Barbados ditches Queen Elizabeth to become a republic, declares Rihanna a national hero

Barbados casts the removal of Elizabeth II, who is still the queen of 15 other realms including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and Jamaica, after nearly 400 years.

BRIDGETOWN: Barbados ditched Britain`s Queen Elizabeth as head of state, forging a new republic on Tuesday with its first-ever president and severing its last remaining colonial bonds nearly 400 years after the first English ships arrived at the Caribbean island.

At the strike of midnight, the new republic was born to the cheers of hundreds of people lining Chamberlain Bridge in the capital, Bridgetown. A 21-gun salute fired as the national anthem of Barbados was played over a crowded Heroes Square.