Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

was Queen of Guyana from 1966 to 1970, when Guyana was independent

sovereign state A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defined te ...

with a

constitutional monarchy A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...

. She was also the sovereign of the other Commonwealth realms, including the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. Her constitutional roles were delegated to the

governor-general of Guyana This is a list of the heads of state of Guyana, from the independence of Guyana in 1966 to the present day. From 1966 to 1970 the head of state under the Constitution of 1966 was the queen of Guyana, Elizabeth II, who was also the queen of the ...

History

The Crown colony of British Guiana became an independent country called Guyana on 26 May 1966, with Queen Elizabeth II as head of state and Queen of Guyana. The Duke and Duchess of Kent, represented the Queen of Guyana at the independence celebrations. The Duke opened the first session of the Guyanese Parliament, on behalf of the Queen, and gave the speech from the throne. The Queen's constitutional roles were mostly delegated to the Governor-General of Guyana, her representative in Guyana, who was appointed by the Queen on the advice of her Guyanese Prime Minister. The Governor-General acted on the advice of the Guyanese ministers.Page 2
/ref> Three governors-general held office: Sir Richard Luyt (1966), Sir David Rose (1966–1969), and Sir Edward Luckhoo (1969–1970). All executive powers of Guyana were vested in the monarch, but were mostly exercised by the governor-general on her behalf. The new Guyanese constitution provided for the country to become a republic after 45 months by a majority vote in the

House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible gove ...

. Exactly 45 months from independence, Guyana became a republic within the Commonwealth, with the

president of Guyana The president of Guyana is the head of state and the head of government of Guyana, as well as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the Republic, according to the Constitution of Guyana. The president is also the chancellor of the Or ...

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...

. The Queen visited Guyana on 4–5 February 1966, where she opened the Queen Elizabeth II National Park (now

Guyana National Park Guyana National Park (normally simply the National Park) is an urban park in Georgetown, Guyana and was opened with Queen Elizabeth II. in attendance and was formerly named Queen Elizabeth II National Park in honour of her state visit. Despi ...

). She toured Guyana as Head of the Commonwealth on 19–22 February 1994.

Styles

Elizabeth II had the following styles in her role as the monarch of Guyana: *26 May 1966 – 18 June 1966: 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 *18 June 1966 – 23 February 1970: Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, Queen of Guyana and of Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth

References

{{Elizabeth II, state=collapsed Government of Guyana Politics of Guyana Guyana Heads of state of Guyana 1966 establishments in Guyana 1970 disestablishments in Guyana Former Commonwealth monarchies Former monarchies of South America Political history of Guyana Titles held only by one person