Peter the Great seized on this opportunity to pose as mediator, threatened the Commonwealth militarily, and in 1717 forced Augustus and the nobility to sign an accommodation favorable to Russian interests, at the Silent Sejm ( Sejm Niemy ).

For many centuries Babruysk was part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and was an important militarily fortified border post.

* 1945 – World War II: Filipino troops of the 66th Infantry Regiment, Philippine Commonwealth Army, USAFIP-NL and the American troops of the 33rd and 37th Infantry Division, United States Army was liberated in Baguio City and they fought against the Japanese forces under by General Tomoyuki Yamashita.

Following the execution of Charles I in 1649 and the establishment of the Commonwealth under Lord Protector Cromwell, it would not be reinstated until shortly after the restoration of the monarchy to England.

The Battle of Berestechko (; ) was fought between the Ukrainian Cossacks, led by Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky, aided by their Crimean Tatar allies, and a Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth army under King John II Casimir.

The most significant family of constitutional monarchies in the world today are the sixteen Commonwealth realms under Elizabeth II.

In contemporary political doctrine of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, " our state is a Republic ( Commonwealth ) under presidency of the King.

From 1653 to 1659, although still legally known as a Commonwealth, the republic operated under different institutions ( at times as a de facto monarchy ) and is known by historians as the Protectorate.

The term Commonwealth is, however, loosely used to describe the system of government during the whole of 1649 to 1660, when England was de facto, and arguably de jure, a republic ( or, to monarchists, under the English Interregnum ).

Commonwealth government by a Council of State and Parliament, was divided in two by The Protectorate when the executive was vested in a Lord Protector, who governed under a written constitution that mandated that the Lord Protector summon triennial parliaments that should sit for several months each year.

As a Board they have all of the powers and duties which are given to housing authorities under the constitution and laws of the Commonwealth.

The English Civil War led to the trial and execution of Charles I, the exile of his son, Charles II, and replacement of English monarchy with, first, the Commonwealth of England ( 1649 – 53 ), and then with a Protectorate ( 1653 – 59 ), under Oliver Cromwell's personal rule.

With the creation of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1569, the city was brought under direct control of the Polish crown.

Scotland was then occupied by an English force under George Monck throughout the Interregnum and incorporated into the Puritan-governed Commonwealth.

From 1652 to 1660, Scotland was part of the Commonwealth and Protectorate, under English control but gaining equal trading rights.

It was brought under control and followed in 1772 by the First Partition of the Commonwealth, a permanent encroachment on the outer Commonwealth provinces by the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia and Habsburg Austria.

This includes most of the countries of the Commonwealth of Nations ( the former British Empire ), including populous countries such as India, Pakistan and Nigeria ; and others, such as the Philippines, under the sphere of influence of English-speaking countries.

* 1656 – Swedish forces under the command of King Charles X Gustav defeat the forces of the Polish – Lithuanian Commonwealth at the Battle of Warsaw.

* 1945 – World War II: Philippine Commonwealth troops under the Philippine Commonwealth Army units was enter the province of Ilocos Sur in Northern Luzon and attack Japanese Imperial forces.

* 1673 – Second Battle of Khotyn in Ukraine: Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth forces under the command of Jan Sobieski defeat the Ottoman army.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, in particular at the height of its power under the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent, the Ottoman Empire was one of the most powerful states in the world – a multinational, multilingual empire that stretched from the southern borders of the Holy Roman Empire to the outskirts of Vienna, Royal Hungary ( modern Slovakia ) and the Polish – Lithuanian Commonwealth in the north to Yemen and Eritrea in the south ; from Algeria in the west to Azerbaijan in the east ; controlling much of southeast Europe, Western Asia and North Africa.

Another example would be the former Soviet Union where only members of the Communist Party were allowed to vote or hold office ; the French First Republic government under the Directory ; and the Polish – Lithuanian Commonwealth ( only the nobility could vote ).

* 1863 – American Civil War: Battle of Bristoe Station – Confederate troops under the command of General Robert E. Lee fail to drive the American Union Army completely out of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Scotland's King of Arms is traditionally responsible for granting arms to Commonwealth citizens of Scottish descent.

King of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth Realms | British Dominions, Emperor of India.

Although chips were already a popular dish in most Commonwealth countries, the thin style of French fries has been popularized worldwide in part by U. S .- based fast food chains such as McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, and Arby's.

* 1594 – Having already inherited the throne of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth through his mother Catherine Jagellonica of Poland in 1587, Sigismund III of the House of Vasa is crowned King of Sweden, having succeeded his father John III of Sweden in 1592.

" God Save the Queen " ( alternatively " God Save the King ") is an anthem used in a number of Commonwealth realms, their territories, and the British Crown Dependencies.

Such arrangements are not to be confused with supranational entities which are not states and are not defined by a common monarchy but may ( or not ) have a symbolic, essentially protocollary, titled highest office, e. g. Head of the Commonwealth ( held by the British crown, but not legally reserved for it ) or ' Head of the Arab Union ' ( 14 February-14 July 1958, held by the Hashemite King of Iraq, during its short-lived Federation with Jordan, its Hashemite sister-realm ).

The defensive war fought by the forces of the Commonwealth ended when the King, convinced of the futility of resistance, capitulated by joining the Targowica Confederation.

In 1947, the King issued letters patent granting his Canadian governor general permission to exercise all those powers belonging to the monarch in respect of Canada and, at the Imperial Conference of 1949, the decision was reached to use the term member of the Commonwealth instead of Dominion to refer to the non-British member states of the Commonwealth of Nations.

* 1569 – The King of Poland and the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Sigismund II Augustus finally sign the document of union between Poland and Lithuania, creating new country known as Polish – Lithuanian Commonwealth.

It was St-Laurent who drafted the London Declaration, recognizing King George VI as Head of the Commonwealth as a means of allowing India to remain in the international association once it became a republic.

" Hitherto Monk had continued to make solemn protestations of his affection and fidelity to the Commonwealth interest, against a King and House of Lords ; but the new militia being settled, and a Convention, calling themselves a Parliament and fit for his purpose, being met at Westminster, he sent to such lords as had sat with the Parliament till 1648, to return to the place where they used to sit, which they did, upon assurance from him, that no others should be permitted to sit with them ; which promise he also broke, and let in not only such as had deserted to Oxford, but the late created lords.

And Charles Stuart, eldest son of the late King, being informed of these transactions, left the Spanish territories where he then resided, and by the advise of Monk went to Breda, a town belonging to the States of Holland: from when he sent his letters and a declaration to the two House by Sir John Greenvil ; whereupon the nominal House of Commons, though called by a Commonwealth writ in the name of the Keepers of the Liberties of England, passed a vote about April 25, 1660, ' That the government of the nation should be by a King, Lords and Commons, and that Charles Stuart should be proclamed King of England.

After all parties had been financially drained, Frederick II let his ally, King Sigismund II Augustus of Polish – Lithuanian Commonwealth, know that he was ready for peace.

Gregory interfered little in European politics, beyond assisting Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor, and the Catholic League against the Protestants -- to the tune of a million gold ducats -- as well as Sigismund III Vasa, King of the Polish – Lithuanian Commonwealth, against the Ottoman Empire.

The Icelandic Commonwealth was established in 930 AD by refugees from Norway who had fled the unification of that country under King Harald Fairhair.

Oliver Cromwell set up a republic called the Commonwealth of England ( 1649 – 1660 ) and ruled as a near dictator after the overthrow of King Charles I. James Harrington was then a leading philosopher of republicanism.

This ' Commonwealth of Both Nations ' ensured that the state of affairs surrounding the ' three estates ' system ' continued, with the Sejm, Senate and King each being referred to as an ' estate ' and supreme deliberating body of the state.

According to Stephen Suleyman Schwartz, in his book " The Two Faces of Islam ", “ some say that during this vagabondage Ibn Abdul Wahhab came into contact with certain Englishmen who encouraged him to personal ambition as well as to a critical attitude about Islam .” Specifically, Mir ’ at al Harramin, a Turkish work by Ayyub Sabri Pasha, written in 1888, states that in Basra, Abdul Wahhab had come into contact with a British spy by the name of Hempher, who “ inspired in him the tricks and lies that he had learned from the British Ministry of the Commonwealth .”

The current Commonwealth Solicitor General of Australia Stephen Gageler SC graduated from Harvard with an LL. M.

Also, the Old and New Castles were often visited by the Commonwealth monarchs including famous Stephen Báthory of Poland who made a royal residence here.

Mark Stephen Schweiker ( born January 31, 1953 ) is a businessman and politician who served as the 44th Governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania from 2001 to 2003.

Captain Edward Stephen Fogarty Fegen VC, SGM was an Irish Victoria Cross recipient ( born Southsea, Hampshire on 8 October 1891 of Irish parentage, missing ( presumed dead ) Atlantic Ocean on 5 November 1940 ), by birth an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

The widow of Stephen V. Harkness, a principal investor in Standard Oil, Mrs. Harkness wanted to “ do something for the welfare of mankind .” Anna ’ s son, Edward Stephen Harkness, became the Commonwealth Fund ’ s first president and hired a staff of people to help him build the foundation.

Her son, Edward Stephen Harkness, initiated the Commonwealth Fund Fellowships in 1925.

Important advisor to Kings Sigismund II Augustus and Stephen Báthory, he was one of the major opponents of Bathory's successor, Sigismund III Vasa, and one of the most skilled diplomats, politicians and statesmen of his time, standing as a major figure in the politics of the Commonwealth throughout his life.

The animals were tethered in the open, as their riders took cover, while attempts to take them to the rear during a " box barrage " only increased the killing ( Sources: " April 1917 – The Real War Horse " Commonwealth War Graves Commission Newsletter, April 2012 ; " War Horse at Monchy-le-Preux – 11 April 1917 " article by Stephen Barker ).

After his sensational win in the 1990 Commonwealth Games, weightlifter Marcus Stephen petitioned for citizenship in Samoa to compete in the 1992 games.

Kemboi became African Junior Champion in 2001 and then in 2002, he finished second at the Commonwealth Games behind compatriot Stephen Cherono.

Captain Stephen Halden Beattie VC ( 29 March 1908 – 20 April 1975 ) was a Welsh recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

William Stephen Kenealy VC, ( 26 December 1886 – 29 June 1915 ) was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest military award for gallantry in the face of the enemy given to British and Commonwealth forces.

Herbert Stephen Henderson VC ( 30 March 1870 – 10 August 1942 ) was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Lieutenant Colonel John Henry Stephen Dimmer VC MC ( 9 October 1883 – 21 March 1918 ) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Stephen Garvin VC ( 1826 – 23 November 1874 ), born in Cashel, County Tipperary, was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

* 1995 – Stephen Innes for Creating the Commonwealth: The Economic Culture of Puritan New England

She was a member of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation in her youth and was friends with future NDP leader Stephen Lewis and his siblings, and was a longtime member of its successor, the New Democratic Party.

On 15 December 1575, near Warsaw, Anna along with Stephen Báthory, her fiance, was elected as co-rulers, as the second monarch in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth with the dual title of King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania The coronation took place in Krakow 1 May 1576.

The social democratic Co-operative Commonwealth Federation ( CCF ) held the balance of power with eleven seats, and independent Stephen Juba was also elected in Winnipeg.