[[File:Australian Coat of Arms.png|150px|left]]The [[Australia]]n monarchy goes back a few hundred years. More than 200 years ago Australia was found by Europeans and eventually settled by the [[British Empire|British]]. Before the settlement there already existed native people as well. Eventually Australia was granted more and more powers to govern itself. In 1900 one of the last acts of [[Queen Victoria]] before she died on 22 January 1901 was the giving Royal Assent to the ''[[Constitutional history of Australia|Commonwealth of Australia Act]]'' which would give Australia its own [[Constitution]] and [[government]]. On 1 January 1901 Queen Victoria would live to see the day Australia was declared [[Australian federation|federated]] with six states and several territories in [[Centennial Park]], [[Sydney]]. 30 years following that the [[Statute of Westminster]] granted equality to the realms and finally on 3 March 1986 [[Australia Act]] (in the [[United Kingdom]] and Australia) gave full [[independence]] to Australia in theory, although in practice it was already operating mostly independently.
[[File:Australian Coat of Arms.png|150px|left]]The [[Australia]]n monarchy goes back a few hundred years. More than 200 years ago Australia was found by Europeans and eventually settled by the [[British Empire|British]]. Before the settlement there already existed native people as well. Eventually Australia was granted more and more powers to govern itself. In 1900 one of the last acts of [[Queen Victoria]] before she died on 22 January 1901 was the giving Royal Assent to the ''[[Constitutional history of Australia|Commonwealth of Australia Act]]'' which would give Australia its own [[Constitution]] and [[government]]. On 1 January 1901 Queen Victoria would live to see the day Australia was declared [[Australian federation|federated]] with six states and several territories in [[Centennial Park]], [[Sydney]]. 30 years following that the [[Statute of Westminster]] granted equality to the realms and finally on 3 March 1986 [[Australia Act]] (in the [[United Kingdom]] and Australia) gave full [[independence]] to Australia in theory, although in practice it was already operating mostly independently.
In 1999 Australia held a [[referendum]] on whether to become a [[republic]] or not; the referendum's outcome was the retention of the Australian monarchy and constitution. The majority of all voters and all states rejected the proposal.
In 1999 Australia held a [[referendum]] on whether to become a [[republic]] or not; the referendum's outcome was the retention of the Australian monarchy. The majority of all voters and all states rejected the proposal.
The realm of Australia is made up of [[States and territories of Australia|six federated states]] and three federal territories (including the [[Jervis Bay Territory]]). It also includes a number of external territories, which are administered by the [[Government of Australia|federal government]]: [[Ashmore and Cartier Islands]], [[Christmas Island]], [[Cocos (Keeling) Islands]], [[Coral Sea Islands]], [[Heard Island and McDonald Islands]], [[Norfolk Island]], and the [[Australian Antarctic Territory]].
The realm of Australia is made up of [[States and territories of Australia|six federated states]] and three federal territories (including the [[Jervis Bay Territory]]). It also includes a number of external territories, which are administered by the [[Government of Australia|federal government]]: [[Ashmore and Cartier Islands]], [[Christmas Island]], [[Cocos (Keeling) Islands]], [[Coral Sea Islands]], [[Heard Island and McDonald Islands]], [[Norfolk Island]], and the [[Australian Antarctic Territory]].
There are presently six monarchies in Oceania; that is: self-governing sovereign states in Oceania where supreme power resides with an individual hereditary head, who is recognised as the head of state. Each is a constitutional monarchy, wherein the sovereign inherits his or her office, usually keeps it until death or abdication, and is bound by laws and customs in the exercise of their powers. Five of these independent states share Queen Elizabeth II as their respective head of state[1], making them part of a global grouping known as the Commonwealth realms; in addition, all monarchies of Oceania are members of the Commonwealth of Nations. The only monarchy in Oceania with a separate head of state is Tonga. Australia and New Zealand have dependencies within the region and outside it.
The Australian monarchy goes back a few hundred years. More than 200 years ago Australia was found by Europeans and eventually settled by the British. Before the settlement there already existed native people as well. Eventually Australia was granted more and more powers to govern itself. In 1900 one of the last acts of Queen Victoria before she died on 22 January 1901 was the giving Royal Assent to the Commonwealth of Australia Act which would give Australia its own Constitution and government. On 1 January 1901 Queen Victoria would live to see the day Australia was declared federated with six states and several territories in Centennial Park, Sydney. 30 years following that the Statute of Westminster granted equality to the realms and finally on 3 March 1986 Australia Act (in the United Kingdom and Australia) gave full independence to Australia in theory, although in practice it was already operating mostly independently.
In 1999 Australia held a referendum on whether to become a republic or not; the referendum's outcome was the retention of the Australian monarchy. The majority of all voters and all states rejected the proposal.
New Zealand also had a native people before the arrival of European colonisers; the Māori, a Polynesian people, settled Te Ika-a-Māui or Aotearoa (now known in English as the North Island),[N 5]Te Wai Pounamu or Te Waka a Māui (now known in English as the South Island), and other surrounding islands between AD 800 and 1300. The Treaty of Waitangi, signed on 6 February 1840, was an agreement between Māori chiefs in the North Island and representatives of the then British Crown (since 1947 the Crown of New Zealand); roughly 500 other Māori chiefs throughout New Zealand later signed. It is today highly respected by Māori,[citation needed] as it is seen as a treaty which granted them certain rights. The treaty is seen as one of the founding documents of the Constitution of New Zealand and to this day is part of New Zealand law.[citation needed]
After being ruled by three external powers since 1884, Papua New Guinea gained its independence from Australia in 1975. It chose to become a kingdom with its own Queen and monarchy.
The Head of State of the Solomon Islands is Queen Elizabeth II. The Solomon Islands share the Sovereign with a number of Commonwealth realms. The Queen's constitutional roles have been almost entirely delegated to the Governor-General of the Solomon Islands. Royal succession is governed by the English Act of Settlement of 1701, which is part of constitutional law.
On all matters of the Solomon Island State, the Monarch is advised solely by Solomon Island ministers, not British or otherwise.
The House of Tupou was officially formed in 1875 when the monarch's constitutional role was put forth.
In July 2008, three days before his coronation, King George Tupou V announced that he would relinquish most of his power and be guided by his Prime Minister's recommendations on most matters.[3]
The first inhabitants of Tuvalu were Polynesian people. The islands came under the UK's sphere of influence in the late 19th century. The Ellice Islands were administered by Britain as part of a protectorate from 1892 to 1916 and as part of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony from 1916 to 1974. In 1974 the Ellice Islanders voted for separate British dependency status as Tuvalu, separating from the Gilbert Islands which became Kiribati upon independence. Tuvalu became fully independent within The Commonwealth in 1978.
A constitutional referendum held on 30 April 2008 turned out 1,260 to 679 votes in favour of retaining the monarchy.
^The modern usage of "Aotearoa" as a reference to the whole of New Zealand, universal in the Māori language and increasingly accepted in New Zealand English, did not come about until the 20th century.
Australia
New Zealand
Papua New Guinea
Solomon Islands
Tonga
Tuvalu
Pitcairn Islands
Kingdom of Hawaii: Abolished (1893)
Samoa: Status change (2007)