Head of the Commonwealth

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Head of the Commonwealth
Prince Charles in Aotearoa (cropped).jpg
Incumbent
Charles III
since 8 September 2022
Seat Marlborough House, London
Appointer Commonwealth heads of government
Term length Life tenure
Inaugural holder George VI
Formation April 1949; 73 years ago
Website thecommonwealth.org
The head of the Commonwealth is the ceremonial leader who symbolises "the free
association of independent member nations" of the Commonwealth of Nations, an
intergovernmental organisation that currently comprises 56 sovereign states. There
is no set term of office or term limit and the role itself involves no part in the
day-to-day governance of any of the member states within the Commonwealth. The
position is currently held by King Charles III.[1]

By 1949, the British Commonwealth was a group of eight countries, each having King
George VI as monarch. India, however, desired to become a republic, but not to
leave the Commonwealth by doing so. This was accommodated by the creation of the
title Head of the Commonwealth for the King and India became a republic in 1950.
Subsequently during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, other nations, including
Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Ghana, and Singapore also became republics, but, as members of
the Commonwealth of Nations, recognised her as Head of the Commonwealth.[2]

Contents
1 History
2 Title
3 Roles and duties
4 Succession
5 List of heads
6 See also
7 Notes
8 Footnotes
9 External links
History

The Commonwealth Prime Ministers with the King at Buckingham Palace for the
Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference, 1949
In 1949, George VI was king of each of the countries that then comprised the
British Commonwealth (later the Commonwealth of Nations): the United Kingdom,
Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, and Ceylon. However,
the Indian Cabinet desired the country to become a republic, but not to leave the
Commonwealth as a consequence of no longer having George VI as king, as happened to
Ireland. To accommodate this, the London Declaration, issued in late April 1949,[3]
[4][5][6] and devised by Canadian Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent, stated that the
King, as the symbol of the free association of the countries of the Commonwealth,
was the head of the Commonwealth. When India adopted a republican constitution on
26 January 1950, George VI ceased to be its monarch (the president of India,
Rajendra Prasad, became head of state), but it did regard him as Head of the
Commonwealth.

Elizabeth II became Head of the Commonwealth on her accession in 1952, stating at

the time, "the Commonwealth bears no resemblance to the empires of the past. It is
an entirely new conception built on the highest qualities of the spirit of man:
friendship, loyalty, and the desire for freedom and peace."[7] The following year,
a Royal Style and Titles Act was passed in each of the Commonwealth realms, adding
for the first time the term Head of the Commonwealth to the monarch's titles.

The Queen had a personal flag created in December 1960 to symbolise her as Head of
the Commonwealth without being associated with her role as queen of any particular
country. Over time, the flag replaced the British Royal Standard when the Queen
visited Commonwealth countries of which she was head of state but did not possess a
royal standard for that country,[8] or of which she was not head of state, as well
as on Commonwealth occasions in the United Kingdom. When the Queen visited the
headquarters of the Commonwealth Secretariat in London, this personal standard—not
any of her royal standards—was raised.[9]

Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney said Elizabeth was a "behind the
scenes force" in ending apartheid in South Africa.[10][11][non sequitur]

After the Queen's death on 8 September 2022, King Charles III became Head of the
Commonwealth.

Title
The title was devised in the London Declaration as a result of discussions at the
1949 Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference. It is rendered in Latin as
Consortionis Populorum Princeps,[12][13][14] and in French as Chef du Commonwealth.
[15]

Roles and duties

The head of the Commonwealth is recognised by the members of the Commonwealth of
Nations as the "symbol of their free association" and serves as a leader, alongside
the Commonwealth Secretary-General and Commonwealth Chair-in-Office. Although
Elizabeth II was queen of 15 member-states of the Commonwealth, she did not have
any role in the governance of any Commonwealth state by virtue of her role as head
of the Commonwealth. She kept in touch with Commonwealth developments through
regular contact with the Commonwealth secretary general and the Secretariat, the
Commonwealth's central organisation.[16]

The head of the Commonwealth or a representative attends the biennial Commonwealth

Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), held at locations throughout the Commonwealth.
This is a tradition begun by the monarch on the advice of Canadian Prime Minister
Pierre Trudeau in 1973,[17] when the CHOGM was first held in Canada. During the
summit, the head of the Commonwealth has a series of private meetings with
Commonwealth countries' heads of government, attends a CHOGM reception and dinner,
and makes a general speech.

The head of the Commonwealth or a representative has also been present at the
quadrennial Commonwealth Games. The Queen's Baton Relay, held prior to the
beginning of the Commonwealth Games, carried a message from the head of the
Commonwealth to all Commonwealth Nations and territories.[18][19]

Every year on Commonwealth Day, the second Monday in March, Queen Elizabeth II
broadcast a special message to all the peoples of the Commonwealth, about 2.5
billion people.[20] That same day, she attended the inter-denominational
Commonwealth Day Service held at Westminster Abbey.[21]

Queen Elizabeth II and Commonwealth Prime Ministers at Windsor Castle, 1960

Queen Elizabeth II and Commonwealth Prime Ministers at Windsor Castle, 1960

Elizabeth II at the closing ceremony of the Brisbane Commonwealth Games, 1982

Elizabeth II at the closing ceremony of the Brisbane Commonwealth Games, 1982

Elizabeth II passing the Baton to President Patil of India for the Baton relay for
the Delhi Commonwealth Games, 2009
Elizabeth II passing the Baton to President Patil of India for the Baton relay for
the Delhi Commonwealth Games, 2009

Elizabeth II arriving at the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony at Glasgow, 2014

Elizabeth II arriving at the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony at Glasgow, 2014

Succession

The Head of the Commonwealth delivering the inaugural address at the CHOGM 2011 in
Perth, Australia
The position of Head of the Commonwealth is not hereditary and successors are
chosen by the leaders of the Commonwealth.[22] Once in office, there is no term
limit, so the incumbent is practically chosen for life.

By 2018, with Elizabeth II in her 90s, there had been discussions for some time
about whether her eldest son, Charles, or someone else should become the third head
of the Commonwealth.[23] The London Declaration states that "The King [acts] as the
symbol of the free association of its independent member nations and as such the
Head of the Commonwealth", whereby both republics and kingdoms that are not
Commonwealth realms can recognise the monarch as Head of the Commonwealth without
accepting the person as the country's head of state. Though each Commonwealth
realm's laws on royal titles and styles made Head of the Commonwealth part of the
Queen's full title,[citation needed] and Queen Elizabeth II declared in 1958,
through the letters patent creating Prince Charles as Prince of Wales, that Charles
and his heirs and successors shall be future heads of the Commonwealth,[24][25][26]
[dubious – discuss] there have been conflicting statements on how successors to the
position of Head of the Commonwealth are chosen. While the Commonwealth Secretariat
asserted any successor would be chosen collectively by the Commonwealth heads of
government,[27] Commonwealth heads of government, such as the then prime minister
of Canada, Stephen Harper, had already referred to Prince Charles as "the future
head of the Commonwealth",[28] and in 2015 the then prime minister of New Zealand,
John Key, said, "the title [of Head of the Commonwealth] should just go with the
Crown".[29]

Commentators in British newspapers discussed whether it should be a one-off

decision to elect Prince Charles to the headship, whether the British monarch
should automatically become head of the Commonwealth, or whether the post should be
elected or chosen by consensus.[30][31][32] There was also speculation that a
rotating ceremonial "republican" headship might be instituted.[33][34] The Daily
Telegraph reported that "the post is not hereditary and many leaders want an
elected head to make the organisation more democratic."[35]

In 2018, following the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, Commonwealth

leaders declared that Charles would be the next head of the Commonwealth,[36] while
the role remained non-hereditary.[37][38] Consequently, after the Queen's death on
8 September 2022, Charles automatically became Head of the Commonwealth.[1]

List of heads
No. Portrait Name Term
Start End Duration
1 King George VI LOC matpc.14736 (cleaned).jpg George VI
(1895–1952) 26/28 April 1949[n 1] 6 February 1952 2 years, 284 days
2 Queen Elizabeth II official portrait for 1959 tour (retouched) (cropped) (3-
to-4 aspect ratio).jpg Elizabeth II
(1926–2022) 6 February 1952 8 September 2022 70 years, 214 days
3 Charles Prince of Wales.jpg Charles III
(born 1948) 8 September 2022 Incumbent 124 days
See also
Timeline of the Commonwealth of Nations
List of titles and honours of George VI
List of titles and honours of Elizabeth II
List of titles and honours of Charles III
Style of the British sovereign
Title and style of the Canadian monarch
Notes
Based on the London Declaration.[3]
Footnotes
The Commonwealth - About Us, TheCommonwealth.org. Retrieved 10 September 2022
"Our history". Commonwealth. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
London Declaration 1949 (PDF), Commonwealth Secretariat, archived from the
original (PDF) on 27 September 2012, retrieved 2 April 2013
S. A. de Smith (1949), "The London Declaration of the Commonwealth Prime
Ministers, April 28, 1949", The Modern Law Review, Wiley on behalf of the Modern
Law Review, 12 (3): 351–354, doi:10.1111/j.1468-2230.1949.tb00131.x, JSTOR 1090506
Queen Elizabeth II and the Royal Family: A Glorious Illustrated History, Dorling
Kindersley Limited, 2016, p. 118, ISBN 9780241296653
"MEETING of PRIME MINISTERS, APRIL, 1949 Text of Final Communique Issued at the
Conclusion of the Meeting of Prime Ministers Held at London from 22 to 27 April,
1949, Together with Press Statement by the Right Hon. P. Fraser London, 28 April,
1949". Papers Past. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
"Head of the Commonwealth". Commonwealth Secretariat. Archived from the original
on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 23 March 2009.
"Personal Flags". Royal Household. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
"Mailbox". Royal Insight. September 2006. p. 3. Archived from the original on 19
November 2008.
Geddes, John (2012). "The day she descended into the fray". Maclean's (Special
Commemorative Edition: The Diamond Jubilee: Celebrating 60 Remarkable years ed.):
72.
MacQueen, Ken; Treble, Patricia (2012). "The Jewel in the Crown". Maclean's
(Special Commemorative Edition: The Diamond Jubilee: Celebrating 60 Remarkable
years ed.): 43–44.
"Biography of Elizabeth II (UK)". archontology.org.
"Burke's Peerage".
"No. 39873". The London Gazette (Supplement). 26 May 1953. pp. 3023–3023.
"Lois codifiées Règlements codifiés". Site Web de la législation (Justice). 1
January 2003. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
"Commonwealth Governance". Royal.uk. 11 March 2016. Retrieved 24 September 2021.
Heinricks, Geoff (2001), "Trudeau and the monarchy; National Post", Canadian
Monarchist News, vol. Winter/Spring 2000–2001, Toronto: Monarchist League of
Canada, archived from the original on 22 June 2008, retrieved 26 February 2010
"Queen's baton relay". Archived from the original on 7 February 2018. Retrieved 4
April 2018.
"Commonwealth Games: Queen's Baton Relay route announced". Retrieved 24 September
2021.
The Commonwealth Yearbook 2006, Commonwealth Secretariat, 2006, p. 21, ISBN
9780954962944
Robert Hardman (2007), A Year with the Queen, Touchstone, p. 208, ISBN
9781416563488
"About us". The Commonwealth. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
Landale, James (13 February 2018). "Commonwealth in secret succession plans". BBC
News.
Elizabeth II, Letters Patent creating Prince Charles Prince of Wales and E