What is a Commonwealth realm?
Q: What is a Commonwealth realm?
A: A Commonwealth realm is a country in the Commonwealth of Nations which has King Charles III as monarch.
Q: What countries are part of the Commonwealth realms?
A: The Commonwealth realms include the United Kingdom and many of its former colonies or territories, such as Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.
Q: Who does King Charles III appoint to represent him in each country outside of the UK?
A: In each of the countries outside the UK that are part of the Commonwealth realms, King Charles III appoints a Governor-General to represent him.
Q: What powers do Governor-Generals have?
A: After consulting with the government of their respective realm (country), Governor-Generals have all of the powers and duties that would normally be held by a Monarch. This includes signing acts into law after they have been passed by parliament.
Q: Are there any exceptions to this rule?
A: There are some exceptions where Queen Elizabeth II signed certain important documents during visits to Ottawa (Canada) or Canberra (Australia). In these cases she had full power over those documents even though she was not technically sovereign in those countries.
Q: How is Queen Elizabeth II's title different between different countries?
A: Usually her official title is "Queen/King of (realm) and Her/His other Realms and Territories Head of the Commonwealth". However two countries mention Britain in their titles for her - Grenada uses "Queen of The United Kingdom Of Great Britain And Northern Ireland And Of Grenada And Her Other Realms And Territories Head Of The Commonwealth", while Canada uses an old fashioned form which reads "By The Grace Of God Of The United Kingdom Canada And Her Other Realms And Territories Queen Head Of The Commonwealth Defender Of The Faith". Not all countries use this last part about being defender of faith.
Q: Does British Government have any power over other realms ?
A: No , British Government has no power over other realms just like governments from other realms don't have any power over UK .
