Britain | Realms and republics

Will Charles III keep the Commonwealth going?

His mother’s favourite club will miss her

KIGALI, RWANDA - JUNE 24: Prince Charles, Prince of Wales departs the CHOGM opening ceremony at Kigali Convention Centre on June 24, 2022 in Kigali, Rwanda. Prince Charles, Prince of Wales has attended five of the 24 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting meetings held since 1971: Edinburgh in 1997, Uganda in 2007, Sri Lanka in 2013 (representing The Queen), Malta in 2015 and the UK in 2018. It was during the UK CHOGM that it was formally announced that The Prince would succeed The Queen as Head of the Commonwealth. Leaders of Commonwealth countries meet every two years for the meeting which is hosted by a different member country on a rotating basis. (Photo by Chris Jackson - Pool/Getty Images)

When elizabeth ii inherited the throne in 1952, great swathes of the world map were bedecked in imperial red. Britain still ruled—or had a predominant influence over—some 50 dominions, colonies and protectorates, including at least 15 in Africa, more than a dozen in the Caribbean and a maritime gaggle in the Pacific.

Seven decades later only the tiniest of places, most of them islands, are still under direct British rule, while a clutch of 14 independent states choose to keep the queen as their ceremonial monarch. At the grander end of the imperial spectrum, at the time of her death she was still head of state of Canada, New Zealand and, more controversially, Australia. Under Charles III, more Commonwealth countriesprobably Jamaica, possibly Australia—are likely to turn republican. Irrespective of whether his image remains on its members’ postage stamps, the new king will strive to hold the club together.

This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Realms and republics”

Getting the job done: How Ukraine can win

From the September 17th 2022 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

More from Britain

Labour sweet-talks the public sector

The race to become leader of Britain’s Conservatives

An exhausted party seems to think that it doesn’t have to change


How deep is Britain’s fiscal “black hole”?

Rachel Reeves sets out her first big decisions as chancellor


Shabana Mahmood, Britain’s new Lord Chancellor

The new justice secretary is both progressive and religious

How King Charles III counts his swans

A ritual that pleases conservationists and annoys the birds

Britain’s army chief fears war may come sooner than anyone thinks

Could the army cope without more money and troops?