The Governor-General of Pakistan was the representative

Governor-General

A Governor-General, is a vice-regal person of a monarch in an independent realm or a major colonial circonscription. Depending on the political arrangement of the territory, a Governor General can be a governor of high rank, or a principal governor ranking above "ordinary" governors.- Current uses...

 in Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

 of the Crown from the country's independence in 1947. When Pakistan was proclaimed a republic

Republic Day (Pakistan)

Pakistan Day is a national holiday in Pakistan to commemorate the Lahore Resolution of 1940 and also to celebrate the adoption of the first constitution of Pakistan in 1956 during the transition of the Dominion of Pakistan to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan of 23 March 1956.-History:Pakistan had...

 in 1956 the connection with the British monarchy

British monarchy

The monarchy of the United Kingdom is the constitutional monarchy of the United Kingdom and its overseas territories. The present monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, has reigned since 6 February 1952. She and her immediate family undertake various official, ceremonial and representational duties...

 ended, and the office of Governor-General was abolished.

History

Pakistan gained independence from the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 in 1947. The independence legislation

Indian Independence Act 1947

The Indian Independence Act 1947 was as an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that partitioned British India into the two new independent dominions of India and Pakistan...

 created the office of Governor-General to represent the Crown in the new dominion

Dominion

A dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of autonomous polities that were nominally under British sovereignty, constituting the British Empire and British Commonwealth, beginning in the latter part of the 19th century. They have included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland,...

. While a post-independence constitution was being drafted by the Constituent Assembly

Constituent Assembly of Pakistan

The Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was formed to write Pakistan's constitution, and serve as its first parliament. It first convened on 11 August 1947, before the end of British rule on August 15, 1947. Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was the first President of this Assembly until his death on...

, the new country continued to be governed in accordance with a modified version of the Government of India Act 1935

Government of India Act 1935

The Government of India Act 1935 was originally passed in August 1935 , and is said to have been the longest Act of Parliament ever enacted by that time. Because of its length, the Act was retroactively split by the Government of India Act 1935 into two separate Acts:# The Government of India...

, with the Governor-General of Pakistan carrying out certain functions previously performed by the Governor-General of India

Governor-General of India

The Governor-General of India was the head of the British administration in India, and later, after Indian independence, the representative of the monarch and de facto head of state. The office was created in 1773, with the title of Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William...

, such as giving formal assent

Royal Assent

The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...

 to legislation, etc. The Governor-General was appointed upon the formal advice of the Prime Minister of Pakistan

Prime Minister of Pakistan

The Prime Minister of Pakistan , is the Head of Government of Pakistan who is designated to exercise as the country's Chief Executive. By the Constitution of Pakistan, Pakistan has the parliamentary democratic system of government...

.

Upon Pakistan's independence Jinnah continued to dominate government until his death in 1948; his successors as Governor-General, particularly Malik Ghulam Muhammad, continued to exercise a more powerful role than in other Commonwealth realm

Commonwealth Realm

A Commonwealth realm is a sovereign state within the Commonwealth of Nations that has Elizabeth II as its monarch and head of state. The sixteen current realms have a combined land area of 18.8 million km² , and a population of 134 million, of which all, except about two million, live in the six...

s, in particular dismissing several Prime Ministers.

The office of Governor-General was replaced by the office of President of Pakistan

President of Pakistan

The President of Pakistan is the head of state, as well as figurehead, of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Recently passed an XVIII Amendment , Pakistan has a parliamentary democratic system of government. According to the Constitution, the President is chosen by the Electoral College to serve a...

 when Pakistan became a republic in 1956; the then Governor-General, Iskander Mirza, became Pakistan's first President.

List of office-holders

Name		Portrait	Start of term	End of term	Political party
1	Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah was a Muslim lawyer, politician, statesman and the founder of Pakistan. He is popularly and officially known in Pakistan as Quaid-e-Azam and Baba-e-Qaum ....   (1876–1948)		15 August 1947	11 September 1948	Muslim League Muslim League (Pakistan) Muslim League was the original successor of All India Muslim League that led the Pakistan Movement achieving an independent nation. After formation of Pakistan, the party was renamed to Muslim League which came to an end soon after Qaid-e-Azam's death on the first marshal law in 1958.-History:On...
2	Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin Khawaja Nazimuddin Hajji Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin, KCIE , was the second Governor-General of Pakistan, and later the second Prime Minister of Pakistan as well.-Early life:... (1894–1964)		14 September 1948	17 October 1951	Muslim League Muslim League (Pakistan) Muslim League was the original successor of All India Muslim League that led the Pakistan Movement achieving an independent nation. After formation of Pakistan, the party was renamed to Muslim League which came to an end soon after Qaid-e-Azam's death on the first marshal law in 1958.-History:On...
3	Malik Ghulam Muhammad (1895–1956)		17 October 1951	6 October 1955	None
4	Iskander Mirza (1899–1969)		6 October 1955	23 March 1956	Republican Party Republican Party (Pakistan) The Pakistani Republican Party was formed in October 1955, by a break away faction of the Muslim League and other politicians supporting the creation of the West Pakistan province, on the instigation of key leaders in the military and civil service....