Queen of Ghana

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the Queen Mother of the Ashanti Empire, see Yaa Asantewaa.
Queen of Ghana
Coat of arms of Ghana
Elizabeth II
Details
StyleHer Majesty
Formation6 March 1957
Abolition1 July 1960

governor-general of Ghana.[1]

History

The Queen meeting Ghanaian government minister Komla Agbeli Gbedemah and his wife, 1953

Ghana was the first western African country to achieve independence from European colonization.

Speech from the Throne.[4] The Duchess read the Queen's personal message to the people of Ghana, which said:[5]

I have entrusted to my aunt the duty of opening on my behalf the first session of the Parliament of Ghana. My thoughts are with you on this great day as you take up the full responsibilities of independent nationhood and I rejoice to welcome another new member of our growing Commonwealth family of nations. The hopes of many, especially in Africa, hang on your endeavours. It is my earnest and confident belief that my people in Ghana will go forward in freedom and justice, in unity among themselves and in brotherhood with all the peoples of the Commonwealth. May God bless you all.

Constitutional role

Ghana was one of the realms of the Commonwealth of Nations that shared the same person as Sovereign and head of state.

Effective with the

William Francis Hare, 5th Earl of Listowel
(1957–1960).

The Crown and Government

Flag of the Ghanaian Governor-General featuring St Edward's Crown

The Queen and the National Assembly of Ghana constituted the Parliament of Ghana.

words of enactment:[12]

Be it enacted by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the National Assembly of Ghana in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same as follows—

The Governor-General was also responsible for summoning,

dissolving Parliament.[13] All Ghanaian ministers of the Crown held office at the pleasure of the Governor-General.[14]

The Crown and Honours

Within the Commonwealth realms, the monarch is the "fount of honour".[15] Similarly, the monarch, as Sovereign of Ghana, conferred awards and honours in Ghana her name. Most of them were awarded on the advice of "Her Majesty's Ghana Ministers".[16]

See also

Title

The Royal Style and Titles Act, 1957 of the Parliament of Ghana granted the monarch a separate Ghanaian title in her role as Queen of Ghana.[17][18]

Queen Elizabeth II had the following styles in her role as the monarch of Ghana:

  • 6 March 1957 – 27 July 1957: Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith[19][20]
  • 27 July 1957 – 1 July 1960: Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Ghana and of Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth[21][22]

Oath of allegiance

The oath of allegiance in Ghana was:[23]

"I, (name), swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Ghana, Her Heirs and Successors according to law. So help me God".

Abolition

After the 1960 Ghanaian constitutional referendum, Ghana adopted a new constitution that replaced the monarch and governor-general with a president.[1] Ghana became a republic within the Commonwealth. The Queen sent a message to Ghanaians which said: "From midnight I shall cease to be your Queen. ... I am proud that I am Head of a Commonwealth in which every nation may choose for itself the form of Government which best suits it; now that Ghana has chosen for itself a republican form of constitution, it will not affect the interest which I have always taken and shall continue to take in the welfare of its people".[24]

Royal visits

The Queen said in her Christmas broadcast in 1958, that she and her husband would be visiting Ghana in late 1959.[25] To celebrate the upcoming visit, the Ghanaian Government commissioned a new £2 coin with a new effigy of the Queen and the inscription "Queen of Ghana".[26] However, the coin was never struck since the visit was postponed, as she had become pregnant in 1959.[26]

In November 1959, Prince Philip paid a six-day visit to Ghana. During the visit, he inaugurated the Ghana Academy of Learning (now the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences), and was appointed its first president. He also met members of the Accra Market Women Traders' Association at the Governor-General's Lodge in Accra, who presented him with a gold tie-pin.[27][28]

Queen Elizabeth II visited the Republic of Ghana from 9 to 20 November 1961 and from 7 to 9 November 1999.[29]

During her 1961 tour, the Queen famously danced with Ghana's president

second season of the Netflix series The Crown.[32]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "After Independence". Judicial Service of Ghana. Archived from the original on 9 March 2015. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
  2. ^ "Today in history: Ghana becomes first African country to gain independence from colonial rule, and more". WION. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  3. ISBN 9781560729396
  4. ^ Royal Insight
  5. ISBN 9789964916305
  6. ^ Hansard Society for Parliamentary Government, Peter Regent (1959), The Parliament of Ghana, The Society, p. 2
  7. ^ Ghana: The Ghana (Constitution) Order in Council, 1957, H.M. Stationery Office, 1957, p. 9
  8. ^ Ghana: The Ghana (Constitution) Order in Council, 1957, H.M. Stationery Office, 1957, p. 6
  9. ^ Ghana: The Ghana (Constitution) Order in Council, 1957, H.M. Stationery Office, 1957, p. 19
  10. ^ The Supreme Court of Ghana Law Reports: Volume 2, Advanced Legal Publications, 2003, p. 885
  11. ^ Royal Institute of International Affairs (1957), Ghana, University Press, p. 28
  12. ^ Ghana: The Ghana (Constitution) Order in Council, 1957, H.M. Stationery Office, 1957, p. 19
  13. ^ Ghana: The Ghana (Constitution) Order in Council, 1957, H.M. Stationery Office, 1957, p. 20
  14. ^ Ghana: The Ghana (Constitution) Order in Council, 1957, H.M. Stationery Office, 1957, p. 6
  15. ^ Commonwealth Journal: The Journal of the Royal Commonwealth Society · Volumes 12-14, Royal Commonwealth Society, 1969, p. 99
  16. ^ "No. 41912". The London Gazette (4th supplement). 29 December 1959. p. 45.
  17. ISBN 9780608136073
  18. ^ Directory of Ghana, Diplomatic Press and Publishing Company, 1959, p. 19
  19. ^ "No. 39873". The London Gazette (Supplement). 26 May 1953. p. 3023.
  20. ^ "Ghana: Heads of State: 1957-1960". archontology.org. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  21. ^ Rubin, Leslie; Murray, Pauli (1964), The Constitution and Government of Ghana, Sweet & Maxwell, p. 155
  22. ^ "Ghana: Heads of State: 1957-1960". archontology.org. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  23. ^ Bound Volume of the Acts of Ghana, Government Printer, 1958, p. 349
  24. ^ Ghana. Information Services Department (1962), Ghana Republic Souvenir, Ministry of Information, p. 19
  25. ^ "Christmas Broadcast 1958". Royal.uk. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  26. ^
    ISBN 9781107070318
  27. ^ Royal Insight
  28. ^ Royal Insight
  29. ^ "Commonwealth visits since 1952". Official website of the British monarchy. Royal Household. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
  30. ^ "How Queen Elizabeth II's Controversial Trip to Ghana Changed the Future of the Commonwealth", Biography, 7 March 2019, retrieved 17 September 2021
  31. ^ "Queen dancing in Ghana: The story behind her iconic visit to save the Commonwealth". The Times. 26 May 2018. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  32. ^ "'The Crown' Says One Dance Changed History. The Truth Isn't So Simple", NPR, 21 January 2018, retrieved 25 August 2021
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