Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs explained

Post:	Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs
Insignia:	Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg
Insigniacaption:	Royal Arms as used by His Majesty's Government
Style:	The Right Honourable
Appointer:	Prime Minister
Inaugural:	Leo Amery
Formation:	11 June 1925
Last:	The Viscount Addison
Abolished:	7 July 1947
Deputy:	Under-Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs

The position of secretary of state for dominion affairs was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for British relations with the Empire’s dominions – Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Newfoundland, and the Irish Free State – and the self-governing Crown colony of Southern Rhodesia.

When initially created in 1925, the office was held in tandem with that of secretary of state for the colonies; this arrangement persisted until June 1930. On two subsequent occasions the offices were briefly held by the same person.

The secretary of state was supported by an under-secretary of state for dominion affairs. In 1947, the name of the office was changed to the secretary of state for Commonwealth relations.

Secretaries of state for dominion affairs, 1925–1947

Portrait		Name Honorifics & Constituency	Term of office		Political party	P.M.		F.Sec.
		The Right Honourable Leo Amery MP for Birmingham Sparkbrook (also Sec.State for the Colonies)	11 June 1925	4 June 1929	Conservative		Baldwin	Chamberlain
		The Right Honourable The Lord Passfield (also Sec.State for the Colonies)	7 June 1929	5 June 1930	Labour		MacDonald	Henderson
		The Right Honourable James Henry Thomas MP for Derby (also Sec.State for the Colonies, Aug.–Nov. 1931)	5 June 1930	22 November 1935	Labour
					National Labour			Reading----Simon
		The Right Honourable Malcolm MacDonald MP for Ross and Cromarty	22 November 1935	16 May 1938	National Labour		Baldwin	Hoare----Eden
height=15 style="background-color: "							Chamberlain
		The Right Honourable Lord Stanley MP for Fylde	16 May 1938	16 October 1938†	Conservative			Halifax
		The Right Honourable Malcolm MacDonald MP for Ross and Cromarty (also Sec.State for the Colonies)	31 October 1938	29 January 1939	National Labour
		The Right Honourable Sir Thomas Inskip MP for Fareham	29 January 1939	3 September 1939	Conservative
		The Right Honourable Anthony Eden MP for Warwick and Leamington^[1]	3 September 1939	14 May 1940	Conservative
		The Right Honourable The Viscount Caldecote^[2]	14 May 1940	3 October 1940	Conservative		Churchill
		The Right Honourable Viscount Cranborne MP for South Dorset until 1941 Baron Cecil of Essendon after 1941	3 October 1940	19 February 1942	Conservative	Eden
		The Right Honourable Clement Attlee MP for Limehouse^[3]	19 February 1942	24 September 1943
		The Right Honourable Viscount Cranborne Baron Cecil of Essendon	24 September 1943	26 July 1945	Conservative
		The Right Honourable The Viscount Addison	3 August 1945	7 July 1947	Labour		Attlee	Bevin

The Viscount Addison took up the new post of Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations on 7 July 1947.

Notes and References

1. Also Secretary of State for War.
2. Also Leader of the House of Lords.
3. Also Deputy Prime Minister