Monarchy of Barbados: Difference between revisions

A claim made by supporters of the monarchy is that it "keeps the line of stability open";<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.anglicanchurchworldwide.org/Barbados.html| author=Anglican Church Worldwide| title=Barbados}}</ref> the sovereign's usual location outside the country means legitimate executive power would be unaffected by any hostile invasion of Barbados or other event that rendered the [[Table of precedence for Barbados|entire sitting government]] incapacitated or unable to function.<ref>{{citation| url=http://www.oas.org/dil/The_Constitution_of_Barbados.pdf| author=Elizabeth II| title=Constitution of Barbados| page=37| id=IV.29(1a), (1b), (1c)| place=Bridgetown| year=2002| publisher=Government Printer| accessdate=3 May 2015}}</ref> Such a situation has not arisen; however, it may have helped if the [[Operation Red Dog]]-invasion plot, which targeted the [[Commonwealth of Dominica]] and likely Barbados,<ref name=Nation>{{cite news| url=http://www.nationnews.com/Politics/26973.htm| title=Tull: Tell us about coup rumours| first=C| last=A| date=4 October 2006| newspaper=Nation Newspaper| accessdate=4 October 2009| archiveurl=http://archive.nationnews.com/archive_detail.php?archiveFile=2006/October/04/Politics/26973.xml&start=140&numPer=20&sectionSearch=&begindate=1%2F1%2F1994&enddate=12%2F31%2F2009&authorSearch=&IncludeStories=1&pubsection=&page=&IncludePages=1&IncludeImages=1&mode=allwords&archive_pubname=Daily+Nation%0A%09%09%09| archivedate=4 October 2009}}</ref> was not halted.{{#tag:ref|During the 1990 [[Jamaat al Muslimeen coup attempt]] in nearby [[Trinidad and Tobago]], all branches of government were successfully captured on the island, leading to the president and cabinet having to sign an amnesty to return toward governance.|group=n|name=Trin}}

Today the sovereign is regarded as the personification, or legal personality, of the Barbadian [[Sovereign state|state]]. Therefore, the state is referred to as ''Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Barbados''; the state is referred to as such, or simply ''[[Queen regnant|Regina]]'', if a lawsuit is filed against the government. The monarch, in his or her position as sovereign, and not as an individual, is thus the owner of all state lands (called ''[[Crown land]]''), buildings and equipment (called ''Crown held property''), state-owned companies (called ''statutory bodies'' or ''[[Crown Corporation]]s''), and the [[copyright]] for all government publications (called ''[[Crown copyright]]''), as well as guardianship of foster children (called ''[[Crown ward]]s''). Government staff (the [[Civil Service]]) are also employed by the monarch, as are the governor-general, judges, members of the [[Barbados Defence Force]], [[police]] officers, and [[Parliament of Barbados|parliamentarians]]. Hence, many employees of the Crown are required by law to recite an [[oath of allegiance]] to the monarch before taking their posts, in [[reciprocity (social and political philosophy)|reciprocation]] to the sovereign's [[Coronation]] Oath, wherein he or she promises "to govern the Peoples of... [Barbados]... according to their respective laws and customs".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oremus.org/liturgy/coronation/cor1953b.html|title=The Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II|publisher=}}</ref> The oath required by the Director of Public Prosecutions, for example, is: "I, [name], do swear that I will well and truly serve Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Her Heirs and Successors, in the office of Director of Public Prosecutions. So help me God", while that for judges is: "I, [name], do swear that I will well and truly serve Our Sovereign Lady Queen Elizabeth II, Her Heirs and Successors, in the office of Chief Justice/Judge of the Supreme Court and I will do right to all manner of people after the laws and usages of Barbados without fear or favour, affection or ill will. so help me God."<ref>[http://www.barbados.gov.bb/bdsconst_first_schedule.htm Constitution of Barbados; First Schedule]</ref>

From the beginning of Queen Elizabeth II's reign onwards, royal symbols in Barbados were altered to make them distinctly Barbadian or new ones created, such as the [[Coat of arms of Barbados|Royal Arms of Barbados]] (presented on 14 February 1966 by the Queen to then [[President of the Senate#Barbados|President of the Senate]] Sir [[Grey Massiah]])<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.national-symbol.com/B/Barbados/Barbados-national-symbol.htm| title=National Symbols: Barbados}}</ref><ref name=BParl>{{cite web| url=http://www.barbadosparliament.com/independence.php| author=Parliament of Barbados| title=The Barbados Parliament: Independence| publisher=Government Printer}}</ref> and the [[Queen's Personal Barbadian Flag|Queen's Royal Standard for Barbados]], created in 1975.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://flagspot.net/flags/bb-qe2.html| publisher=Flags of the World| title=Flag of Queen Elizabeth II in Barbados}}</ref> Second in precedence is the personal flag of the governor-general.

The current Barbadian [[monarchy]] can trace its ancestral lineage back to the [[History of Anglo-Saxon England|Anglo-Saxon]] period and, ultimately, back to the [[List of kings of the Angles|kings of the Angles]] and the early [[Kingdom of Scotland|Scottish kings]]. The Crown in Barbados has grown over the centuries since the Barbados was claimed under King [[James I of England|James VI of Scotland and I of England]] in 1625, though not colonised until 1627, when, in the name of King [[Charles I of England|Charles I]], Governor [[Charles Wolferstone]] established the first settlement on the island.<ref name=BParlHist>{{cite web| url=http://www.barbadosparliament.com/history.php| publisher=The Barbados Parliament| title=Parliament's History}}</ref> By the 18th century, Barbados became one of the main seats of British authority in the [[British West Indies]], though, due to the economic burden of duties and trade restrictions, some Barbadians, including the Clerk of the General Assembly, attempted to declare in 1727 that the [[Act of Settlement 1701]] had expired in the colony, since the Governor, [[Henry Worsley (ambassador)|Henry Worsley]], had not received a new commission from [[George II of Great Britain|King George II]] upon his accession to the throne. Thus, they refused to pay their taxes to a governor they recognised as having no authority. The Attorney and Solicitor General of Great Britain confirmed that Worsley was entitled to collect the dues owed, but, Worsley resigned his post before the directive arrived in Barbados.<ref>{{cite book| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6Cd8Q_1rl2wC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false| last=Schomburgk| first=Robert Hermann| title=The History of Barbados| page=318| year=1848| publisher=Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans| location=London}}</ref>

Former Prime Minister [[Owen Arthur]] called for a referendum on becoming a republic to be held in 2005.<ref>{{cite news| last=Thomas| first=Norman "Gus"| url=http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/2005/02/07/vote.shtml| title=Barbados to vote on move to republic| publisher=Caribbean Net News| date=7 February 2005| accessdate=2006-06-30}}</ref> It was announced on 26 November 2007 that the [[Barbadian republic referendum|referendum]] would be held in 2008, together with the [[Barbadian general election, 2008|general election]].<ref>{{cite news| author=Staff writer| url=http://www.cbc.bb/content/view/13417/10/| title=Referendum on Republic to be bundled with election| publisher=[[Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation]]| date=26 November 2007| accessdate=2007-11-27| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071128050750/http://www.cbc.bb/content/view/13417/10/| archivedate=2007-11-28}}</ref> On 2 December 2007, reports emerged that this vote was put off due to concerns raised by the Electoral and Boundaries Commission.<ref>{{cite news| last=Gollop| first=Chris| url=http://www.nationnews.com/story/317791120649409.php| title=Vote Off |publisher=The Nation| date=2 December 2007| accessdate=2008-06-17}}</ref> Following the election, [[David Thompson (Barbadian politician)|David Thompson]] replaced Arthur as prime minister.