Amonarchyis a form ofgovernmentin whichsovereigntyis actually or nominally embodied in one or several individual(s) reigning untildeathorabdication. They are called themonarchs.[1]Forms of monarchy differ widely based on the level of legal autonomy the monarch holds in governance, the method of selection of the monarch, and any predetermined limits on the length of their tenure. When the monarch has no or few legal restraints in state and political matters, it is called anabsolute monarchyand is a form ofautocracy. Cases in which the monarch's discretion is formally limited (most common today) are calledconstitutional monarchies. Inhereditary monarchies, the office is passed through inheritance within a family group, whereaselective monarchiesuse some system of voting. Each of these has variations: in some elected monarchies only those of certain pedigrees are eligible, whereas many hereditary monarchies impose requirements regarding the religion, age, gender, mental capacity, and other factors. Occasionally this might create a situation of rival claimants whoselegitimacyis subject to effective election. Finally, there have been cases where the term of a monarchsreignis either fixed in years or continues until certain goals are achieved: an invasion being repulsed, for instance. Thus there are widely divergent structures and traditions defining monarchy.

Richard I of Englandbeing anointed during his coronation inWestminster Abbey, from a 13th-century chronicle.

Monarchy was the most common form of government until the 19th century, but it is no longer prevalent. Where it exists, it is now usually aconstitutional monarchy, in which the monarch retains a unique legal and ceremonial role, but exercises limited or no official political power: under the written or unwritten constitution, others have governing authority. Currently, 44 sovereign nations in the world havemonarchsacting as heads of state, 16 of which areCommonwealth realmsthat recognise QueenElizabeth IIas their head of state. AllEuropean monarchiesare constitutional ones, with the exception of theVatican City, but sovereigns in the smaller states exercise greater political influence than in the larger. The monarchs of Cambodia, Japan, and Malaysia "reign, but do not rule" although there is considerable variation in the degree of authority they wield. Although they reign under constitutions, the monarchs ofBrunei,Oman,Qatar,Saudi ArabiaandSwazilandappear to continue to exercise more political influence than any other single source of authority in their nations, either by constitutional mandate or by tradition.

Contents

[hide] 1Etymology 2History 3Characteristics and role 3.1Powers of a monarch 3.2Person of monarch 3.3Role of monarch 3.4Titles of monarchs 3.5Dependent monarchies 4Succession 4.1Hereditary monarchies 4.2Elective monarchies 5Current monarchies 6See also 7Notes and references 8External linksEtymology[edit]The word "monarch" (Latin:monarcha) comes from theGreek languageword,monrkhs(from monos, "one, singular", andrkh, "to rule" (compare arkhon, "leader, ruler, chief")) which referred to a single, at least nominally absolute ruler. In current usage the wordmonarchyusually refers to a traditional system of hereditary rule, as elective monarchies are rare nowadays.

History[edit]