Governor Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==British Empire and Commonwealth realms== {{Unbalanced section|date=March 2018}} {{Further|Governor-general|Governor-in-chief|Deputy governor|Official Secretary to the Governor|Administrator of the Government}} [[File:Flag of the Governor of Gibraltar.svg|alt=|thumb|Flag of the governor of [[Gibraltar]], 1982โpresent]] In the [[British Empire]], a governor was originally an official appointed by the British monarch (or the cabinet) to oversee a [[crown colony]] and was the (sometimes notional) head of the colonial administration. The governors' powers varied from colony to colony, depending on its constitutional setup; while all colonies had a separate court system, the governor only had legislative power in colonies that lacked a [[Legislative Council]] or [[Legislative Assembly]]. The executive powers vested in the governor varied as well; while many colonies had an [[Executive Council (Commonwealth countries)|Executive Council]] to help with the colony's administration, these ranged from presidential cabinet-like bodies that only served as consultative forums without collective executive powers or functions of their own while the governor had an independent decision-making capacity, to fully-fledged [[Ministry (collective executive)|parliamentary ministries]] whose decisions the governor was required to formally execute. Today, crown colonies of the United Kingdom continue to be administered by governors who hold varying degrees of power. Because of the different [[constitution]]al histories of the former colonies of the [[United Kingdom]], the term ''governor'' now refers to officials with differing amounts of power. [[Administrator of the Government|Administrator]]s, [[commissioner]]s and [[high commissioner]]s exercise similar powers to governors. (Note: such high commissioners are not to be confused with the high commissioners who are the equivalent of [[ambassador]]s between Commonwealth states). Frequently the name 'Government House' is given to governors' residences. :The term can also be used in a more generic sense, especially for compound titles which include it: [[governor-general]] and [[lieutenant-governor]]. ===Vice-regal governors=== ====United Kingdom overseas territories==== In the United Kingdom's remaining [[crown colony|overseas territories]], the governor is normally a direct appointee of the British government and plays an active role in governing and lawmaking (though usually with the [[Advice (constitutional)|advice]] of elected local representatives). The governor's chief responsibility is for the defence and external affairs of the colony. In some minor overseas territories, instead of a governor, there is an [[Administrator of the Government|administrator]] or [[commissioner]], or the position is held ''[[ex officio]]'' by a [[High Commissioner]]. ==== Australia ==== {{main|Governors of the Australian states}} In [[Australia]], each state has the governor as its formal representative of the sovereign, as head of the state government. It is not a political office but a ceremonial one. Each state governor is appointed by the [[Australian monarch]] on the advice of the [[premier]], who is the political chief executive of the state government (until 1986, state governors were appointed by the [[British monarch]] on the advice of the British government). State governors have emergency reserve powers but these are rarely used. The [[States and territories of Australia|territories]] of Australia other than the ACT have [[Administrator (Australia)|administrators]] instead of governors, who are appointed formally by the [[governor-general]]. The governor-general is the representative of and appointed by the [[king of Australia]] sovereign at a federal level on the advice of the [[prime minister of Australia]]. As with the [[Governor-General of Australia|governors-general of Australia]] and other Commonwealth realms, state governors usually exercise their power only on the advice of a government minister. ==== Canada ==== In [[Canada]], there are governors at the federal and provincial levels of government who, within their jurisdictions, act as representatives of the [[king of Canada]], who is Canada's head of state. The federal governor is the [[governor general of Canada]], and the governor of each province is the [[Lieutenant governor (Canada)|lieutenant governor]]. The governor general is appointed by the sovereign on the advice of the [[prime minister of Canada]], whereas the lieutenant governors are appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister. The role of the governor general and of the lieutenant governors in Canada is largely ceremonial, although they do retain the authority to exercise reserve powers in exceptional circumstances. Each of the three territories is headed by a [[Commissioner#Canadian territories|commissioner]] appointed by the federal [[Cabinet of Canada|Cabinet]]. Unlike provincial [[Lieutenant governor (Canada)|lieutenant governors]], they are not representatives of the sovereign, but rather are representatives of the federal government. ==== British Hong Kong (1841โ1997) ==== In the colonial period of [[British Hong Kong|Hong Kong]], the [[Governor of Hong Kong|governor]] was the representative of the sovereign from 1843, which was the year that the authorities and duties of the post were officially defined by the [[Hong Kong Letters Patent]] and the [[Hong Kong Royal Instructions|Royal Instructions]], until the [[Transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong|handover]] of Hong Kong to the [[China|PRC government]] in 1997. Each governor was appointed by [[Monarchy of the United Kingdom|the monarch]] and possessed significant powers such as the power of appointing lawmakers in the [[legislative council]], the power to grant land, the power of veto over [[Bill (law)|bills]] and [[Motion (parliamentary procedure)|motions]], the power of [[pardon]], etc. At the same time, the governor was also the head of the colonial [[Cabinet (government)|cabinet]], the chairman of the [[Executive Council of Hong Kong|Executive Council]], the president of the Legislative Council (until 1993), as well as the commander-in-chief of the [[British Forces Overseas Hong Kong|British Forces in Hong Kong]]. ====New Zealand==== The [[governor-general of New Zealand]] is always the governor of the [[Ross Dependency]], an Antarctic sector which is claimed by the [[Realm of New Zealand]]. ====Within the United Kingdom==== Within the [[United Kingdom]] itself, there was a position of [[Governor of Northern Ireland]] from 1922 until the suspension of the devolved [[Parliament of Northern Ireland]] in 1973. ====Within England==== From the 16th century until 1995, there was a [[governor of the Isle of Wight]], part of [[England]]. Since the reign of [[Henry VIII]], the monarch has borne the title of [[Supreme Governor of the Church of England]]. Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page