Text 4: The Commonwealth

The Commonwealth of Nations is a worldwide political organisation of independent nations with their dependencies, all of which recognize the British monarch as head of the Commonwealth. The origin of the Commonwealth lies in the British Empire. Starting in the 16th century, Britain invaded other lands. This was very violent most of the times. Some colonies, such as India, had large local populations ruled by British overlords. Others, such as Australia, became colonies for settlement by the British. By the start of the 20th century, these lands of settlement, known as Dominions, were largely internally governed. As these settlements became less profitable, there came the idea of the Commonwealth. In 1931 Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa were granted 'independence'.

When World War II broke out, these Commonwealth nations and the colonies fought alongside the UK and its allies for the ideals of liberty. They helped the Allies to win in 1945. Independence for the remaining colonies followed soon after. Most joined the Commonwealth to remain close to the vast amount of resources that Britain had.

From the start, the UK was the dominant force in what was known as 'the British Commonwealth'. That was run from the Commonwealth Office in London. By the 1950s, it had become 'the Commonwealth of Nations'. In 1965, an office called the Commonwealth Secretariat was set up to run the Commonwealth. The UK remained the dominant power giving directives through the various offices. Under the 'old Empire', the UK allowed some special rules for trade with the colonies. These rules made things from the colonies cheaper in the UK. They also encouraged the colonies to buy goods produced in the UK. The Commonwealth consists of most of the countries that were once parts of the British Empire. In 1926, Britain and its dominions agreed they were equal in status. They decided to be freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth of Nations. There are fifty three members. Some are very large countries like Canada, India, and Australia. Some are just small islands like Barbados and Tonga. The issue of countries with constitutional structures not based on a shared Crown, who wished to remain members of the Commonwealth, was resolved in April 1949 at a Commonwealth prime ministers' meeting in London. Under the formula of the London Declaration, Queen Elizabeth II is the Head of the Commonwealth. The land area of the Commonwealth nations is about 21% of the total world land area. The Commonwealth promotes educational programmes and exchanges among the different countries. Every four year they hold the Commonwealth Games.

Questions for discussion:

1. What is the Commonwealth of Nations?

2. Who is in the head of the Commonwealth?

3. How did the idea of the Commonwealth come?

4. Why did some countries fight alongside the UK and its allies?

5. What was set up in 1965?

6. What trade rules did the UK allow under the “Old Empire”?

7. What countries does the Commonwealth consist of?

8. What decision did Britain and its dominions come to in 1926?

9. What is the land area of the Commonwealth?

10. What does the Commonwealth promote?