Minister of the Crown
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Minister of the Crown is a formal constitutional term used in
Ministries
In Commonwealth realms, the sovereign or viceroy is formally advised by a larger body known as a
History
Ministers of the Crown in Commonwealth realms have their roots in early modern England, where monarchs sometimes employed "cabinet councils" consisting of Ministers to advise the monarch and implemented his decisions. The term Minister came into being as the sovereign's advisors "ministered to", or served, the king. Over time, former ministers and other distinguished persons were retained as peripheral advisers with designated ministers having the direct ear of the king. This led to the creation of the larger Privy Council, with the Cabinet becoming a committee within that body, made up of currently serving ministers, who also were heads of departments.
During a period between the accession of King
As the
Following the passage of the Statute of Westminster in 1931, however, the Dominions became effectively autonomous realms under one sovereign, thus returning the monarch to a position similar to that which existed pre-1707, where he or she was ministered to by a separate ministry for each realm. Thus, today, no minister of the Crown in any Commonwealth realm can advise the monarch to exercise any powers pertaining to any of the other Dominions.
Uses in other countries
In
Nowadays, the most formal way to address a minister is as "Minister of the Government".
See also
- Similar and related terms
- Minister of State
- Secretary of State
- Realms
- Monarchy of Antigua and Barbuda
- Monarchy of Australia
- Monarchy of The Bahamas
- Monarchy of Barbados
- Monarchy of Canada
- Monarchy of the Cook Islands
- Monarchy of Jamaica
- Monarchy of New Zealand
- Monarchy of Spain
- Monarchy of the Solomon Islands
- Monarchy of the United Kingdom
References
- ^ "Ministers". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
- ^ "Royal decree of March 9, 1925" (PDF).