President of Trinidad and Tobago
The president of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is the head of state of Trinidad and Tobago and the commander-in-chief of the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force. The office was established when the country became a republic in 1976, before which the head of state was the Queen of Trinidad and Tobago, Elizabeth II. The last governor-general, Sir Ellis Clarke, was sworn in as the first president on 1 August 1976 under a transitional arrangement. He was formally chosen as president by an electoral college consisting of members of both houses of Parliament on 24 September 1976, which is now celebrated as Republic Day.
President of Trinidad and Tobago
President George Maxwell Richards (right) meeting with the Vice President of India Bhairon Singh Shekhawat (left), 2006
The Red House, the seat of Parliament.
President Sir Ellis Clarke (left) meeting with U.S. President John F Kennedy (right) while serving as Ambassador to the United States, prior to becoming the first president.
Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated 11 kilometres off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and 130 kilometres south of Grenada. It shares maritime boundaries with Barbados to the east, Grenada to the northwest and Venezuela to the south and west. Trinidad and Tobago is generally considered to be part of the West Indies. The island country's capital is Port of Spain, while its largest and most populous municipality is Chaguanas.
Sir Walter Raleigh raiding Spanish settlement in Trinidad in 1595
A medallion showing the capture of Trinidad and Tobago by the British in 1797.
Newly arrived indentured Indian labourers in Trinidad and Tobago.
The Queen on 1953 stamps of Trinidad and Tobago