise the figure to 26.8 million km (10.3 million sq mi)) and a population of more than 150 million. The Commonwealth realms are sovereign states . They are united only in their voluntary connection with the institution of the monarchy, the succession, and
770-459: A docudrama . An earlier scandal over David Lloyd George 's 1922 Dissolution Honours list resulted in the Honours (Prevention of Abuses) Act 1925 . Tony Blair did not issue a list, apparently because of the " Cash for Honours " scandal. Gordon Brown did not publish a resignation honours list either, but a dissolution list was issued on his advice (to similar effect). David Cameron revived
880-480: A dominion simply by including in any new law a clause claiming the dominion cabinet had requested and approved of the act, whether that was true or not. Further, the British parliament was not obliged to fulfil a dominion's request for legislative change. Regardless, in 1935 the British parliament refused to consider the result of the Western Australian secession referendum of 1933 without the approval of
990-448: A few days after the UK's. Their example was followed more consistently by the other realms as further war was declared against Italy, Romania, Hungary, Finland and Japan. Ireland remained neutral, "shattering the illusion of imperial unity." At the war's end, it was said by F.R. Scott that "it is firmly established as a basic constitutional principle that, so far as relates to Canada, the King
1100-535: A monarchy with ... the UK, just as ... 16 other [ sic ] Commonwealth countries do now." Dennis Canavan , leader of Yes Scotland , disagreed and said a separate, post-independence referendum should be held on the matter. Following the Perth Agreement of 2011, the Commonwealth realms, in accordance with convention, together engaged in a process of amending the common line of succession according to each country's constitution, to ensure
1210-574: A motion proposing the country become a republic and leave the Commonwealth. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was told "His Majesty is genuinely alarmed at the feeling, which appears to be growing in Australia and may well be aggravated by further reverses in the Far East. He very much hopes, therefore, that it may be possible to adopt as soon as possible some procedure which will succeed in arresting these dangerous developments without impairing
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#17327839456751320-577: A multi-millionaire meat importer notorious for his tax evasion; Samuel Waring , who had been accused of war profiteering ; and Archibald Williamson , whose oil firm had allegedly traded with the enemy during the war. Prime Minister Lloyd George in mid-1922 was fast losing his political support, and his sales were denounced in the House of Lords as an abuse of the Prime Minister 's powers of patronage. Only one person has ever been convicted under
1430-573: A number of people connected to the Labour Party government of Tony Blair were interviewed voluntarily at Downing Street in connection with alleged offences under the 1925 Act. The act was brought in after the Liberal Party government of David Lloyd George was severely embarrassed peddling honours for party funds. The practice was legal and dated back several decades partly for new money to discreetly acquire titles; Lloyd George made
1540-485: A regency law if the sovereign were incapacitated. Though input was sought from the Dominions on the matter, all declined to make themselves bound by the British legislation, agreeing with Simon. Tuvalu later incorporated this principle into its constitution . New Zealand included in its Constitution Act 1986 a clause specifying that, should a regent be installed in the United Kingdom, that individual would carry out
1650-477: A regency; though, such legislation would not be required until the occasion arose. This was because the governors-general could still perform viceregal functions during a regency in Britain, including giving royal assent to any Dominion law giving effect to a regency in that Dominion. In the United Kingdom, on the other hand, legislation was needed in advance because, otherwise, there would be no one to give assent to
1760-525: A republic within 18 months if it won the election and polls suggested that 55 per cent of Jamaicans desired the country become a republic. The ruling Jamaica Labour Party , which had in 2016 promised a referendum it did not deliver, was reelected. Barbados , which had been a Commonwealth realm for 55 years since it gained independence in 1966, became a republic by vote of Parliament in October 2021, effective on 30 November 2021. Some Barbadians criticised
1870-417: Is Queen of Great Britain, but she is equally Queen of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, and Ceylon ... It is now possible for Elizabeth II to be, in practice as well as theory, equally Queen in all her realms." Still, Boyce holds the contrary opinion that the crowns of all the non-British realms are "derivative, if not subordinate" to the crown of the United Kingdom. Since each realm has
1980-419: Is generally agreed that any unilateral alteration of succession by the UK would not have effect in all the realms. Following the accession of George VI to the throne, the United Kingdom created legislation that provided for a regency if the monarch was not of age or incapacitated. During debate that law, Sir John Simon opined that each Dominion would have to decide if it needed to legislate with respect to
2090-505: Is regulated by Canadian law and must act only on the advice and responsibility of Canadian ministers." The war had strained the alliance among the Commonwealth countries, which had been noted by the King. The Prime Minister of Australia, John Curtin , had stated in December 1941 "that Australia looks to America, free of any pangs about our traditional links of kinship with Britain." The Parliament of South Africa voted on 14 January 1942 on
2200-464: Is therefore no longer an exclusively British institution. From a cultural standpoint, the sovereign's name, image and other royal symbols unique to each nation are visible in the emblems and insignia of governmental institutions and militia. Elizabeth II's effigy, for example, appears on coins and banknotes in some countries, and an oath of allegiance to the King is usually required from politicians, judges, military members and new citizens. By 1959, it
2310-534: The London Gazette , Canada Gazette , Commonwealth of Australia Gazette and New Zealand Gazette . The lists are also published in the daily newspapers of each realm. Honours have been awarded on the monarch's birthday since at least 9 November 1901, the birthday of King Edward VII ( r. 1901–1910). After 1908 the monarch's official birthday was moved to the first, second or third Saturday in June (for
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#17327839456752420-595: The Mail on Sunday reported that he "offered to help to secure a knighthood and British citizenship" for Mahfouz Marei Mubarak bin Mahfouz , a Saudi businessman who donated £1.5m to Prince Charles's charities . William Bortrick , the editor and owner of Burke's Peerage , was named by the Sunday Times as the alleged fixer at the heart of the claims. Bortrick is said to have received thousands of pounds to secure
2530-459: The 1953 Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference that it was important to agree on a format that would "emphasise the fact that the Queen is Queen of Canada, regardless of her sovereignty over other Commonwealth countries." The result was a new Royal Style and Titles Act being passed in each of the seven realms then existing (excluding Pakistan ), which all identically gave formal recognition to
2640-535: The Australian states . These appointments are made on the advice of the prime minister of the country or the premier of the province or state concerned, though this process may have additional requirements. The extent to which specific additional powers are reserved exclusively for the monarch varies from realm to realm. On occasions of national importance, the King may be advised to perform in person his constitutional duties, such as granting royal assent or issuing
2750-615: The Church of Scotland and sends a Lord High Commissioner as his representative to meetings of the church's General Assembly , when he is not personally in attendance. Until the early part of the 20th century, the monarch's title throughout the British Empire was determined exclusively by the Parliament of the United Kingdom . As the dominions gained importance, the British government began to consult their governments on how
2860-594: The First World War . In 1919, Canadian prime minister Sir Robert Borden and South African minister of defence Jan Smuts demanded that, at the Versailles Conference , the dominions be given full recognition as "autonomous nations of an Imperial Commonwealth". As a result, although the King signed as High Contracting Party for the Empire as a whole, the dominions were also separate signatories to
2970-712: The Halibut Treaty in its own right in 1923. In the Chanak crisis of 1922, the Canadian government insisted that its course of action would be determined by the Canadian parliament, not the British government, and, by 1925, the dominions felt confident enough to refuse to be bound by Britain's adherence to the Treaty of Locarno . The Viscount Haldane said in 1919 that in Australia the Crown "acts in self-governing States on
3080-551: The Imperial Conference of 1926 for a reorganisation of the way the dominions related to the British government, resulting in the Balfour Declaration, which declared formally that the dominions were fully autonomous and equal in status to the United Kingdom. What this meant in practice was not at the time worked out; conflicting views existed, some in the United Kingdom not wishing to see a fracturing of
3190-538: The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council was left available as the last court of appeal for some dominions. Specific attention was given in the statute's preamble to royal succession, outlining that no changes to that line could be made by the parliament of the United Kingdom or that of any dominion without the assent of all the other parliaments of the UK and dominions, an arrangement a justice of
3300-509: The Kingdom of Canada . Although the dominions were capable of governing themselves internally, they remained formally—and substantively in regard to foreign policy and defence—subject to British authority, wherein the governor-general of each dominion represented the British monarch - in-Council reigning over these territories as a single imperial domain. It was held in some circles that
3410-625: The Metropolitan Police started investigating possible breaches of the Act. A total of £5 million in loans was given by four wealthy businessmen to the Labour Party during the 2005 general election campaign , the men were subsequently nominated by Tony Blair for peerages . All four of the peerages were blocked by the House of Lords appointments commission. The police inquiries led to 136 people being interviewed, including Tony Blair,
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3520-491: The New Year Honours and Birthday Honours . Special honours are issued at random points throughout the year. Australia and the United Kingdom both issue special honours. † Not issued † Not issued † Not issued † Not issued Commonwealth realm A Commonwealth realm is a sovereign state within the Commonwealth of Nations that has Charles III as its monarch and head of state. All
3630-537: The Royal Style and Titles Act 1957 , which followed the example of Ceylon and South Africa by giving Elizabeth the title Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Ghana and of Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth . Each new realm thereafter did the same. In 1973 Australia removed reference to the United Kingdom, followed by New Zealand the next year. By the time of Elizabeth's death in 2022, aside from
3740-796: The Statute of Westminster , and before the term Commonwealth realm ever came into use. Due to a domestic financial and political crisis, the Newfoundland legislature petitioned the UK to suspend dominion status, the UK parliament passed the Newfoundland Act 1933 , and direct rule was implemented in 1934. Rather than reclaiming dominion status after the Second World War, it became a province of Canada in 1949. Six Commonwealth realms and dominions held referenda to consider whether they should become republics. As of January 2020, of
3850-531: The Treaty of Versailles . They also became, together with India, founding members of the League of Nations . In 1921 the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, David Lloyd George , stated that the "British dominions have now been accepted fully into the community of nations". The pace of independence increased in the 1920s, led by Canada, which exchanged envoys with the United States in 1920 and concluded
3960-412: The "convention that statutory uniformity on these subjects would be maintained in the parts of the Commonwealth that continued to owe allegiance to the Crown". Today, some realms govern succession by their own domestic laws, while others, either by written clauses in their constitution or by convention, stipulate that whoever is monarch of the United Kingdom is automatically also monarch of that realm. It
4070-457: The Act – Maundy Gregory , Lloyd George's "honours broker", in 1933 – whose same behaviour in 1918 was the main cause of the Act in the first place. Gregory's 1933 conviction was secured over his attempts to broker the selling of Vatican knighthoods in the UK. To this date, the Act has never been successfully used to convict anyone involved in the sale of UK honours. In March 2006, following complaints by Scottish National Party MP Angus MacNeil ,
4180-692: The Australian federal government or parliament. In 1937, the Appeal Division of the Supreme Court of South Africa ruled unanimously that a repeal of the Statute of Westminster in the United Kingdom would have no effect in South Africa, stating: "We cannot take this argument seriously. Freedom once conferred cannot be revoked." Others in Canada upheld the same position. At the 1932 British Empire Economic Conference , delegates from
4290-728: The British Dominions Beyond the Seas , or, more simply, King of all the British Dominions Beyond the Seas . The King favoured the latter suggestion, which was adopted as [Edward VII] of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of the British Dominions beyond the Seas King . By 1926, following the issuance of the Balfour Declaration , it was determined that the changes in the nature of
4400-467: The British Empire; others, such as Australia (1901) and New Zealand (1907), followed. With the growing independence of the dominions in the 1920s, the Balfour Declaration of 1926 established the Commonwealth of Nations and that the nations were considered "equal in status ... though united by a common allegiance to the Crown". The Statute of Westminster 1931 further set the relationship between
4510-537: The Canadian provinces each have their own personal standards , as do the governors of the Australian states . The possibility that a colony within the British Empire might become a new kingdom was first mooted in the 1860s, when it was proposed that the British North American territories of Nova Scotia , New Brunswick and the Province of Canada unite as a confederation that might be known as
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4620-463: The Commonwealth (Defender of the Faith) . The South African government objected, stating that did not express the equality of status among the realms. Canadian officials wanted the word queen to precede the name of the realm so as to form the term Queen of Canada , which they felt expressed Elizabeth's distinct role as Canada's sovereign. There was even discussion about the placement of a comma following
4730-429: The Crown was a monolithic element throughout all the monarch's territories; A.H. Lefroy wrote in 1918 that "the Crown is to be considered as one and indivisible throughout the Empire; and cannot be severed into as many kingships as there are dominions, and self-governing colonies". This unitary model began to erode when the dominions gained more international prominence as a result of their participation and sacrifice in
4840-468: The Crown would function as a personal union , akin to that which had earlier existed between the United Kingdom and Hanover (1801 to 1837), or between England and Scotland (1603 to 1707). Its first test came, though, with the abdication of King Edward VIII in 1936, for which it was necessary to gain the consent of the governments of all the dominions and the request and consent of the Canadian government, as well as separate legislation in South Africa and
4950-598: The Empire needed to be reflected in King George V 's title (something the King felt to be a "bore"). This led to the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927 ; though, again, this applied one title to the King across the whole Empire. The preamble to the Statute of Westminster 1931 established the convention requiring the consent of all the dominions' parliaments, as well as that of the United Kingdom, to any alterations to
5060-536: The Grenadines , Solomon Islands , Tuvalu , and the United Kingdom . While the Commonwealth of Nations has 56 independent member states , only these 15 have Charles III as head of state. He is also Head of the Commonwealth , a non-constitutional role. The notion of these states sharing the same person as their monarch traces back to 1867 when Canada became the first dominion , a self-governing nation of
5170-469: The Irish Free State, before the resignation could take place across the Commonwealth. At the height of the crisis, press in South Africa fretted about the Crown being the only thing holding the empire together and the bond would be weakened if Edward VIII continued "weakening kingship". Afterward, Francis Floud , Britain's high commissioner to Canada, opined that the whole affair had strengthened
5280-484: The King himself; the person of the sovereign and the Crown were said in 1936 to be "the most important and vital link" between the dominions. Political scientist Peter Boyce called this grouping of countries associated in this manner "an achievement without parallel in the history of international relations or constitutional law." Terms such as personal union , a form of personal union , and shared monarchy , among others, have all been advanced as definitions since
5390-433: The King's style outside of the United Kingdom. Then, in 1930 George V's Australian ministers employed a practice adopted by resolution at that year's Imperial Conference, directly advising the King to appoint Sir Isaac Isaacs as the Australian governor-general . Calls were also made for the empire to adopt new symbols less centred on the United Kingdom specifically, such as a new British Empire flag that would recognize
5500-469: The New Year Honours in Australia. The list is issued on 26 January every year. Birthday Honours are part of the celebration of the reigning monarch's official birthday in each realm. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, or their deputy. Known as King's Birthday Honours ( Queen's Birthday Honours in times of a female monarch), all royal honours are published in
5610-545: The Ontario Superior Court in 2003 likened to "a treaty among the Commonwealth countries to share the monarchy under the existing rules and not to change the rules without the agreement of all signatories". This was all met with only minor trepidation, either before or at the time, and the government of the Irish Free State was confident that the relationship of these independent countries under
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#17327839456755720-489: The Prince of Wales, Princess Royal, Duke of York and Duke of Edinburgh also have one each for Canada . Those without their own standard use a specific ermine-bordered banner of either the British, Scottish, or, when in or acting on behalf of Canada, Canadian royal arms. The governors-general throughout the Commonwealth realms also each use a personal flag, which, like that of the sovereign, passes to each successive occupant of
5830-459: The Queen's name and regnal number , with the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations advising the use of punctuation was appropriate, as the term by the grace of God had been used in conjunction with the title king or queen since the reign of William II in the 11th century, whereas it had no such association with the position of head of the Commonwealth; so, Elizabeth II was queen by
5940-457: The Statute of Westminster; the Australian prime minister, Robert Menzies , considered the government bound by the British declaration of war, while New Zealand coordinated a declaration of war to be made simultaneously with Britain's. As late as 1937, some scholars were still of the mind that, when it came to declarations of war, if the King signed, he did so as king of the empire as a whole; at that time, William Paul McClure Kennedy wrote: "in
6050-469: The UK). Other Commonwealth realms celebrate the official birthday on different dates (generally late May or early June), and release their honours lists accordingly. Coronation honours are awarded by the sovereign to mark their coronation . The honours are usually those within the sovereign's personal gift. Jubilee honours are awarded by the sovereign to mark their jubilee . The honours are usually those within
6160-480: The UK, reflected this position, stating that the Act of Settlement was a part of the law in each dominion. Though today the Statute of Westminster is law only in Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, the convention of approval from the other realms was reasserted by the Perth Agreement of 2011, in which all 16 realms at the time agreed in principle to change the succession rule to absolute primogeniture , to remove
6270-524: The United Kingdom itself, only Canada retained mention of the United Kingdom in the monarch's title and only Canada and New Zealand retained a reference to the monarch as Defender of the Faith . The Canadian parliament, in 2023, passed legislation that removed those references, The bill received royal assent on 22 June 2023; a proclamation of the new title was issued on January 8, 2024. Queen Elizabeth II employed various royal standards to mark her presence,
6380-467: The United Kingdom on 11 December; as the Canadian government had requested and consented to the act becoming part of Canadian law, and Australia and New Zealand had then not yet adopted the Statute of Westminster , the abdication took place in those countries on the same day. The parliament of South Africa passed its own legislation— His Majesty King Edward the Eighth's Abdication Act, 1937 —which backdated
6490-418: The United Kingdom, [Australia/Canada/New Zealand] and her other Realms and Territories Queen , keeping by the grace of God and defender of the faith . Pakistan's Royal Style and Titles Act simply titled the Queen as Queen of the United Kingdom and of Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth . After Ghana gained independence and became a Commonwealth realm in 1957, its parliament passed
6600-678: The United Kingdom, led by Stanley Baldwin (then Lord President of the Council ), hoped to establish a system of free trade within the British Commonwealth, to promote unity within the British Empire and to assure Britain's position as a world power. The idea was controversial, as it pitted proponents of imperial trade with those who sought a general policy of trade liberalisation with all nations. The dominions, particularly Canada, were also adamantly against dispensing with their import tariffs, which "dispelled any romantic notions of
6710-607: The United Kingdom. Since then, new realms have been created through the independence of former colonies and dependencies; Saint Kitts and Nevis is the youngest extant realm, becoming one in 1983. Some realms became republics; Barbados changed from being a realm to a republic in 2021. There are currently 15 Commonwealth realms scattered across three continents (nine in North America , five in Oceania , and one in Europe ), with
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#17327839456756820-560: The abdication there to 10 December. The Irish Free State recognised the king's abdication with the Executive Authority (External Relations) Act 1936 on 12 December. According to Anne Twomey , this demonstrated "the divisibility of the Crown in the personal, as well as the political, sense". For E. H. Coghill, writing as early as 1937, it proved that the convention of a common line of succession "is not of imperative force" and Kenneth John Scott asserted in 1962 that it ended
6930-434: The advice of the cabinet of that jurisdiction. This means that in different contexts, the term Crown may refer to the extra-national institution associating all 15 countries, or to the Crown in each realm considered separately. In Australia, it has been suggested that the Crown is further divided, with it possible that the monarchy in each of the states is a separate institution, equal in status to each other. The monarchy
7040-542: The beginning of the Commonwealth itself, though there has been no agreement on which term is most accurate. Under the Balfour Declaration of 1926 , dominions were proclaimed to be "equal in status, in no way subordinate one to another in any aspect of their domestic or external affairs, though united by a common allegiance to the Crown" and the monarch is the leader "equally, officially, and explicitly of separate, autonomous realms". Andrew Michie wrote in 1952 that "Elizabeth II embodies in her own person many monarchies: she
7150-463: The behest of an outgoing Prime Minister following his or her resignation. In such a list, a Prime Minister may ask the monarch to bestow peerages , or other lesser honours, on any number of people of his or her choosing. At times, the appointments created controversy: for example the 1976 Prime Minister's Resignation Honours , also known as "the Lavender List", about which BBC Four produced
7260-757: The concept, but, again, it was never put into practice. On 6 July 2010, Elizabeth II addressed the United Nations in New York City as queen of 16 Commonwealth realms. The following year, Portia Simpson-Miller , the Prime Minister of Jamaica , spoke of a desire to make that country a republic, while Alex Salmond , the First Minister of Scotland and leader of the Scottish National Party (which favours Scottish independence ), stated an independent Scotland "would still share
7370-551: The connections between the various nations; though, he felt the Crown could not suffer another shock. As the various legislative steps taken by the dominions resulted in Edward abdicating on different dates in different countries, this demonstrated the division of the Crown post-Statute of Westminster. The civil division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales later found in 1982 that the British parliament could have legislated for
7480-464: The country's royal succession, the convention does not apply. Agreement among the realms does not mean the succession laws cannot diverge. During the abdication crisis in 1936, the United Kingdom passed His Majesty's Declaration of Abdication Act with the approval of the parliament of Australia and the governments of the remaining dominions. (Canada, New Zealand and South Africa gave parliamentary assent later.) The act effected Edward's abdication in
7590-448: The efficiency of the existing machinery." Within three years following the end of the Second World War, India , Pakistan and Ceylon became independent dominions within the Commonwealth. India would soon move to a republican form of government. Unlike in Ireland and Burma, there was no desire on the part of India to leave the Commonwealth, prompting a Commonwealth Conference and the London Declaration in April 1949, which entrenched
7700-416: The eight held, three were successful: in Ghana, in South Africa and the second referendum in Gambia. Referenda that rejected the proposal were held in Australia, twice in Tuvalu, and in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Interest in holding a second referendum was expressed in Australia in 2010. During the 2020 Jamaican general election , the People's National Party promised to hold a referendum on becoming
7810-409: The elevated status of the dominions. Many unofficial designs were often displayed for patriotic celebrations such as coronations and Empire Day . These new developments were explicitly codified in 1931 with the passage of the Statute of Westminster , through which Canada, the Union of South Africa, and the Irish Free State all immediately obtained formal legislative independence from the UK, while in
7920-545: The elimination of the terms grace of God and defender of the faith ; by the will of the people was suggested as a replacement. All that was agreed at the Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference in 1949 was that each of George VI's countries should have a different title, but with common elements, and it would be sufficient for each realm's parliament to pass a local law. The matter went unresolved until Elizabeth II became queen in 1952, upon which
8030-488: The final test of sovereignty—that of war—Canada is not a sovereign state... and it remains as true in 1937 as it was in 1914 that when the Crown is at war, Canada is legally at war," and, one year later, Arthur Berriedale Keith argued that "issues of war or neutrality still are decided on the final authority of the British Cabinet." In 1939, Canada and South Africa made separate proclamations of war against Germany
8140-661: The first prime minister to be questioned by police as part of a political corruption inquiry, albeit "as a witness rather than a suspect". In 2007, after a £1.4 million, 19-month investigation, the police handed a 216-page report with 6,300 supporting documents to the Crown Prosecution Service which later announced it had insufficient evidence to bring charges against anyone. In September 2021, Michael Fawcett , Prince Charles 's closest aide, "stepped down temporarily" as chief executive of The Prince's Foundation , after an investigation by The Sunday Times and
8250-543: The functions of the head of state beyond the purely constitutional; the international monarchy, where the monarch is head of state in the 15 realms and holds the position of head of the Commonwealth; the religious monarchy, meaning the sovereign as head of the Church of England and his relationship with the Presbyterian Church of Scotland; and the welfare/service monarchy, wherein the sovereign and other members of
8360-444: The functions of the monarch of New Zealand. The sovereign resides in the oldest realm, the United Kingdom. The king appoints viceroys to perform most of the constitutional and ceremonial duties on his behalf in the other realms: in each, a governor-general as his personal national representative, as well as a lieutenant governor as his representative in each of the Canadian provinces and governor as his representative in each of
8470-479: The government's decision not to hold a referendum on the issue as being undemocratic. Honours (Prevention of Abuses) Act 1925 The Honours (Prevention of Abuses) Act 1925 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom , that makes the sale of peerages or any other honours illegal. The act was passed by the Parliament in the wake of David Lloyd George's 1922 cash-for-honours scandal . In 2006
8580-425: The governors-general now acted solely as a personal representative of the sovereign in right of that dominion. Though no formal mechanism for tendering advice to the monarch had yet been established—former Prime Minister of Australia Billy Hughes theorised that the dominion cabinets would provide informal direction and the British Cabinet would offer formal advice —the concepts were first put into legal practice with
8690-459: The grace of God, but her position as head of the Commonwealth was a secular arrangement. In the end, it was decided the common wording in the titles was to be Queen of her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth . Regardless, Ceylon and South Africa used Queen of [Ceylon/South Africa] and her other Realms and Territories , omitting by the grace of God and defender of the faith , while Australia, Canada, and New Zealand opted for of
8800-473: The honour. According to the Metropolitan Police , at least two complaints were made calling for an investigation into whether Prince Charles or Michael Fawcett breached the 1925 Act. In February 2022 the Metropolitan Police launched an investigation into the cash-for-honours allegations linked to Charles' charity The Prince's Foundation. On 6 September 2022, officers interviewed under caution,
8910-433: The idea that republics be allowed in the Commonwealth so long as they recognised King George VI as Head of the Commonwealth and the "symbol of the free association of its independent member nations". Pakistan became a republic in 1956. As these constitutional developments were taking place, the dominion and British governments became increasingly concerned with how to represent the more commonly accepted notion that there
9020-547: The initiative and advice of its own ministers in these States". Another catalyst for change came in 1926, when Field Marshal the Lord Byng of Vimy , then Governor General of Canada , refused the advice of his prime minister (William Lyon Mackenzie King) in what came to be known colloquially as the King–Byng Affair . Mackenzie King, after resigning and then being reappointed as prime minister some months later, pushed at
9130-499: The monarch after the dissolution of Parliament . Typically, the list will include retiring MPs , some of whom are customarily made life peers . The list may also include knighthoods for others who have served in Parliament, including those who may not want peerages. Appointments to the Privy Council of the United Kingdom are also made. The Prime Minister's Resignation Honours in the United Kingdom are honours granted at
9240-611: The monarch should be titled. Ahead of the coronation of King Edward VII in 1902, the British Secretary of State for the Colonies, Joseph Chamberlain , suggested the King have the title King of Great Britain and Ireland and of Greater Britain Beyond the Seas . Canadian officials preferred explicitly mention of the dominions: King of Great Britain and Ireland, Emperor of India, King of Canada, Australasia, South Africa and all
9350-577: The monarch's style and title. This first came into play when the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act was amended in 1948, by domestic law in Britain and each of the dominions, to remove George VI 's title Emperor of India . Within the year, discussions about rewording the monarch's title began again when Ireland repealed legislation conferring functions on the king. The governments of Pakistan and Canada this time wanted more substantial changes, leading South Africa and Ceylon to also, along with Pakistan, request
9460-428: The monarch, as head of state of two different realms, may be simultaneously at war and at peace with a third country, or even at war with themself as head of two hostile nations. The evolution of dominions into realms resulted in the Crown having a shared and a separate character, with one human equally monarch of each state and acting as such in right of a particular realm as a distinct legal person guided only by
9570-543: The office. Most feature a lion passant atop a St. Edward's royal crown with the name of the country across a scroll underneath, all on a blue background. The two exceptions are those of, since 1981, Canada (bearing on a blue background the crest of the Royal Coat of Arms of Canada ) and, since 2008, New Zealand (a St. Edward's Crown above the shield of the Coat of arms of New Zealand ). The lieutenant governors of
9680-558: The order of precedence for the realms' high commissioners or national flags is set according to the chronological order of, first, when the country became a dominion and then the date on which the country gained independence. Conflicts of interest have arisen from this relationship amongst independent states. Some have been minor diplomatic matters, such as the monarch expressing on the advice of one of his/her cabinets views that counter those of another of his/her cabinets. More serious issues have arisen with respect to armed conflict, where
9790-465: The order would continue to be identical in every realm. In legislative debates in the United Kingdom, the term Commonwealth realm was employed, but, it remained unused in any law. In addition to the states listed above, the Dominion of Newfoundland was a dominion when the Statute of Westminster 1931 was given royal assent but effectively lost that status in 1934, without ever having assented to
9900-428: The other dominions adoption of the statute was subject to ratification by the dominion's parliament. Australia and New Zealand did so in 1942 and 1947, respectively, with the former's ratification back-dated to 1939, while Newfoundland never ratified the bill and reverted to direct British rule in 1934. As a result, the parliament at Westminster was unable to legislate for any dominion unless requested to do so, although
10010-442: The particular one used depending on which realm she was in or acting on behalf of at the time. All are heraldic banners incorporating the arms for that state and, save for those of the UK, were defaced in the centre with the device from the Queen's Personal Flag . The Queen would use that personal flag in realms where she did not have a royal standard. Many other members of the royal family have their own personal standards ;
10120-411: The passage in 1927 of the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act , which implicitly recognised the Irish Free State as separate from the UK, and the King as king of each dominion uniquely, rather than as the British king in each dominion. At the same time, terminology in foreign relations was altered to demonstrate the independent status of the dominions, such as the dropping of the term "Britannic" from
10230-614: The practice in his 2016 Prime Minister's Resignation Honours published on 4 August following his July resignation. Bravery Council honours lists recipients of Australian bravery honours. The lists are issued twice a year, in March and August. As part of the British honours system, Special Honours are issued at the Monarch 's pleasure at any given time. The Special Honours refer to the awards made within royal prerogative, operational honours, political honours and other honours awarded outside
10340-422: The practice more systematic and more brazen, charging £10,000 for a knighthood, £30,000 for baronetcy, and £50,000 upwards for a peerage. The practice came to a halt with the notorious 1922 Birthday Honours List, which contained the names of Sir Joseph Robinson , a South African gold and diamond magnate who had been convicted of fraud and fined half a million pounds a few months earlier; Sir William Vestey ,
10450-625: The realms and the Crown , including a convention that any alteration to the line of succession in any one country must be voluntarily approved by all the others. The modern Commonwealth of Nations was then formally constituted by the London Declaration in 1949 when India wanted to become a republic without leaving the Commonwealth ; this left seven independent nations sharing the Crown: Australia, Canada, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka ), New Zealand, Pakistan , South Africa , and
10560-533: The realms are independent of each other, although one person, resident in the United Kingdom , acts as monarch of each. Except for the UK, in each of the realms the monarch is represented by a governor-general . The phrase Commonwealth realm is an informal description not used in any law. As of 2024 , there are 15 Commonwealth realms: Antigua and Barbuda , Australia , The Bahamas , Belize , Canada , Grenada , Jamaica , New Zealand , Papua New Guinea , Saint Kitts and Nevis , Saint Lucia , Saint Vincent and
10670-463: The realms issued their respective accession proclamations using different titles for their monarch. Debate ensued thereafter. The Australian government preferred that the monarch's title name all of the realms, but said it would accept Elizabeth II (by the Grace of God) of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, [name of realm], and all of her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of
10780-463: The restriction on the monarch being married to a Catholic, and to reduce the number of members of the Royal Family who need the monarch's permission to marry. These changes came into effect on 26 March 2015. Alternatively, a Commonwealth realm may choose to cease being such by making its throne the inheritance of a different royal house or by becoming a republic, actions to which, though they alter
10890-399: The royal family give their patronage to charities and other elements of civil society. To guarantee the continuity of multiple states sharing the same person as monarch, the preamble of the Statute of Westminster 1931 laid out a convention that any alteration to the line of succession in any one country must be voluntarily approved by the parliaments of all the realms. This convention
11000-405: The sacred unity of the Crown throughout the empire, and some in the dominions not wishing to see their jurisdiction have to take on the full brunt of diplomatic and military responsibilities. What did follow was that the dominion governments gained an equal status with the United Kingdom, a separate and direct relationship with the monarch, without the British Cabinet acting as an intermediary, and
11110-595: The same person as its monarch, the diplomatic practice of exchanging ambassadors with letters of credence and recall from one head of state to another does not apply. Diplomatic relations between the Commonwealth realms are thus at a cabinet level only, and high commissioners are exchanged between realms (though all other countries in the Commonwealth of Nations also follow this same practice, for traditional reasons). A high commissioner's full title will thus be High Commissioner Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary for His Majesty's Government in [Country] . For certain ceremonies,
11220-426: The separateness and equality of the countries involved, and replaced the phrase "British Dominions Beyond the Seas" with "Her Other Realms and Territories", the latter using the word realm in place of dominion . Further, at her coronation, Elizabeth II's oath contained a provision requiring her to promise to govern according to the rules and customs of the realms, naming each one separately. The change in perspective
11330-405: The sovereign's personal gift. Demise honours are awarded after the death of a member of a royal consort or member of the royal family, examples include the honours awarded after the deaths of Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother and Princess Margaret in 2002 , Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh in 2021 , and Queen Elizabeth II in 2023 . The Dissolution Honours List lists recipients of honours from
11440-526: The sovereign. This is available for 100th, 105th and beyond for birthdays; and 60th ("Diamond"), 65th, 70th ("Platinum") and beyond for wedding anniversaries. It is solely in England that the King plays a role in organised religion where he acts as the Supreme Governor of the Church of England and nominally appoints its bishops and archbishops. In Scotland, he swears an oath to uphold and protect
11550-415: Was being asserted by Buckingham Palace officials that the Queen was "equally at home in all her realms". Robert Hazell and Bob Morris argued in 2017 that there are five aspects to the monarchy of the Commonwealth realms: the constitutional monarchy, including the royal prerogative and the use thereof on the advice of local ministers or according to convention or statute law; the national monarchy, comprising
11660-532: Was first applied in 1936 when the British government conferred with the dominion governments during the Edward VIII abdication crisis . Prime Minister of Canada William Lyon Mackenzie King pointed out that the Statute of Westminster required Canada's request and consent to any legislation passed by the British parliament before it could become part of Canada's laws and affect the line of succession in Canada. Sir Maurice Gwyer , first parliamentary counsel in
11770-412: Was no distinction between the sovereign's role in the United Kingdom and his or her position in any of the dominions. Thus, at the 1948 Prime Ministers' Conference the term dominion was avoided in favour of Commonwealth country , to avoid the subordination implied by the older designation. The Commonwealth's prime ministers discussed the matter of the new monarch's title, with St. Laurent stating at
11880-612: Was no honours list at New Year 1902, as a list had been published on the new king's birthday the previous November, but from January 1903 until 1909 a list (including only Indian orders) was published. The other orders were announced on the king's birthday in November. Australia has discontinued New Year Honours, and now announces its honours on Australia Day , 26 January, and the King's Official Birthday holiday, in early June. The Australia Day honours were established in 1975 to replace
11990-580: Was summed up by Patrick Gordon Walker 's statement in the British House of Commons : "We in this country have to abandon... any sense of property in the Crown. The Queen, now, clearly, explicitly and according to title, belongs equally to all her realms and to the Commonwealth as a whole." In the same period, Walker also suggested to the British parliament that the Queen should annually spend an equal amount of time in each of her realms. Lord Altrincham , who in 1957 criticised Queen Elizabeth II for having
12100-500: Was ultimately the minister in attendance, and the King did in public throughout the trip ultimately act solely in his capacity as the Canadian monarch. The status of the Crown was bolstered by Canada's reception of George VI. When the Second World War began, there was some uncertainty in the dominions about the ramifications of Britain's declaration of war against Nazi Germany . Australia and New Zealand had not yet adopted
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