View source

<!--  via Wikipedia: Balfour Declaration, 1926
    
      last updated: 2004-02-10T20:50:17Z
      updated by: LK
      
//-->

The '''Balfour Declaration of 1926''' is a statement of the October-November [[1926]] [[Imperial Conferences|Imperial Conference]] of [[British Empire]] leaders in [[London]] to the effect that the [[United Kingdom]] and the [[Dominions]] "are autonomous Communities within the British Empire, equal in status, in no way subordinate one to another in any aspect of their domestic or external affairs, though united by a common allegiance to the Crown, and freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth of Nations". 

The statement (not to be confused with the [[Balfour Declaration 1917|Balfour Declaration of 1917]] by which the British foreign minister favoured a Jewish national home in [[Palestine]]) is named (like the earlier document) after the Earl of Balfour (Arthur James Balfour, 1848-1930), Lord President of the Council in the British government and chairman of the Conference's inter-Imperial relations committee, which drew up the document preparatory to its approval by the Imperial premiers at their sitting of November 15. 

The Declaration formally accepted the growing political and diplomatic independence shown particularly by [[Canada]] since [[World War I]].  It also accepted that the Governor-General, (the representative of the King, who remained head of state in each Dominion) should no longer serve automatically also as the representative of the British government in diplomatic relations between the two countries, foreshadowing the appointment ([[1928]]) of a British High Commissioner in Ottawa. 

The conclusions of the Conference were re-stated by that of 1930 and incorporated in the December [[1931]] [[Westminster, Statute of|Statute of Westminster]] by which the British Parliament renounced any legislative authority over Dominion affairs except as specifically provided in Dominion law.

<!--  NOTE TO EDITORS: 
Per the GNU Free Documentation License, please include the live link below to the adapted Wikipedia article:
//-->

====References====
* Adapted from the [[Wikipedia]] article, "Balfour_Declaration,_1926" [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balfour_Declaration,_1926 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balfour_Declaration,_1926], used under the [[GNU Free Documentation License]]