Between 1965 and 1970, the Gambia was an independent

sovereign state A sovereign state is a State (polity), state that has the highest authority over a territory. It is commonly understood that Sovereignty#Sovereignty and independence, a sovereign state is independent. When referring to a specific polity, the ter ...

that shared its

head of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...

with 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 Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and other states headed by Queen Elizabeth II. It was a predecessor to the modern-day republic of

The Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

. The Gambia was given independence from Britain in 1965 under the Gambia Independence Act 1964, which unified the British Crown Colony and Protectorate of the Gambia into an independent sovereign state. The

British monarch The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with their powers regulated by the British con ...

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

, remained

of The Gambia, which shared its Sovereign with other

Commonwealth realm A Commonwealth realm is a sovereign state in the Commonwealth of Nations that has the same constitutional monarch and head of state as the other realms. The current monarch is King Charles III. Except for the United Kingdom, in each of the re ...

s. The Queen's constitutional roles were mostly delegated to the Governor-General of the Gambia. The Governors-General who held office in The Gambia were: #Sir

John Warburton Paul Sir John Warburton Paul, (29 March 1916 – 31 March 2004) was a British colonial administrator and civil servant, who most notably served as the final Governor of the Gambia (1962–1965) and Governor of the Bahamas (1972–1973) prior to bo ...

(18 February 1965 – 9 February 1966) #Sir Farimang Mamadi Singateh (9 February 1966 – 24 April 1970) After two referendums on the issue, the monarchy was abolished on 24 April 1970, when The Gambia became a republic within the Commonwealth. The first referendum in 1965, with 65.85% in favour and 34.15% against, failed to reach the two-thirds majority needed to pass. The second in 1970 with 70.45% percent of the Gambian people voting in favour of a republic and 29.55% against, was successful. The Gambia adopted a new constitution in 1970 which abolished the monarchy. Sir

Dawda Jawara Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara (16 May 1924 – 27 August 2019) was a Gambian politician who served as prime minister from 1962 to 1970, and then as the first President of The Gambia from 1970 to 1994, when he was overthrown by Yahya Jammeh. Jawa ...

, the

prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

(and

head of government In the Executive (government), executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the second-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presid ...

) from 1965, became the first

President of the Gambia The president of the Republic of the Gambia is the head of state and head of government of the Gambia. The president leads the Executive (government), executive branch of the Politics of the Gambia, government of the Gambia and is the comma ...

. Queen Elizabeth II did not visit the Gambia between 1965 and 1970. Her last visit was between 3–5 December 1961.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gambia

Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

Former monarchies of Africa Government of the Gambia 1960s in the Gambia Politics of the Gambia The Gambia and the Commonwealth of Nations The Gambia–United Kingdom relations 1965 establishments in the Gambia 20th-century disestablishments in the Gambia 1970 disestablishments in the Gambia States and territories established in 1965 States and territories disestablished in 1970