List of heads of state of Barbados

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Politics of Barbados
Constitution
Executive
Legislature
Judiciary
Elections
Administrative divisions
Foreign relations
Historical

This is a list of the heads of state of Barbados, from the independence of Barbados under the Barbados Independence Act 1966 to the present day.

From 30 November 1966 until 30 November 2021, the head of state was the Queen of Barbados, Elizabeth II, who was also the Monarch of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, represented in Barbados by a Governor-General.

Since 30 November 2021, the head of state is the President of Barbados.

Monarch (1966–2021)

The succession to the Barbadian throne was the same as the succession to the British throne.

No. Monarch
(Birth–Death) 		Portrait Reign Royal House Prime Minister
Reign start Reign end Duration
1 Queen Elizabeth II
(1926–2022) 		30 November 1966 30 November 2021 55 years Windsor Barrow
Adams
St. John
Sandiford
Arthur
Thompson
Stuart
Mottley

Governor-General

Under the Constitution of Barbados, before its amendment in 2021, the governor-general was the representative of the monarch in Barbados and exercised most of the powers of the monarch. The governor-general was appointed for an indefinite term, serving at the pleasure of the monarch. Since Barbados was granted independence by the Barbados Independence Act 1966, rather than being first established as a semi-autonomous Dominion and later promoted to independence by the Statute of Westminster 1931, the governor-general had always been appointed solely on the advice of the Cabinet of Barbados, without the involvement of the British government, with the sole exception of John Montague Stow, the last colonial governor, who served as governor-general temporarily until he was replaced by Sir Arleigh Winston Scott. In the event of a vacancy the chief justice served as administrator of the government.

Status
  Denotes Chief Justice acting as Officer Administering the Government
No. Portrait Governor-General
(Birth–Death) 		Term of office Monarch Prime Minister
Took office Left office Time in office
1 Sir John Montague Stow
(1911–1997) 		30 November 1966 18 May 1967 169 days Elizabeth II Barrow
2 Sir Arleigh Winston Scott
(1900–1976) 		18 May 1967 9 August 1976
(died in office.) 		9 years, 83 days
– Sir William Randolph Douglas
(1921–2003) 		9 August 1976 17 November 1976 100 days Barrow
Adams
3 Sir Deighton Lisle Ward
(1909–1984) 		17 November 1976 9 January 1984
(died in office.) 		7 years, 53 days Adams
– Sir William Randolph Douglas
(1921–2003) 		9 January 1984 24 February 1984 46 days
4 Sir Hugh Springer
(1913–1994) 		24 February 1984 6 June 1990 6 years, 102 days Adams
St. John
Barrow
Sandiford
5 Dame Nita Barrow
(1916–1995) 		6 June 1990 19 November 1995
(died in office.) 		5 years, 166 days Sandiford
Arthur
– Sir Denys Williams
(1929–2014) 		19 December 1995 1 June 1996 165 days Arthur
6 Sir Clifford Husbands
(1926–2017) 		1 June 1996 31 October 2011 15 years, 152 days Arthur
Thompson
Stuart
– Elliott Belgrave
(born 1931) 		31 October 2011 30 May 2012 212 days Stuart
– Sandra Mason
(born 1949) 		30 May 2012 1 June 2012 2 days
7 Sir Elliott Belgrave
(born 1931) 		1 June 2012 30 June 2017 5 years, 29 days Stuart
– Sir Philip Greaves
(born 1931) 		1 July 2017 8 January 2018 191 days
8 Dame Sandra Mason
(born 1949) 		8 January 2018 30 November 2021 3 years, 326 days Stuart
Mottley

President (2021–present)

Under the Constitution of Barbados, as amended in 2021, the position of president of Barbados replaced the monarch as head of state. The position of president is elected by parliament for a four-year term. In the event of a vacancy, or for any reason the president is unable to perform the functions conferred upon them by the constitution, those functions are performed by an acting president appointed by the prime minister, after consultation with the leader of the opposition. However, while the president is suspended from office in case of ongoing impeachment proceedings, the president of the Senate of Barbados serves as acting president. The presidential line of succession is not defined beyond that.

  Denotes Acting President
No. Portrait President
(Birth–Death) 		Elected Term of office Prime Minister
Took office Left office Time in office
1 Sandra Mason
(born 1949) 		2021 30 November 2021 Incumbent 2 years, 126 days Mottley

Standards

  • Royal Standard
    Royal Standard
  • Governor-General's Standard
    Governor-General's Standard
  • Presidential Standard
    Presidential Standard

Timeline

Sandra MasonElizabeth II

References

  1. ^ Judge of the Supreme Court
  2. ^ Judge of the Supreme Court
  3. ^ Former Deputy Prime Minister
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