Reign of George VI (1947–1952) Under the
Indian Independence Act 1947,
British India was to be divided into the independent sovereign states of India and Pakistan. From 1947 to 1952,
King George VI was the sovereign of Pakistan, with Pakistan sharing the sovereign with the
United Kingdom and the other
Dominions of the
Commonwealth of Nations. To mark the independence of Pakistan, the King sent a message of congratulations to its people, which was read by Lord Mountbatten in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan on 14 August 1947. In his message, the King said in "achieving your independence by agreement, you have set an example to all freedom-loving people throughout the world". He told the Pakistani people to be "assured always of my sympathy and support as I watch your continuing efforts to advance the cause of humanity". The King appointed
Mohammad Ali Jinnah as the
governor-general of Pakistan and authorised him to exercise and perform all the powers and duties as his representative in Pakistan. Mohammad Ali Jinnah took the following oath of office: The King confirmed the appointment of
Sir Khwaja Nazimuddin as the next governor-general by a Royal decree which said: In 1951, Sir Khwaja Nazimuddin resigned from the post of governor-general to become the new prime minister. The King appointed
Sir Ghulam Mohammed as the third governor-general of Pakistan. King George VI died in his sleep in the early hours of 6 February 1952. The King's death was deeply mourned in Pakistan. In view of the King's death, all government offices in Pakistan remained closed on 7 February. All places of amusement and business-houses closed, and the government cancelled all official engagements. Most Pakistani newspapers were issued with black borders on 7 February. On 15 February, the day of the funeral, a national two minutes' silence was observed throughout Pakistan, and a salute of 56 guns was fired, one for each year of the King's life. All Pakistani flags were flown at half-mast till the day of the funeral. In the
Constituent Assembly of Pakistan, the Dominion's federal legislature, Prime Minister Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin said that the King's reign will always be remembered by Pakistanis as "the period during which the Muslims of the Indo-Pakistan Subcontinent carved out a homeland for themselves".
Reign of Elizabeth II (1952–1956) with the Commonwealth prime ministers during
their conference in December 1952. Pakistani Prime Minister
Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin is second from the right. Following George VI's death on 6 February 1952, his elder daughter
Princess Elizabeth became the new monarch of Pakistan. She was
proclaimed Queen throughout her realms, including in Pakistan, where she was honoured with a
21-gun salute on 8 February. was embroidered with the three emblems of Pakistan: wheat, in oat-shaped diamante and fronds of golden crystal; cotton, made in silver with leaves of green silk; and jute, embroidered in green silk and golden thread. During
her coronation in 1953,
Elizabeth II was crowned as Queen of Pakistan and other independent Commonwealth realms. In her
coronation oath, the Queen promised "to govern the Peoples of … Pakistan … according to their respective laws and customs". The
Queen's coronation gown was embroidered with the floral emblems of each
Commonwealth nation, and it featured the three emblems of Pakistan: wheat, in oat-shaped diamante and fronds of golden crystal; cotton, made in silver with leaves of green silk; and jute, embroidered in green silk and golden thread. The Standard of Pakistan at the Coronation was borne by
Mirza Abol Hassan Ispahani. Major-General Mohd. Yusuf Khan served as the head of Pakistan's Coronation Contingent. which cost approximately 81,000 rupees. Eighty seats were reserved for Pakistanis in the Abbey for the Coronation. Prime Minister
Mohammad Ali Bogra, also attended the Coronation on 2 June, along with his wife and two sons, after which he attended the
Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference from 3 June to 9 June 1953, in London. The Government of Pakistan spent approximately 482,000 rupees for the Queen's Coronation. Prime Minister Bogra justified the expenditure by saying that Pakistan being a member of the Commonwealth "has to fall in line with other sister Dominions on such occasions". In 1953,
Governor-General Sir Ghulam Muhammad dismissed Prime Minister
Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin for attempting to equalise the power of West and
East Pakistan. The prime minister attempted to reverse this decision by pleading to the Queen, but she refused to intervene. Citing this incident, Akhilesh Pillalamarri of
The Diplomat wrote that "She deliberately kept from interfering in the country and her governors-general were presidents of Pakistan in all but name." In 1955, the Pakistani Government recommended to the Queen that
Iskander Mirza should succeed Sir Ghulam Muhammad as the next governor-general, the Queen's representative in Pakistan. On 19 September, it was officially announced that the Queen had appointed Mirza to be the governor-general, with effect from 6 October 1955. Mirza took office after the
Royal sign-manual from the Queen was read out. The Queen also congratulated the retiring governor-general, Sir Ghulam Mohammad, on the manner in which he carried out his duties as the governor-general.
Abolition The Pakistani monarchy was abolished on the adoption of a
republican constitution on
23 March 1956. Pakistan became a
republic within the Commonwealth of Nations. The Queen sent a message to the
new president Major-General Mirza, in which she said: "I have followed with close interest the progress of your country since its establishment ... It is a source of great satisfaction to me to know that your country intends to remain within the Commonwealth. I am confident that Pakistan and other countries of the Commonwealth will continue to thrive and to benefit from their mutual association". The Queen visited Pakistan as
Head of the Commonwealth in 1961 and 1997, accompanied by
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Pakistan left the Commonwealth in 1972 over the issue of the former
East Pakistan province becoming independent as
Bangladesh. It rejoined in 1989, then was
suspended from the Commonwealth twice: firstly from 18 October 1999 to 22 May 2004 and secondly from 22 November 2007 to 22 May 2008. Nazir-Ahmed-Queen-Elizabeth.jpg|The Queen with
Nazir Ahmed, chairman of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission Queenelizabeth-chittagongG1.jpg|Queen Elizabeth II visiting
Chittagong,
East Pakistan, in 1961 Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in Pakistan 2019.png|The
Duke and
Duchess of Cambridge during their tour of Pakistan in 2019 ==Title==