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77-616: HMG may refer to: Businesses and organisations [ edit ] His Majesty's Government (term) , a Commonwealth state's executive Government of Canada Government of Gibraltar Government of New Zealand Government of the United Kingdom Holland Media Groep , Dutch TV broadcaster Human Media Group , American multi-channel network Hyundai Motor Group , South Korean car manufacturer Science and technology [ edit ] Heavy machine gun ,

154-405: A class of larger-caliber weapon High-mobility group , a group of proteins that act on DNA HMG-CoA , a metabolic intermediate biomolecule HMG Heat and Waterproof Adhesive Human menopausal gonadotrophin , a fertility drug Human Molecular Genetics , a scientific journal Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with

231-526: A combined gross domestic product of over $ 9 trillion, 78% of which is accounted for by the four largest economies: India ($ 3.737 trillion), United Kingdom ($ 3.124 trillion), Canada ($ 1.652 trillion), and Australia ($ 1.379 trillion). In 1997 the Commonwealth Heads of Government agreed that, to become a member of the Commonwealth, an applicant country should, as a rule, have had

308-475: A division thereof (for instance the Canadian Province of Alberta ), belongs to the reigning sovereign, and not to the cabinet or prime minister . Notwithstanding that it is (in at least a technical sense) constitutionally incorrect, across the Commonwealth realms individual governments are frequently referred to informally by the person serving as the relevant Prime Minister, rather than in reference to

385-622: A former colony of the United Kingdom, but some have links to other countries, either exclusively or more directly (e.g., Bangladesh to Pakistan, Samoa to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea to Australia, and Singapore to Malaysia). Mozambique, in 1995, was the first country to join without such a constitutional connection, leading to the Edinburgh Declaration and the current membership guidelines. In 2009, Rwanda, formerly under Belgian and German rule, joined. Consideration for Rwanda's admission

462-455: A fundamental founding document of the organisation, laid out that membership required dominionhood. The 1949 London Declaration ended this, allowing republican and indigenous monarchic members on the condition that they recognised King George VI as " Head of the Commonwealth ". In the wake of the wave of decolonisation in the 1960s, these constitutional principles were augmented by political, economic, and social principles. The first of these

539-471: A minority government was not without controversy, whilst in Australia Sir John Kerr 's (acting in loco regis as Governor-General ) discretion in dismissing ministers led to a constitutional crisis . Thus, as the importance of the monarch in governance has declined, the term His/Her Majesty's Government has increased in formality and reduced in daily usage. As a corollary, the rise in power of

616-451: A report on potential amendments was presented by the Committee on Commonwealth Membership at the 2007 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting . New members were not admitted at this meeting, though applications for admission were considered at the 2009 CHOGM . New members must "as a general rule" have a direct constitutional link to an existing member. In most cases, this is due to being

693-718: A republic in January 1950, it would remain in the Commonwealth and accept the British Sovereign as a "symbol of the free association of its independent member nations and as such the Head of the Commonwealth". Upon hearing this, King George VI told Menon : "So, I've become 'as such'". Some other Commonwealth countries that have since become republics have chosen to leave, whilst others, such as Guyana , Mauritius and Dominica , have remained members. India's inaugural prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru declared on 16 May 1949, shortly following

770-697: A republic in accordance with the Irish Republic of Ireland Act 1948 ; in doing so, it also formally left the Commonwealth. Whilst Ireland had not actively participated in the Commonwealth since the early 1930s, other dominions wished to become republics without losing Commonwealth ties. The issue came to a head in April 1949 at a Commonwealth prime ministers' meeting in London . Under the London Declaration , as drafted by V. K. Krishna Menon , India agreed, when it became

847-594: A territorial adjective to illustrate which right of the Crown has the possession, i.e. in what context is the Monarch acting, for instance as the King of Australia, King of New Zealand etc. This combination can be exampled by the passports issued to British citizens and others by the Crown in right of the United Kingdom, which begin on their first page with the phrase that " His Britannic Majesty's Secretary of State Requests and requires in

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924-479: Is also deliberately avoided as being unhelpful: academic theorists deliberately use the term head of government to describe the relevant prime minister in those countries which use the Westminster system of government, where a distinction is made with the role of head of state (which is the monarch in the Commonwealth realms), as the two roles are split in such systems, in contrast to where they are unified, e.g. in

1001-409: Is not represented. Commonwealth citizens are eligible to apply for British emergency passports . Australia issues Documents of Identity in exceptional circumstances to resident Commonwealth citizens who are unable to obtain valid travel documents from their countries of origin and must travel urgently. The close association amongst Commonwealth countries is reflected in the diplomatic protocols of

1078-520: Is symbolic, representing the free association of independent members, the majority of which (36) are republics , and five have monarchs of different royal houses ( Brunei , Eswatini , Lesotho , Malaysia and Tonga ). The main decision-making forum of the organisation is the biennial Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), where Commonwealth Heads of Government , including (amongst others) prime ministers and presidents, assemble for several days to discuss matters of mutual interest. CHOGM

1155-665: Is the supreme court of 14 Commonwealth countries, including the Cook Islands and Niue which are under the Realm of New Zealand (though New Zealand itself does not make appeals to the Privy Council). Commonwealth nationals are eligible for appointment to the High Court of Fiji , with the Court relying on judges from other Commonwealth nations. Commonwealth citizens are eligible to serve in

1232-558: Is the successor to the Commonwealth Prime Ministers Meetings and, earlier, the Imperial Conferences and Colonial Conferences, dating back to 1887. There are also regular meetings of finance ministers, law ministers, health ministers and others. Members in arrears, as special members before them, are not invited to send representatives to either ministerial meetings or CHOGMs. The head of government hosting

1309-619: The British Armed Forces . According to the British Army , "Commonwealth soldiers are, and always will be, an important and valued part of the fabric of the British Army." Thousands of potential Commonwealth recruits have been turned away due to a lack of eligible vacancies. Gurkha soldiers from Nepal , though it is not a Commonwealth country, have long fought alongside British and Commonwealth troops. They continue to be recruited by

1386-730: The Harare Declaration was issued, dedicating the leaders to applying the Singapore principles to the completion of decolonisation, the end of the Cold War , and the end of apartheid in South Africa. The mechanisms by which these principles would be applied were created, and the manner clarified, by the 1995 Millbrook Commonwealth Action Programme , which created the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG), which has

1463-521: The High Court case of Sue v Hill , the United Kingdom was held to be a "foreign power". Similarly, in Nolan v Minister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs , the nationals of other Commonwealth realms were held to be "aliens". Commonwealth citizens may receive consular assistance from other Commonwealth countries. In particular, British embassies and consulates may provide assistance to Commonwealth nationals in non-Commonwealth countries if their own country

1540-641: The Manley Government in Jamaica . It is, however, more constitutionally accurate to refer to such premierships as 'Ministries', for instance the Cameron Ministries where David Cameron was British Prime Minister from 2010 to 2016. This convention of naming the Government after its most prominent members is comparatively modern. This is because until at least the reign of George III of the United Kingdom it

1617-768: The Second World War . The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan was established for pilots from across the Empire and Dominions, created by the governments of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Troops from Australia, Britain, the British Raj and New Zealand made up the British Commonwealth Occupation Force in post-war Japan. After the Second World War ended, the British Empire

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1694-625: The Statute of Westminster 1931 , which effectively made the Dominions equal constituent countries with the United Kingdom in the imperial project, and unavoidable with the transition of the Empire into the Commonwealth of Nations . Accordingly the form His Majesty's Government in… began to be used by the United Kingdom and Dominion governments, from the 1920s and 1930s onward, to differentiate between independent entities, such as His Majesty's Government in

1771-534: The United Nations General Assembly by the secretariat as an observer . The secretariat organises Commonwealth summits, meetings of ministers, consultative meetings and technical discussions; it assists policy development and provides policy advice, and facilitates multilateral communication amongst the member governments. It also provides technical assistance to help governments in the social and economic development of their countries and in support of

1848-463: The rule of law , as promoted by the quadrennial Commonwealth Games . A majority of Commonwealth countries are small states , with small island developing states constituting almost half its membership. Queen Elizabeth II , in her address to Canada on Dominion Day in 1959, pointed out that the Confederation of Canada on 1 July 1867 had been the birth of the "first independent country within

1925-587: The British Army ( Brigade of Gurkhas ), Indian Army ( Gorkha regiments ) and Royal Brunei Armed Forces ( Gurkha Reserve Unit ), as well the Gurkha Contingent of the Singapore Police Force . Most members of Brunei's Gurkha Reserve Unit are veterans from the British Army and Singaporean police. The criteria for membership of the Commonwealth of Nations have developed over time from a series of separate documents. The Statute of Westminster 1931 , as

2002-468: The British Empire". She declared: "So, it also marks the beginning of that free association of independent states which is now known as the Commonwealth of Nations." As long ago as 18 January 1884 Lord Rosebery , while visiting Adelaide , South Australia , had described the changing British Empire, as some of its colonies became more independent , as a "Commonwealth of Nations". Conferences of British and colonial prime ministers occurred periodically from

2079-447: The CHOGM is called the chair-in-office (CIO) and retains the position until the following CHOGM. The Commonwealth Secretariat , established in 1965, is the main intergovernmental agency of the Commonwealth, facilitating consultation and co-operation amongst member governments and countries. It is responsible to member governments collectively. The Commonwealth of Nations is represented in

2156-477: The Canadian/Alberta example above), the monarchical possessive can also be devolved to individual departments and officers. For instance, His Majesty's Railway Inspectorate regulates British train safety, whilst during his tenure in office John Howard was Her Majesty's Prime Minister for the Commonwealth of Australia . This particularised monarchical possessive can be further delineated by combining it with

2233-464: The Commonwealth countries. For example, when engaging bilaterally with one another, Commonwealth governments exchange high commissioners instead of ambassadors . Further institutional connections exist between Commonwealth countries. These include, between some, connections to other parts of the Commonwealth in their judicial and military institutions. The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council

2310-413: The Commonwealth had a population of 2.5 billion. The Commonwealth is the largest association of ' Third World ' or ' Global South ' countries. With a population of 1.4 billion, India is the most populous Commonwealth country. Tuvalu is the smallest member, with about 12,000 people. The status of "member in arrears" is used to denote those that are in arrears in paying subscription dues. The status

2387-432: The Commonwealth to reflect its changing nature. Burma (Myanmar since 1989) and Aden (now part of Yemen) are the only states that were British colonies at the time of the war not to have joined the Commonwealth upon independence. Former British protectorates and mandates that did not become members of the Commonwealth are Egypt (independent in 1922), Iraq (1932), Transjordan (1946), Palestine (part of which became

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2464-575: The Commonwealth's fundamental political values. The secretariat is headed by the Commonwealth secretary-general , who is elected by the Commonwealth heads of government for no more than two four-year terms. The secretary-general and two deputy secretaries-general direct the divisions of the Secretariat. The present secretary-general is Patricia Scotland, Baroness Scotland of Asthal , from Dominica, who took office on 1 April 2016, succeeding Kamalesh Sharma of India (2008–2016). The first secretary-general

2541-567: The Commonwealth. The Commonwealth dates back to the first half of the 20th century with the decolonisation of the British Empire through increased self-governance of its territories. It was originally created as the British Commonwealth of Nations through the Balfour Declaration at the 1926 Imperial Conference , and formalised by the United Kingdom through the Statute of Westminster in 1931. The current Commonwealth of Nations

2618-526: The Crown, and freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth of Nations". The term ' Commonwealth ' was officially adopted to describe the community. These aspects to the relationship were formalised by the Statute of Westminster in 1931, which applied to Canada without the need for ratification, but Australia, New Zealand and Newfoundland had to ratify the statute for it to take effect. Newfoundland never did as due to economic hardship and

2695-551: The Declaration, during the Constituent Assembly Debates that: We join the Commonwealth obviously because we think it is beneficial to us and to certain causes in the world that we wish to advance. The other countries of the Commonwealth want us to remain there because they think it is beneficial to them. It is mutually understood that it is to the advantage of the nations in the Commonwealth and therefore they join. At

2772-693: The Dominions as well as the United Kingdom. The term first received imperial statutory recognition in the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921, when the term British Commonwealth of Nations was substituted for British Empire in the wording of the oath taken by members of parliament of the Irish Free State . In the Balfour Declaration at the 1926 Imperial Conference , the United Kingdom and its dominions agreed they were "equal in status, in no way subordinate one to another in any aspect of their domestic or external affairs, though united by common allegiance to

2849-519: The Irish Free State . Colonial, state, and provincial governments, on the other hand, continued to use the lesser title Government of [region/territory] , and eventually the phrase used in the former Dominions altered to mirror that of the UK, becoming, for example, His Majesty's Australian Government . The term is employed in order to signify that the government of a Commonwealth realm or, less commonly,

2926-571: The Monarch. For example, during Margaret Thatcher 's time in office from 1979 to 1990, the Government of the United Kingdom was frequently known as the Thatcher Government. This style of referring to the government after its most important member is frequent across the Commonwealth, for example the Harper Government in Canada from 2006 to 2015 when Stephen Harper served as Prime Minister, or

3003-632: The Name of His Majesty... ". That is to say, it is the British Home Secretary making the request, not the British Government as a whole, and his request is only in the name of the British King, not as King of any other realm. Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations , often simply referred to as the Commonwealth , is an international association of 56 member states ,

3080-614: The State of Israel in 1948), Sudan (1956), British Somaliland (which united with the former Italian Somaliland in 1960 to form the Somali Republic ), Kuwait (1961), Bahrain (1971), Oman (1971), Qatar (1971) and the United Arab Emirates (1971). The post-war Commonwealth was given a fresh mission by Queen Elizabeth II in her Christmas Day 1953 broadcast, in which she envisioned the Commonwealth as "an entirely new conception – built on

3157-687: The Statute of Westminster for it to take effect, two laws — the Status of the Union Act, 1934 , and the Royal Executive Functions and Seals Act, 1934 — were passed by the Parliament of South Africa to confirm South Africa's status as a sovereign state, and to incorporate the Statute of Westminster into the law of South Africa . Commonwealth countries and the Empire were involved in every major theatre of

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3234-525: The UK (especially in the 1960s and 1970s) to refer to recently decolonised countries, predominantly non- white and developing countries. It was often used in debates regarding immigration from these countries. The United Kingdom and the pre-1945 dominions became informally known as the Old Commonwealth, or more pointedly as the 'white Commonwealth', in reference to what had been known as the 'White Dominions'. On 18 April 1949, Ireland formally became

3311-577: The United Kingdom's cosmopolitan role in world affairs became increasingly limited, especially with the losses of India and Singapore. Whilst British politicians at first hoped that the Commonwealth would preserve and project British influence, they gradually lost their enthusiasm, argues Krishnan Srinivasan . Early enthusiasm waned as British policies came under fire at Commonwealth meetings. Public opinion became troubled as immigration from non-white member states became large-scale (see also: Commonwealth diaspora ). The term New Commonwealth gained usage in

3388-475: The United Kingdom, have preferential citizenship acquisition or residency policies for Commonwealth citizens. Initially, Commonwealth countries were not considered to be "foreign" to each other as their citizens were British subjects . Citizenship laws have evolved independently in each Commonwealth country. For example, in Australia, for the purpose of considering certain constitutional and legal provisions in

3465-468: The beginning of the modern Commonwealth. Following India's precedent, other nations became republics, or constitutional monarchies with their own monarchs. Whilst some countries retained the same monarch as the United Kingdom, their monarchies developed differently and soon became essentially independent of the British monarchy. The monarch is regarded as a separate legal personality in each realm, even though

3542-560: The country sought closer ties with the Anglophone world . Under the formula of the London Declaration , Charles III is the Head of the Commonwealth . However, when the monarch dies, the successor to the crown does not automatically become the new head of the Commonwealth. Despite this, at their meeting in April 2018, Commonwealth leaders agreed that Prince Charles should succeed his mother Elizabeth II as head after her death . The position

3619-419: The country to hold new elections before a full suspension of Commonwealth membership would be considered. Prior to Togo's admission at the 2022 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting , Togolese Foreign Minister Robert Dussey said that he expected Commonwealth membership to provide opportunities for Togolese citizens to learn English and access new educational and cultural resources. He also remarked that

3696-581: The death of his mother, Elizabeth II , the position is not technically hereditary. Member states have no legal obligations to one another, though some have institutional links to other Commonwealth nations. Citizenship of a Commonwealth country affords benefits in some member countries, particularly in the United Kingdom , and Commonwealth countries are represented to one another by high commissions rather than embassies. The Commonwealth Charter defines their shared values of democracy , human rights and

3773-570: The end of the Suez Crisis. The first member to be admitted without having any constitutional link to the British Empire was Mozambique in 1995 following its first democratic elections. Mozambique was a former Portuguese colony . Its entry preceded the Edinburgh Declaration and the current membership guidelines. In 2009, Rwanda became the second country to be admitted to the Commonwealth not to have any constitutional links to Britain. It

3850-482: The first one in 1887 , leading to the creation of the Imperial Conferences in 1911. The Commonwealth developed from the imperial conferences. A specific proposal was presented by Jan Smuts in 1917 when he coined the term "the British Commonwealth of Nations" and envisioned the "future constitutional relations and readjustments in essence" at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 , attended by delegates from

3927-540: The former rules were consolidated into a single document. These requirements are that members must accept and comply with the Harare principles , be fully sovereign states , recognise King Charles III as head of the Commonwealth, accept the English language as the means of Commonwealth communication, and respect the wishes of the general population with regard to Commonwealth membership. These requirements had undergone review, and

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4004-531: The highest qualities of the Spirit of Man: friendship, loyalty, and the desire for freedom and peace". However, the British treasury was so weak that it could not operate independently of the United States. Furthermore, the loss of defence and financial roles undermined Joseph Chamberlain's early 20th-century vision of a world empire that could combine Imperial preference, mutual defence and social growth. In addition,

4081-464: The need for financial assistance from London, Newfoundland voluntarily accepted the suspension of self-government in 1934 and governance reverted to direct control from London. Newfoundland later joined Canada as its tenth province in 1949. Australia and New Zealand ratified the statute in 1942 and 1947 respectively. Although the Union of South Africa was not amongst the Dominions that needed to adopt

4158-475: The office of President of the United States of America . Ironically, therefore, in the United Kingdom, precisely because it has a constitutional monarchy, the prime minister is referred to as the head of government, even though they do not, in fact, occupy such that exact role because of the position of the monarch. However, it is useful as a shorthand for the Government of the UK, since it is the only government which uses this term. As with territories (for example

4235-519: The office of Prime Minister away from its historical position as primus inter pares (first amongst equals) of cabinet ministers in His/Her Majesty's Government into the driving force of a modern administration has led to governments named after them, and the two naming conventions serve different functions. For example, the reduction in the visibility of the monarch in government has made it an unhelpful description politically. If one were to critique

4312-594: The power to rule on whether members meet the requirements for membership under the Harare Declaration. Also in 1995, an Inter-Governmental Group was created to finalise and codify the full requirements for membership. Upon reporting in 1997, as adopted under the Edinburgh Declaration , the Inter-Governmental Group ruled that any future members would "as a rule" have to have a direct constitutional link with an existing member. In addition to this new rule,

4389-467: The practical interests of the various different entities within the Empire were sometimes out of alignment, and it became necessary to particularise the actions of specific entities through their executives. For instance, at the time of the 1893 Bering Sea dispute between Canada and the United States, the interests of Canada and the United Kingdom were opposed but the United Kingdom government handled Canadian foreign relations. The need became obvious with

4466-424: The rail privatisation policy of the British Government during 1996 (for instance) it might not be considered helpful to use the phrase "Her Majesty's Government", since then-Queen Elizabeth II had no role in formulating the policy; instead the term "Major Government" is arguably more helpful, since the policy was driven by Prime Minister John Major . In political science the term "His/Her Majesty's Government"

4543-494: The reputation of the Commonwealth and confirm the opinion of many people and civic organisations that the leaders of its governments do not really care for democracy and human rights, and that its periodic, solemn declarations are merely hot air." In 2022, the former French territories of Togo and Gabon joined the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth comprises 56 countries, across all inhabited continents. 33 members are small states, including 25 small island developing states. In 2023,

4620-513: The same person is monarch of each realm. At a time when Germany and France, together with Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, were planning what later became the European Union , and newly independent African countries were joining the Commonwealth, new ideas were floated to prevent the United Kingdom from becoming isolated in economic affairs. British trade with the Commonwealth

4697-410: The same time, it is made perfectly clear that each country is completely free to go its own way; it may be that they may go, sometimes go so far as to break away from the Commonwealth...Otherwise, apart from breaking the evil parts of the association, it is better to keep a co-operative association going which may do good in this world rather than break it. The London Declaration is often seen as marking

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4774-879: The term is entirely redundant, excepting historical usage. In the British Empire , the term His (or Her) Majesty's Government was originally only used in reference to the Imperial government in London . As the Empire developed, and responsible government was granted to more provinces and entities within the Empire, some disambiguation of the term became necessary. In particular, the rise of Dominion status for various Imperial entities demanded phrasing that would reflect differences in The Crown ’s operation in different domains. It came to be described as "the Crown in right of Canada", for example. Alongside this evolving constitutional picture,

4851-408: The time her actions were considered to be somewhat constitutionally improper. Although individual ministers (in Britain at least) below the rank of Prime Minister are still formally appointed by the Monarch, from the early twentieth century the head of state has in practice had no discretion to choose individual members of the government, except (occasionally) the Prime Minister. In the latter case this

4928-424: The time of the Suez Crisis in 1956, and in the face of colonial unrest and international tensions, French prime minister Guy Mollet proposed to British prime minister Anthony Eden that their two countries be joined in a "union" . When that proposal was turned down, Mollet suggested that France join the Commonwealth, possibly with "a common citizenship arrangement on the Irish basis ". These ideas faded away with

5005-552: The title HMG . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=HMG&oldid=1109234047 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages His Majesty%27s Government (term) Where Commonwealth countries have transitioned away from monarchical government (e.g. Malta)

5082-487: The vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire from which it developed. They are connected through their use of the English language and historical-cultural ties. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Commonwealth Secretariat , which focuses on intergovernmental relations, and the Commonwealth Foundation , which focuses on non-governmental relations between member nations. Numerous organisations are associated with and operate within

5159-418: Was Arnold Smith of Canada (1965–1975), followed by Sir Shridath Ramphal of Guyana (1975–1990), Chief Emeka Anyaoku of Nigeria (1990–1999), and Don McKinnon of New Zealand (2000–2008). Some member states grant particular rights to Commonwealth citizens. The United Kingdom and several others, mostly in the Caribbean , grant the right to vote to resident Commonwealth citizens. Some countries, including

5236-434: Was a Belgian trust territory that had been a district of German East Africa until World War I . In 2022, Togo , a former French mandate territory, and Gabon , a former French colony, joined the Commonwealth, despite never having been under British rule. Gabon was partially suspended from the Commonwealth in September 2023 following a military coup , with two years given by the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group for

5313-443: Was a Royal Prerogative that the Monarch held absolute discretion to choose their own ministers, such that the government was not really the Prime Minister's (or otherwise) at all. Indeed, during the reign of Queen Anne (just before the development of the office of Prime Minister) her fondness for compromise and consensus frequently led to governments composed by persons who disliked each other and did not integrate. In such period there

5390-466: Was considered an "exceptional circumstance" by the Commonwealth Secretariat . Rwanda was permitted to join despite the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) finding that "the state of governance and human rights in Rwanda does not satisfy Commonwealth standards", and that it "does not therefore qualify for admission". CHRI commented that: "It does not make sense to admit a state that already does not satisfy Commonwealth standards. This would tarnish

5467-448: Was formally constituted by the London Declaration in 1949, which modernised the community and established the member states as "free and equal". It continues to be known colloquially as the British Commonwealth . The Head of the Commonwealth is Charles III . He is king of 15 member states, known as the Commonwealth realms , whilst 36 other members are republics , and five others have different monarchs. Although he became head upon

5544-427: Was four times larger than its trade with Europe. In 1956 and 1957, the British government, under Prime Minister Anthony Eden , considered a "Plan G" to create a European free trade zone whilst also protecting the favoured status of the Commonwealth. The United Kingdom also considered inviting Scandinavian and other European countries to join the Commonwealth, so that it would become a major economic common market. At

5621-399: Was gradually dismantled. Most of its components have become independent countries, whether Commonwealth realms or republics, and members of the Commonwealth. There remain the 14 mainly self-governing British overseas territories which retain some political association with the United Kingdom. In April 1949, following the London Declaration , the word "British" was dropped from the title of

5698-432: Was no question that the Government was anything other than that of the Monarch. The evolution of the British constitution and reduction in the powers of the Crown gradually reduced the centrality of the monarch in de facto government. Queen Victoria was the last monarch truly to attempt to choose the personnel of her government; for instance her hatred of William Gladstone helped Lord Salisbury to retain office. Even at

5775-575: Was only due to hung parliamentary arrangements, and (until the monarch's role was abolished in the 1960s) an unclear choice for leader of the Conservative Party . Indeed, where the monarch has had discretion to choose a Prime Minister in such circumstances it has resulted in some controversy: for instance, George V 's role in facilitating the formation of the National Government of the United Kingdom in 1931 because Ramsay MacDonald operated

5852-471: Was originally known as " special membership ", but was renamed on the Committee on Commonwealth Membership 's recommendation. There are currently no members in arrears. The most recent member in arrears, Nauru, returned to full membership in June 2011. Nauru had alternated between special and full membership since joining the Commonwealth, depending on its financial situation. In 2019, the Commonwealth members had

5929-584: Was set out in 1961, when it was decided that respect for racial equality would be a requirement for membership, leading directly to the withdrawal of South Africa's re-application (which they were required to make under the formula of the London Declaration upon becoming a republic). The 14 points of the 1971 Singapore Declaration dedicated all members to the principles of world peace , liberty , human rights , equality , and free trade . These criteria were unenforceable for two decades, until, in 1991,

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