High Commissioner (Commonwealth)

The term High Commissioner referred to, inter alia, the highest diplomatic representative of a Commonwealth country in another Commonwealth country.

The Commonwealth of Nations, currently comprises 53 member states, 16 of which ( the so-called Commonwealth Realms ) recognize the British monarch as their head of state. For this reason, the diplomatic relations between these countries are not performed at the level of ambassadors, but of High Commissioners. Commissioner is of a consul corresponding rank. Commissioners from Commonwealth realms receive from their government held an informal letter of introduction ( letter of introduction ), while Commissioners with its own head of state identify themselves by a letter of commission ( written order ). Previously the term was also used for the top managers of mandated territories and dependent territories of the British Empire.

With High Commissioner was at the time of the British Empire of the governance of dependent territories Officer senior officials of the Colonial Office (which were in contrast to crown lands not administered by a Governor-General ) refers. With the decolonization of the British Empire, the Commonwealth of Nations, was borrowed from feudalism with argumentation schemes the government representatives of the Commonwealth of Nations that refuses usual, right on Accreditation ( diplomacy ) in diplomacy.