State System of Great Britain

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About the Commonwealth

Unit VI

Commonwealth - a nation, state, or other political entity founded on law and united by a compact of the people for the common good.

The Commonwealth has been existed for 60 years yet and it is a remarkable organization in the world today.

The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 54 independent countries, almost all of which were formerly under British rule. Countries members of the Commonwealth have different constitutional status. 'Realm' indicates a Commonwealth country which has The Queen as Sovereign, while 'monarchy' indicates a Commonwealth country which has its own monarch as Head of State.

The origins of the Commonwealth come from Britain's former Empire. Many of the members of the Commonwealth were territories which had historically come under British rule at various times by settlement, conquest or cession. The administration of such colonies evolved in different ways, to reflect the different circumstances of each territory.

After achieving independence, India was the first of a number of countries which decided that, although they wished to become republics, they still wanted to remain within the Commonwealth.

The 1949 London Declaration recognized King George VI as Head of the Commonwealth. Following his death, the Commonwealth leaders recognized Queen Elizabeth II in that capacity.

2.Answer the questions:

1)What is Commonwealth?

2)Hoe old is the Commonwealth?

3)Is Commonwealth a voluntary or an obligatory organization?

3.Continue the phrases:

1)“Realm” is …

2) “Monarchy” is…

3)Many members of the Commonwealth were…

4)The first Commonwealth country to become independent was…

5)The current Head of the Commonwealth is…

Britain is a multiparty democracy (state system). It's complex and unique as it is the product of a long period of historical development which resulted in the Glorious Revolution and establishment of the Crowned Republic in 1688. The absence of a revolutionary upheaval since then, i.e. for more than 300 years, the lack of a document known as a written constitution, the tendency to preserve outward forms when the inner substance is changed — all this makes the English polity both complex and unique.

Officially Great Britain is a state of the constitutional monarchy. That means that at the head of the state is monarch (Queen or King). But the power of the Queen is not absolute, it is greatly limited by Parliament.

British polity comprises three main ruling bodies — monarchy, parliament and government. The oldest of the three institutions is monarchy. In many countries their constitution enforce a strict separation between the three branches of power — the executive, the legislative and the judiciary. Britain has some separation but not very much. The legal system is independent to a large degree: although the government of the day appoints judges, it cannot interfere with their work and it cannot get rid of those appointed by the previous government. But the executive and the legislature are not separate at all. In fact, the former is part of the latter, because government is formed within Parliament. Judiciary is also performed by Parliament.

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