ðə jˈuːs əvɚ ɹˈɔɪəl sˈaɪfɚɹ ɪnðə kˈɑːmənwˌɛlθ ɹˈɛlmz ɚɹˈɪdʒᵻnˌeɪɾᵻd ɪnðə juːnˈaɪɾᵻd kˈɪŋdəm, wˌɛɹ ðə pˈʌblɪk jˈuːs ʌvðə ɹˈɔɪəl ɪnˈɪʃəlz dˈeɪts æt lˈiːst fɹʌmðɪ ˈɜːli tjˈuːdɚ pˈiəɹɪəd, ænd wʌz sˈɪmpli ðɪ ɪnˈɪʃəl ʌvðə sˈɑːvɚɹˌɪn wɪð, ˈæftɚ hˈɛnɹi ɹˌoʊmən ˈeɪt ɹˈeɪn, ðɪ ɐdˈɪʃən ʌvðə lˈɛɾɚ ˈɑːɹ fɔːɹ ɔːɹ .
The use of a royal cypher in the Commonwealth realms originated in the United Kingdom, where the public use of the royal initials dates at least from the early Tudor period, and was simply the initial of the sovereign with, after Henry VIII's reign, the addition of the letter 'R' for  or .