In the

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, often referred to as the British Commonwealth or simply the Commonwealth, is an International organization, international association of member states of the Commonwealth of Nations, 56 member states, the vast majo ...

, a high commissioner is the senior diplomat, generally ranking as an

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

, in charge of the

diplomatic mission A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually denotes ...

of one Commonwealth government to another. Instead of an embassy, the diplomatic mission is generally called a high commission.

History

In the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

(most of the territories of which became the Commonwealth), high commissioners were envoys of the Imperial government appointed to manage

protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a State (polity), state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over ...

s or groups of territories not fully under the sovereignty of the British Crown, while Crown colonies (British sovereign territories) were normally administered by a governor, and the most significant possessions, large confederations and the self-governing

dominions A dominion was any of several largely self-governing countries of the British Empire, once known collectively as the ''British Commonwealth of Nations''. Progressing from colonies, their degrees of colonial self-governance increased (and, in ...

were headed by a

governor-general Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

. For example, when

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

came under British administration in 1878 it remained nominally under the

suzerainty A suzerain (, from Old French "above" + "supreme, chief") is a person, state (polity)">state or polity who has supremacy and dominant influence over the foreign policy">polity.html" ;"title="state (polity)">state or polity">state (polity)">st ...

of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. The representative of the British government and head of the administration was titled high commissioner until Cyprus became a Crown colony in 1925, when the incumbent high commissioner became the first governor. Another example were the high commissioners for Palestine. A high commissioner could also be charged with the last phase of

decolonisation Decolonization is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby Imperialism, imperial nations establish and dominate foreign territories, often overseas. The meanings and applications of the term are disputed. Some scholar ...

, as in the Crown colony of the

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (; Seychellois Creole: ), is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands (as per the Constitution) in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, ...

, where the last

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

became high commissioner in 1975, when self-rule under the Crown was granted, until 1976, when the archipelago became an independent republic within the Commonwealth.

Other usage

As diplomatic residents (as diplomatic ranks were codified, this became a lower class than ambassadors and high commissioners) were sometimes appointed to native rulers, high commissioners could likewise be appointed as British agents of

indirect rule Indirect rule was a system of public administration, governance used by imperial powers to control parts of their empires. This was particularly used by colonial empires like the British Empire to control their possessions in Colonisation of Afri ...

over native states. Thus high commissioners could be charged with managing diplomatic relations with native rulers and their states (analogous to the

resident minister A resident minister, or resident for short, is a government official required to take up permanent residence in another country. A representative of his government, he officially has diplomatic functions which are often seen as a form of ind ...

), and might have under them several

resident commissioner Resident commissioner was or is an official title of several different types of commissioners, who were or are representatives of any level of government. Historically, they were appointed by the British Crown in overseas protectorates (such a ...

s or similar agents attached to each state. In regions of particular importance, a commissioner-general was appointed to have control over several high commissioners and governors, e.g. the commissioner-general for South-East Asia had responsibility for Malaya, Singapore and

British Borneo British Borneo comprised the four northern parts of the island of Borneo, which are now the country of Brunei, two Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak, and the Malaysian federal territory of Labuan. During the British colonial rule before Wor ...

. The first high commissioner of India to London was appointed in 1920; he had no political role, but mostly dealt with the business interests of the 'Indian Federation'. The first agent of the Indian government was appointed to South Africa in 1927. Although not a dominion, the self-governing colony of

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing British Crown colony in Southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as South ...

was represented in the United Kingdom by a high commission in London, while the United Kingdom similarly had a high commission in

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

. Following the

Unilateral Declaration of Independence A unilateral declaration of independence (UDI) or "unilateral secession" is a formal process leading to the establishment of a new state by a subnational entity which declares itself independent and sovereign without a formal agreement with the ...

by the government of

Ian Smith Ian Douglas Smith (8 April 191920 November 2007) was a Rhodesian politician, farmer, and fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia (known as Southern Rhodesia until October 1964 and now known as Zimbabwe) from 1964 to 1979. He w ...

in 1965, the Rhodesian high commissioner, Andrew Skeen was expelled from London, while his British counterpart, Sir John Johnston, was withdrawn by the British government.

Governors also acting as high commissioners

The role of

high commissioner for Southern Africa The British office of high commissioner for Southern Africa was responsible for governing British possessions in Southern Africa, latterly the protectorates of Basutoland (now Lesotho), the Bechuanaland Protectorate (now Botswana) and Swaziland ...

was coupled with that of British governor of the

Cape Colony The Cape Colony (), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British Empire, British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope. It existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with three ...

in the 19th century, giving the colonial administrator in question responsibility both for administering

British possessions A British possession is a country or territory other than the United Kingdom which has the British monarch as its head of state. Overview In common statutory usage the British possessions include British Overseas Territories, and the Commonwe ...

and relating to neighbouring

Boer Boers ( ; ; ) are the descendants of the proto Afrikaans-speaking Free Burghers of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. From 1652 to 1795, the Dutch East India Company controlled the Dutch ...

settlements. Historically, the

s of Bechuanaland (now

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

Basutoland Basutoland was a British Crown colony that existed from 1884 to 1966 in present-day Lesotho, bordered with the Cape Colony, Natal Colony and Orange River Colony until 1910 and completely surrounded by South Africa from 1910. Though the Basot ...

(now

Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...

) and

Swaziland Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where ...

(now

Eswatini Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where i ...

) were administered as ''high commission territories'' by the

Governor-General of the Union of South Africa The governor-general of the Union of South Africa (; ) was the highest state official in the Union of South Africa between 1910 and 1961. The Union of South Africa was founded as a self-governing Dominion of the British Empire in 1910 and the o ...

who was also the British high commissioner for Bechuanaland, Basutoland, and Swaziland until the 1930s, with various local representatives, then by the British high commissioner (from 1961 ambassador) to South Africa, who was represented locally in each by a resident commissioner. The British governor of the Crown colony of the

Straits Settlements The Straits Settlements () were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Company, the Straits Settlements came under control of the ...

, based in Singapore, doubled as high commissioner of the

Federated Malay States The Federated Malay States (FMS, , Jawi script, Jawi: ) was a federation of four protectorate, protected states in the Malay Peninsula — Selangor, Perak, Negeri Sembilan and Pahang — established in 1895 by the British government, and whi ...

, and had authority over the resident-general in Kuala Lumpur, who in turn was responsible for the various residents appointed to the native rulers of the Malay states under British protection. The

British Western Pacific Territories The British Western Pacific Territories (BWPT) was a colonial entity created in 1877 for the administration of a series of Pacific islands in Oceania under a single representative of the British Crown, styled the High Commissioner for the Weste ...

were permanently governed as a group of minor insular colonial territories, under one single, not even full-time, Western Pacific high commissioner (1905–53), an office attached first to the governorship of

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

, and subsequently to that of the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...

, represented in each of the other islands units: by a

Resident Commissioner Resident commissioner was or is an official title of several different types of commissioners, who were or are representatives of any level of government. Historically, they were appointed by the British Crown in overseas protectorates (such a ...

Consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...

or other official (on tiny

Pitcairn Islands The Pitcairn Islands ( ; Pitkern: '), officially Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, are a group of four volcanic islands in the southern Pacific Ocean that form the sole British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the ...

a mere

chief magistrate A chief magistrate is a public official, executive or judicial, whose office is the highest in its class. Historically, the two different meanings of magistrate have often overlapped and refer to, as the case may be, to a major political and admi ...

). The

British High Commission A British High Commission is a British diplomatic mission, equivalent to an embassy, found in countries that are members of the Commonwealth of Nations. Their general purpose is to provide diplomatic relationships as well as travel information, ...

er to

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

is also

ex-officio An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, or council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term ''List of Latin phrases (E)#ex officio, ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the off ...

the

governor of the Pitcairn Islands The Governor of Pitcairn is the representative of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarch in the Pitcairn Islands, the last remaining British Overseas Territory in the Pacific Ocean. Despite technically being under the authority of ...

Dominions

The first

dominion A dominion was any of several largely self-governance, self-governing countries of the British Empire, once known collectively as the ''British Commonwealth of Nations''. Progressing from colonies, their degrees of self-governing colony, colon ...

high commissioner was appointed by

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

as its envoy in London. Previously, Sir John Rose, 1st Baronet, a Canadian businessman resident in London and former

Canadian finance minister The minister of finance () is the minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet, who is responsible for overseeing the Department of Finance and presenting the federal government's budget each year. It is one of the most important positions ...

, had acted as the personal representative of the

Canadian prime minister The prime minister of Canada () is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons; as such, the prime minister typically sits as a ...

Sir

John A. Macdonald Sir John Alexander Macdonald (10 or 11January 18156June 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 until his death in 1891. He was the dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, and had a political ...

, from 1869 to 1874 and then was given the title of Financial Commissioner from 1874 until 1880. Alexander Mackenzie, while he was prime minister, appointed Edward Jenkins a British Member of Parliament with links to Canada, to act as the government's representative in London as

agent-general An Agent-General ( or , masculine and feminine respectively) is the representative in cities abroad of the government of a Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province or an States and territories of Australia, Australian state and, h ...

(1874–1876), followed by former Nova Scotia premier

William Annand William Annand (April 10, 1808 – October 12, 1887) was a Nova Scotia publisher and politician. He was a member of the North British Society. Annand was born in Halifax. He was educated in Scotland and returned to Nova Scotia in the 182 ...

(1876–1878). When Macdonald returned to power in 1878 he requested to elevate the position of financial commissioner to resident minister, but was denied the request by the British government who instead offered to allow the designation of high commissioner. The Canadian government appointed

Alexander Tilloch Galt Sir Alexander Tilloch Galt, (September 6, 1817 – September 19, 1893) was a politician and Fathers of Confederation, Father of Confederation, the Canadian Confederation, union of British North American colonies into Canada. Early life He w ...

as the first high commissioner of Canada to the United Kingdom in 1880. New Zealand appointed a high commissioner in 1905, in place of a resident agent-general who had been appointed since 1871. Australia did the same in 1910, and South Africa in 1911.''"What's in a name?" – The curious tale of the office of high commissioner''
by Lorna Lloyd The British government continued not to appoint high commissioners to the Dominions, holding that the British government was already represented by the relevant governor-general or governor. This arrangement began to create problems after the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

with Dominions expecting a greater degree of control over their external and foreign affairs and beginning to challenge the constitutional role of their governors-general. In Canada, matters came to a head during the

King–Byng affair The King–Byng affair, also known as the King–Byng Wing Ding, was a Canadian constitutional crisis that occurred in 1926, when the governor general of Canada, Lord Byng of Vimy, refused a request by the prime minister, William Lyon Mackenz ...

of 1926, when the governor-general refused the advice of the Canadian prime minister to dissolve parliament and call elections, as would normally apply under the

Westminster system The Westminster system, or Westminster model, is a type of parliamentary system, parliamentary government that incorporates a series of Parliamentary procedure, procedures for operating a legislature, first developed in England. Key aspects of ...

. The incident led to the

Balfour Declaration The Balfour Declaration was a public statement issued by the British Government in 1917 during the First World War announcing its support for the establishment of a "national home for the Jewish people" in Palestine, then an Ottoman regio ...

made at the

Imperial Conference of 1926 The 1926 Imperial Conference was the fifth Imperial Conference bringing together the prime ministers of the Dominions of the British Empire. It was held in London from 19 October to 23 November 1926. The conference was notable for producing the ...

that established that governors-general in the independent Dominions were not the representatives of the United Kingdom government but the personal representatives of the monarch. In 1930, Australia broke another tradition by insisting that the monarch act on the advice of the Australian prime minister in the appointment of the

, and insisted on the appointment of Sir

Isaac Isaacs Sir Isaac Alfred Isaacs, (6 August 1855 – 11 February 1948) was an Australian lawyer, politician, and judge who served as the ninth Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1931 to 1936. He had previously served on the High Court of Au ...

, the first Australian-born person to serve in the office. The practice became the norm throughout the Commonwealth. The first British high commissioner to a dominion was appointed in 1928 to Canada. South Africa received a British high commissioner in 1930; Australia in 1936; and New Zealand in 1939. The first high-ranking official envoy from one dominion to another was appointed by South Africa to Canada in 1938. Yet, because of various procedural complications, only in 1945 was South African envoy to Canada designated officially as high commissioner. New Zealand appointed a high commissioner to Canada in 1942, and a high commissioner to Australia in 1943. In 1973, the then

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

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 ...

Gough Whitlam Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from December 1972 to November 1975. To date the longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), he was notable for being ...

, proposed that the title be replaced with that of ambassador, but other Commonwealth members in Asia, Africa and the Caribbean indicated a preference for keeping the separate title and status of high commissioner, and the matter was not pursued further.

Current practice

The term is used across all 56 member states of the

, as diplomatic relations between these countries are traditionally at a governmental level rather than at the Head of State level, as is otherwise common. This is because traditionally these Commonwealth states shared a head of state, the

Monarch of the United Kingdom 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 Constitutional monarchy, regula ...

(currently

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

). In diplomatic usage, a high commissioner is considered equivalent in rank and role to an ambassador, and carries the full title of "High Commissioner Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary". A high commissioner from one Commonwealth state to another carries a simple and often informal letter of introduction from one

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 ...

(prime minister) to that of another, host country, while ambassadors carry formal

letters of credence A letter of credence (, ) is a formal diplomatic letter that designates a diplomat as ambassador to another sovereign state. Commonly known as diplomatic credentials, the letter is addressed from one head of state to another, asking them to give ...

from their head of state addressed to the host country's head of state. The difference in accreditation is also reflected in the formal titles of envoys to Commonwealth and non-Commonwealth states: e.g., British high commissioners to the Commonwealth countries are formally titled "The High Commissioner for His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom", whereas British ambassadors to non-Commonwealth countries are known as " His Britannic Majesty's Ambassador". For historical reasons, high commissioners are also appointed even in the case of republics in the Commonwealth and indigenous monarchies (e.g. the kingdoms of

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

, etc., who have monarchs other than the reigning British monarch) within the Commonwealth. In this case, letters of commission are usually issued by one head of state and presented to the other. However, some Commonwealth governments may choose to use the more informal method of issuing prime-ministerial letters of introduction, while other governments have opted instead for letters of credence. Instead of embassies, the diplomatic missions of Commonwealth countries are called high commissions, although it is possible for a country to appoint a high commissioner without having a permanent mission in the other country: e.g. the British high commissioner in

Suva Suva (, ) is the Capital city, capital and the most populous city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rew ...

, is also accredited as high commissioner to

Kiribati Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the central Pacific Ocean. Its permanent population is over 119,000 as of the 2020 census, and more than half live on Tarawa. The st ...

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( ) is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands (which belong to the Solomon Islands), northeast of Van ...

and

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

, as a Commonwealth country, traditionally had high commissioners in other Commonwealth countries. When it withdrew from the Commonwealth, it changed the style of its high commissions to embassies. Outside the capital, practice is less standard. Subordinate ''commissioners'' or ''deputy high commissioners'' may be appointed instead of

consuls A consul is an official representative of a government who resides in a foreign country to assist and protect citizens of the consul's country, and to promote and facilitate commercial and diplomatic relations between the two countries. A consu ...

, and the commissioner's mission may be known as a ''consulate'', ''commission'' or ''deputy high commission''. Historically, in

British colonies A Crown colony or royal colony was a colony governed by England, and then Great Britain or the United Kingdom within the English and later British Empire. There was usually a governor to represent the Crown, appointed by the British monarch on ...

, independent Commonwealth countries were represented by commissions. For example, Canada, Australia and

maintained commissions in Singapore, while following its independence in 1947,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

established commissions in

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

, and

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

which became high commissions on independence. Similarly, when Hong Kong was under British administration, Canada, Australia New Zealand India,

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

and Singapore were represented by commissions, but following the transfer of sovereignty to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

in 1997, these were replaced by consulates-general, as in other non-capital cities in non-Commonwealth countries, with the last commissioner becoming the first consul-general. Canada formerly had a commissioner to

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

, although this post was held by the consul-general to New York City, but there is now an honorary Canadian consulate on the island.Embassies and consulates - Bermuda
/ref> Despite the differences in terminology, Commonwealth high commissioners have, since 1948, enjoyed the same

diplomatic rank Diplomatic rank is a system of professional and social rank used in the world of diplomacy and international relations. A diplomat's rank determines many ceremonial details, such as the order of precedence at official processions, Seating plan, t ...

and precedence as ambassadors of foreign heads of state, and in some countries are accorded privileges not enjoyed by foreign ambassadors. For example, the British Sovereign receives high commissioners before ambassadors, and sends a coach and four horses to fetch new high commissioners to the palace, whereas new ambassadors get only two horses. High commissioners also attend important ceremonies of state, such as the annual

Remembrance Sunday Remembrance Sunday is held in the United Kingdom as a day to commemorate the contribution of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts. It is held on the second Sunday in Nov ...

service at

The Cenotaph The Cenotaph is a war memorial on Whitehall in London, England. Designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, it was unveiled in 1920 as the United Kingdom's national memorial to the dead of Britain and the British Empire of the First World War, was rededica ...

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London, England. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It ...

(commemorating Commonwealth war dead) and royal weddings and

funerals A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect th ...

References

Citations

Sources