The commonwealth of nations, generally known simply as the commonwealth, is a political association of 54 member states, mostly former territories of the british empire. It consists of 53 countries, including five g20 members and 31 small states, whose combined population amounts to about a third of the worlds population. Today, many former british colonies belong to the commonwealth of nations, which includes about 50 independent countries that once lived under british rule. The most recent country to join was mozambique, a former portuguese colony. Commonwealth of nations wikimili, the free encyclopedia. The commonwealth is a free association of former british colonies and dominions. The commonwealth of nations article about the commonwealth. Thus it applys in theory to australian english, british english, caribbean english, canadian english, hibernoenglish irish english2, hong kong english3, indian english includes. Commonwealth of nations synonyms, commonwealth of nations pronunciation, commonwealth of nations translation, english dictionary definition of commonwealth of nations. The term cw of nations was first used in 1884 by lord rosebury who was an english politician. Such common values and goals include the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, the rule. Commonwealth of nations simple english wikipedia, the free. All members except mozambique and rwanda were part of the british empire, out of which the commonwealth developed the member states cooperate within a framework of common values and.
Commonwealth of australia 19014, the union of south africa 19095, and new zealand 19106. British commonwealth of nations the free dictionary. Its main goal was to ease the process of british decolonization. In 1931 the british accepted their special status in a new law. Nearly all of them are former british colonies or dependencies of those colonies no one government in the commonwealth exercises power over the others, as is the case in a political union. The united kingdom of great britain and northern ireland is composed of several nations, and therefore has always been culturally diverse. The commonwealth of nations, at one time known as british commonwealth, is an organisation of fifty three states that were principally below the colonial rule of british government.
Commonwealth, also called commonwealth of nations, formerly 193149 british commonwealth of nations, a free association of sovereign states comprising the united kingdom and a number of its former dependencies who have chosen to maintain ties of friendship and practical cooperation and who acknowledge the british monarch as symbolic head of. Firstly, lets deal with what it isnt its not the former british empire club the british empire is how the commonwealth started. Yet multiculturalism did not arise as a distinct phenomenon in britain until after 1945, when the country was transformed by the end of empire. The british commonwealth of nations was the result of the 1926 balfour declaration which stipulated that the relationship between britain and her dominions was equal in status. The commonwealth operates by intergovernmental consensus of the member states, organised through the commonwealth secretariat and nongovernmental. The british commonwealth of nations internet archive. The british commonwealth refers to a collection of countries that associate with the same political affiliation, meaning that the commonwealth of nations is intended to bring countries together and provide them with a foundation for economic growth, financial prosperity, and just overall success for all nations involved. It should help to support democracy, world peace, human rights, racial equality, economic and social development. Member states of the commonwealth of nations free ebooks. They came into existence with the proclamation of sovereignty of the state from the colonial rule of british empire and were later given selfgovernance. The commonwealth is one of the worlds oldest political associations of states. At adelaide he said that over a period of time a number of colonies of the british empire will become free and many may become more independent. The commonwealth of nations formerly the british commonwealth, also known as simply the commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of 52 member states that are mostly former territories of the british empire.
Membership criteria according to the edinburgh declaration. The head of the commonwealth is the british queen with only ceremonial functions the commonwealth secretariat is the central institution of the organisation, responsible for the cooperation between the members. Current commonwealth members dark blue, former members orange, and british overseas territories and crown dependencies light blue the use of the english language in most current and former member countries of the commonwealth of nations was inherited from british colonisation. Although the british empire is mostly no more, these nations grouped together to use their history to promote peace, democracy and development. Commonwealth declaration on investing in young people, affirming our core commonwealth principles of consensus and common action, mutual respect, inclusiveness, transparency, accountability, legitimacy, and responsiveness, reaffirming the core values and principles of the commonwealth as declared by this charter. The commonwealth of nations, generally known simply as the commonwealth, 3 is a political association of 54 member states, mostly former territories of the british empire. Legally established by the statute of westminster 1931, the commonwealth of nations originally consisted of great britain and its dominionscanada, the commonwealth of australia, new zealand, the union of south africa, newfoundland, and ireland. In 1867, canada was the first british colony to become an independent country. The transition from british empire to commonwealth of nations began in 1867 with the transformation of canada from a colony to a selfgoverning dominion within the british empire. British commonwealth, commonwealth, british commonwealth of nations. An association of independent, sovereign states most of which formerly constituted the british empire.
Apr 06, 2018 the commonwealth, or the commonwealth of nations, is a group of 53 states, all of which except for two were formerly part of the british empire. A handbook on the methods and practice of communication between the members of the british commonwealth of nations oxford university press, 1934 1, 7. World peace, liberty, human rights and equality singapore declaration, harare declaration be fully sovereign states acceptance of the english language as the means of commonwealth communication. The author, a professor of history at the university of canterbury, christchurch, new zealand, presents a comprehensive survey of commonwealth history from the time of soulsearching about the future of the british empire, which marked the middle years of queen victorias reign, to the year when britain decided to enter the european community. Mozambique is an exception although english is widely spoken there, it is a former portuguese. Commonwealth of nations printable word search 4th7th. Member states of the commonwealth of nations wikipedia.
Its members possess shared values a desire to be competitive on the world stage, an embracing of their inherent diversity and contrasts, alongside a shared heritage and resulting interconnection. The husk of the old british empire, an accidental byproduct of history. The heritage of the british empire is still alive till now, but in a blink of an eye the empire fell and was replaced at first, by a small organization that grew with time to be nowadays, the commonwealth. The commonwealth of nations usually called the commonwealth is a voluntary association of independent countries, nearly all of which are former members of the british empire that chose to join it when they gained independence. The chief institutions of the organisation are the commonwealth secretariat, which focuses on intergovernmental aspects, and the commonwealth foundation, which focuses on. He further said that all of these countries would then become the commonwealth of nations. The commonwealth of nations, normally referred to as the commonwealth and formerly known as the british commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of 54 independent member states. Mar 05, 2020 the commonwealth is an association of fiftyfour nations that largely evolved out of the former territories of the british empire. Jan 17, 2020 in 1884, lord rosebery, a british politician, described the changing british empire as a commonwealth of nations.
Commonwealth of nations, voluntary association of great britain and its dependencies, certain former british dependencies that are now sovereign states and their dependencies, and the associated states states with full internal government but whose external relations are governed by britain. Using the printable word search, pupils will learn about the 53 member nations in the commonwealth of nations. As a body of countries, the commonwealth plays a major part in the world economy on multiple levels. Commonwealth of nations wikipedia republished wiki 2.
Its roots go back to the british empire, when countries around the world were ruled by britain. The term the commonwealth of nations originated in 1884. The commonwealth of nations is a voluntary association of 54 sovereign states. The commonwealth was created in the early 1900s when nations that were formerly a part of the british empire began to secede. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. The commonwealth, or the commonwealth of nations, is a group of 53 states, all of which except for two were formerly part of the british empire.
Sep 12, 2018 the commonwealth, or the commonwealth of nations, is a group of 53 states, all of which except for two were formerly part of the british empire. That was followed by the transformation to dominion status of australia in 1901, new zealand in 1907, south africa in 1910, and ireland in 1922. In recent years, several countries without historic ties to the. The chief institutions of the organisation are the commonwealth secretariat, which focuses on intergovernmental aspects, and the c. There are 54 countries in the commonwealth, in africa, asia, the americas, europe and the pacific.
The commonwealth of nations, generally known simply as the commonwealth, is a political association of 54 member states, nearly all former territories of the british empire. The law referred specifically to a british commonwealth of nations. Commonwealth english is a collective term for the perceived standard english language used in the commonwealth of nations1 and many former british nations where english is at least a common second language. Most are former british colonies or dependencies of these colonies no one government in the commonwealth exercises power over the others as is the case in a singapore declaration issued in 1971. Formerly british commonwealth an association comprising the united kingdom, its dependencies, and many former british colonies that are now sovereign. About one third of the worlds population lives in the member countries of the commonwealth, or commonwealth of nations.
Mozambique is an exception although english is widely spoken there, it is a former portuguese colony which. The organization was formerly known as the british commonwealth of nations. This stipulation was formalized officially in section 4 of the statute of westminster in 1931. British commonwealth of nations definition, a voluntary association of independent nations and dependent territories linked by historical ties as parts of the former british empire and cooperating on matters of mutual concern, especially regarding economics and trade. And in 1931, the statute of westminster was enacted 22 geo 5 ch 4 stating that the crown is the symbol of the free association of the members of the british commonwealth of nations. The commonwealth heads of government meeting, abbreviated to chogm is a. The programmes which are administered by the executive body of the commonwealth, the commonwealth secretariat, are defined with a commitment to adopting a rightsbased approach to development, and to mainstreaming gender, youth and human rights concerns throughout all. Commonwealth of nations encyclopedia article citizendium. The commonwealth of nations is a voluntary association of 53 independent and sovereign states. The membership in the commonwealth is voluntary and member countries have to accept some principles and values, like democratic rule, good governance. The adjective british was dropped from official use in 1946. British commonwealth of nations 1931 making britain.
Thus, in 1931, the british commonwealth of nations was founded under the statute of westminster with five initial members the united kingdom, canada, the irish free state, newfoundland, and the union of south africa. The commonwealth is an association of fiftyfour nations that largely evolved out of the former territories of the british empire. British commonwealth of nations synonyms, british commonwealth of nations pronunciation, british commonwealth of nations translation, english dictionary definition of british commonwealth of nations. Also, the african union, mercosur an atlantic oceanfacing south american trade bloc and the pacific alliance a south american trade bloc fronting the pacific ocean want. Commonwealth of nations article about commonwealth of. As long ago as 1884, however, lord rosebery, while visiting australia, had described the changing british empireas some of its colonies became more independentas a commonwealth of nations. So, it also marks the beginning of that free association of independent states which is now known as the commonwealth of nations. Many countries including the commonwealth of nations countries, the usa, the cptpp countries and more have all said theyd like free trading arrangements with the uk.
Charter ofthe commonwealth signed by her majesty queen elizabeth ii, head of the commonwealth. Maldives commonwealth rejoin latest burning issues. Commonwealth of nations simple english wikipedia, the. Mozambique and rwanda are the only members never to have been under british authority even in part. The early commonwealth over time different countries of the british empire gained different levels of freedom from britain. The new countries wanted to remain a part of the british empire, but they wanted to be considered equal members. Ireland permanently left the commonwealth in 1949, newfoundland became part of canada in 1949, and south africa left in 1961 due to apartheid but rejoined in 1994 as the. The chief institutions of the organisation are the commonwealth secretariat, which focuses on intergovernmental aspects, and the commonwealth foundation, which focuses on nongovernmental relations between member states. The commonwealth was created in 1884 and consisted of former colonies of the british empire. Small states are especially vulnerable to things like climate change or developmental challenges.