Dominion of New Zealand

The Dominion of New Zealand is the former name of the Realm of New Zealand.

Lord Plunket declaring New Zealand a Dominion, 1907

Originally administered from New South Wales, New Zealand became a direct British colony in 1841 and received a large measure of self-government following the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852. New Zealand chose not to take part in Australian Federation and assumed complete self-government as the Dominion of New Zealand on 26 September 1907, Dominion Day, by proclamation of King Edward VII.

1 Dominion
2 Dominion Day
3 Statute of Westminster
4 Dominion gives way to "Realm"
5 See also
6 References
7 Further reading

Dominion

Following the 1907 Imperial Conference, the New Zealand House of Representatives passed a motion respectfully requesting that His Majesty the King "take such steps as he may consider necessary" to change the designation of New Zealand from the "Colony of New Zealand" to the "Dominion of New Zealand".

Debate

The alteration in status was stirred by a sentiment on the part of the Prime Minister of the self-governing colonies of the British Empire that a new term was necessary to differentiate them from the non-self-governing colonies, such as (at that time) Fiji.

The adoption of the designation of Dominion would, "raise the status of New Zealand" stated Prime Minister Joseph Ward and "...have no other effect than that of doing the country good".^[1] The change was opposed by Leader of the Opposition Bill Massey.

Royal Proclamation

The proclamation on 26 September 1907 announces the 'Colony of New Zealand to be styled Dominion of New Zealand'.

A Royal Proclamation granting New Zealand Dominion status was issued on 9 September 1907.

It read - "EDWARD R.& I. Whereas We have on the Petition of the Members of the Legislative Council and House of Representatives of Our Colony of New Zealand determined that the title of Dominion of New Zealand shall be substituted for that of the Colony of New Zealand as the designation of the said Colony, We have therefore by and with the advice of Our Privy Council thought fit to issue this Our Royal Proclamation and We do ordain, declare and command that on and after the twenty-sixth day of September, one thousand nine hundred and seven, the said Colony of New Zealand and the territory belonging thereto shall be called and known by the title of the Dominion of New Zealand. And We hereby give Our Commands to all Public Departments accordingly. Given at Our Court at Buckingham Palace, this ninth day of September, in the year of Our Lord one thousand nine hundred and seven, and in the seventh year of Our Reign. GOD save the KING."

Effect

The New Zealand Observer (1907) shows Prime Minister Joseph Ward as a pretentious dwarf beneath a massive ‘dominion’ top hat. The caption reads: The Surprise Packet:
Canada: "Rather large for him, is it not?"
Australia: "Oh his head is swelling rapidly. The hat will soon fit."

Dominion status allowed the dominions to become virtually independent, while retaining the British monarch as head of state, represented locally by a governor-general appointed in consultation with the Dominion’s government. Control over defence, constitutional amendments and (partially) foreign affairs, remained with the British government, until the Statute of Westminster was adopted.

In 1907 new Letters Patent were issued to mark New Zealand’s change in status from Crown Colony to Dominion declaring that: “there shall be a Governor and Commander-in-Chief in and over Our Dominion of New Zealand”.

In 1917 Letters Patent were issued again re-designating the title Governor to Governor-General of New Zealand. The changes in the Governor-General’s title were intended to reflect more fully New Zealand’s self-governing status. The 1917 Letters Patent constituted the office “Governor-General and Commander-in-Chief in and over Our Dominion of New Zealand”.

Until 1911 New Zealand used the Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom on all official documents and public buildings, however following Dominion status a new Coat of Arms of New Zealand was designed.

Despite this new status, there was some apprehension in 1919 when Prime Minister Bill Massey signed the Treaty of Versailles (giving New Zealand membership of the League of Nations), which indicated that New Zealand did have a degree of control over its foreign affairs. Massey was unequivocally an Imperialist, and fervently supported the British Empire.

In 1926 the imperial conference devised the Balfour formula of dominion status, stating that the United Kingdom and the Dominions:

“	are autonomous Communities within the British Empire, equal in status, in no way subordinate one to another in any aspect of their domestic or external affairs, though united by a common allegiance to the Crown, and freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth	”
—Balfour Declaration 1926^[2]

The Balfour Report further resolved that Governors-General occupied “the same position in relation to the administration of public affairs in the Dominion” as was held by the Monarch in the United Kingdom. The only advisers to the Governor-General and the Monarch in New Zealand were his New Zealand Ministers.

Prime Minister Gordon Coates, who led the New Zealand delegation to the 1926 Conference, called the Balfour Declaration a 'poisonous document' that would weaken the ties of empire.

At the 1930 Imperial Conference, the conclusions of the conference were re-stated, and Sir Thomas Sidey obtained a clause exempting New Zealand from the Statute of Westminster until such time as it should be ratified by the New Zealand Parliament.

Dominion Day

Main article: Dominion Day

To mark the granting of Dominion status, 26 September was declared Dominion Day. Today, it is observed only as a Provincial Anniversary Day holiday in South Canterbury. There is support in some quarters for the day to be revived as an alternative New Zealand Day, instead of renaming Waitangi Day, New Zealand's current national day. The Wellington newspaper The Dominion (now The Dominion Post) was first published on this day in 1907.

Statute of Westminster

In 1931, the British Parliament passed the Statute of Westminster, which confirmed complete autonomy for its dominions, and gave effect to resolutions passed by the imperial conferences of 1926 and 1930.

Preferring the United Kingdom to handle most of its foreign affairs and defence, New Zealand held back from adopting the Statute of Westminster Act, and, 16 years later, was the last dominion listed in the Statute to do so. The National opposition prompted the adoption of the Statute in 1947 when its leader, and future Prime Minister Sidney Holland introduced a private members' bill to abolish the New Zealand Legislative Council. Because New Zealand required the consent of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to amend the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852, Prime Minister Peter Fraser decided to finally adopt the Statute.^[3] The Statute was adopted on 25 November 1947 with the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1947, along with consenting legislation from the British Parliament, meaning the British parliament could no longer make ordinary law for the dominion, other than at New Zealand's request and consent.

Dominion gives way to "Realm"

In 1946 Prime Minister Peter Fraser instructed Government departments not to use the term 'Dominion' any longer. It was not until 1953, however, that the term 'Dominion' began to be replaced.^[4] There is a view that dominion status was replaced by realm status in the Queen's Accession Proclamation of 11 February 1952:

“	The High and Mighty Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary is now, by the death of our late Sovereign of happy memory, become Queen Elizabeth the Second, by the grace of God, Queen of this realm and of all her other realms and territories, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith ...	”
—Accession Proclamation (1952) I New Zealand Gazette 1952

In 1953 Her Majesty proclaimed a separate Royal Title for use in New Zealand

“	Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Her Other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith.	”
— Royal Titles Act 1953 (NZ), s 2; Royal Titles Proclamation (1953) II New Zealand Gazette 851

However there was no proclamation that the official status of New Zealand had been changed from Dominion of New Zealand. Furthermore the proclamation of 1907 was not revoked or amended. The term Dominion gradually fell into disuse after 1953, and has been rarely used since the 1970s. Since then the term "Realm" has been increasingly used for New Zealand.

The Realm of New Zealand today

Today the Realm of New Zealand comprises New Zealand, Tokelau and the Ross Dependency, and the self-governing states of the Cook Islands and Niue. Former Dominions of the British Empire that have the British Monarch as their Head of State (including Canada and Australia) are known as Commonwealth Realms.

Thus New Zealand is now an independent kingdom where the sovereign reigns no longer as the British Monarch, but as the Monarch of New Zealand.

References

^ Report on the Inquiry into New Zealand’s Constitutional Arrangements
^ "Balfour Declaration 1926 (Imperial Conference)". National Archives of Australia. http://www.foundingdocs.gov.au/item.asp?dID=24. Retrieved 2006-07-23.
^ Michael Bassett and Michael King (2001). "Tomorrow Comes the Song: A Life of Peter Fraser". Penguin Books. http://www.michaelbassett.co.nz/book_tomorrow.htm. Retrieved 2007-10-26.
^ Dame Silvia Cartwright (2001). "The Role of the Governor-General". Governor-General of New Zealand. Archived from the original on 2006-10-16. http://web.archive.org/web/20061016173822/http://gg.govt.nz/media/speeches.asp?type=constitutional&ID=229. Retrieved 2006-07-23.

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¹Occupied jointly with the United States ²In 1931, Canada and other British dominions obtained self-government through the Statute of Westminster. see Canada's name. ³Gave up self-rule in 1934, but remained a de jure Dominion until it joined Canada in 1949.

Latin America and the Caribbean

17th century 1605–1979 *Saint Lucia 1623–1883 Saint Kitts (Saint Kitts & Nevis)* 1624–1966 *Barbados 1625–1650 Saint Croix 1627–1979 *St. Vincent and the Grenadines 1628–1883 Nevis (Saint Kitts & Nevis)* 1629–1641 St. Andrew and Providence Islands⁴ since 1632 Montserrat 1632–1860 Antigua (Antigua & Barbuda)* 1643–1860 Bay Islands since 1650 Anguilla 1651–1667 Willoughbyland (Suriname) 1655–1850 Mosquito Coast (protectorate) 1655–1962 *Jamaica since 1666 British Virgin Islands since 1670 Cayman Islands 1670–1973 *Bahamas 1670–1688 St. Andrew and Providence Islands⁴ 1671–1816 Leeward Islands	18th century 1762–1974 *Grenada 1763–1978 Dominica since 1799 Turks and Caicos Islands	19th century 1831–1966 British Guiana (Guyana) 1833–1960 Windward Islands 1833–1960 Leeward Islands 1860–1981 *Antigua and Barbuda 1871–1964 British Honduras (Belize)* 1882–1983 *Saint Kitts.2C 1623 to 1700\|St. Kitts and Nevis 1889–1962 Trinidad and Tobago 20th century 1958–1962 West Indies Federation
⁴Now the San Andrés y Providencia Department of Colombia

Africa

18th century 1792–1961 Sierra Leone 1795–1803 Cape Colony	19th century 1806–1910 Cape Colony 1810–1968 Mauritius 1816–1965 Gambia 1856–1910 Natal 1868–1966 Basutoland (Lesotho) 1874–1957 Gold Coast (Ghana) 1882–1922 Egypt 1884–1966 Bechuanaland (Botswana) 1884–1960 British Somaliland 1887–1897 Zululand 1888–1894 Matabeleland 1890–1965 Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) ⁵ 1890–1962 Uganda 1890–1963 Zanzibar (Tanzania) 1891–1964 Nyasaland (Malawi) 1891–1907 British Central Africa Protectorate 1893–1968 Swaziland 1895–1920 East Africa Protectorate 1899–1956 Anglo-Egyptian Sudan	20th century 1900–1914 Northern Nigeria 1900–1914 Southern Nigeria 1900–1910 Orange River Colony 1900–1910 Transvaal Colony 1906–1954 Nigeria Colony 1910–1931 South Africa 1911–1964 Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) 1914–1954 Nigeria Colony and Protectorate 1915–1931 South West Africa (Namibia) 1919–1960 Cameroons (Cameroon) ⁶ 1920–1963 Kenya 1922–1961 Tanganyika (Tanzania) ⁶ 1954–1960 Nigeria 1979–1980 Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) ⁵
⁵Southern Rhodesia issued a Unilateral Declaration of Independence in 1965 (as Rhodesia) and returned to British control in 1979. ⁶League of Nations mandate

Asia

17th Century 1685-1824 Bencoolen (Sumatra)	18th century 1702–1705 Côn Đảo 1757–1947 Bengal (West Bengal (India) and Bangladesh) 1762–1764 Manila 1795–1948 Ceylon (Sri Lanka) 1796–1965 Maldives	19th century 1812-1824 Banka (Sumatra) 1812-1824 Billiton (Sumatra) 1819–1826 British Malaya (Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore) 1826–1946 Straits Settlements 1839–1967 Colony of Aden 1839–1842 Afghanistan 1841–1997 Hong Kong 1841–1941 Kingdom of Sarawak (Malaysia) 1858–1947 British India (India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, Burma) 1879–1919 Afghanistan 1882–1963 British North Borneo (Malaysia) 1885–1946 Unfederated Malay States 1888–1984 Sultanate of Brunei 1888–1946 Sultanate of Sulu 1891–1971 Muscat and Oman protectorate 1892–1971 Trucial States protectorate 1895–1946 Federated Malay States 1898–1930 Weihai Garrison 1878–1960 Cyprus	20th century 1918–1961 Kuwait protectorate 1920–1932 Iraq⁶ 1921–1946 Transjordan⁶ 1923–1948 Palestine⁶ 1945–1946 South Vietnam 1946–1963 Sarawak (Malaysia) 1946–1963 Singapore 1946–1948 Malayan Union 1948–1957 Federation of Malaya (Malaysia) since 1960 Akrotiri and Dhekelia (before as part of Cyprus) since 1965 British Indian Ocean Territory (before as part of Mauritius and the Seychelles)
⁶League of Nations mandate

Oceania

18th century 1788–1901 New South Wales	19th century 1803–1901 Van Diemen's Land/Tasmania 1807–1863 Auckland Islands⁷ 1824–1980 New Hebrides (Vanuatu) 1824–1901 Queensland 1829–1901 Swan River Colony/Western Australia 1836–1901 South Australia since 1838 Pitcairn Islands 1841–1907 Colony of New Zealand 1851–1901 Victoria 1874–1970 Fiji⁸ 1877–1976 British Western Pacific Territories 1884–1949 Territory of Papua 1888–1965 Cook Islands⁷ 1889–1948 Union Islands (Tokelau)⁷ 1892–1979 Gilbert and Ellice Islands⁹ 1893–1978 British Solomon Islands¹⁰	20th century 1900–1970 Tonga (protected state) 1900–1974 Niue⁷ 1901–1942 *Commonwealth of Australia 1907–1953 *Dominion of New Zealand 1919–1942 Nauru 1945–1968 Nauru 1919–1949 Territory of New Guinea 1949–1975 Territory of Papua and New Guinea¹¹
⁷Now part of the *Realm of New Zealand ⁸Suspended member ⁹Now Kiribati and *Tuvalu ¹⁰Now the *Solomon Islands ¹¹Now *Papua New Guinea

Antarctica and South Atlantic

17th century since 1659 St. Helena¹²	19th century since 1815 Ascension Island¹² since 1816 Tristan da Cunha¹² since 1833 Falkland Islands¹³	20th century since 1908 British Antarctic Territory¹⁴ since 1908 South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands^13, 14
¹²Since 2009 part of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha; Ascension Island (1922—) and Tristan da Cunha (1938—) were previously dependencies of St Helena ¹³Occupied by Argentina during the Falklands War of April–June 1982 ¹⁴Both claimed in 1908; territories formed in 1962 (British Antarctic Territory) and 1985 (South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands)

Categories:

Political history of New Zealand
European colonisation in Oceania

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