Curated category
Monarchy
- MonarchyThe word monarch first appeared in the mid-15th century as monark, meaning a supreme governor for life. It comes from the Old French monarche of the 14th…
- Constitutional monarchyIn November 1917, three monarchs gathered in Oslo to discuss their shared role. Gustaf V of Sweden, Haakon VII of Norway, and Christian X of Denmark stood…
- Absolute monarchyIn 1629, King Charles I dissolved the Parliament of England and ruled without it for eleven years. This act marked a clear shift from shared governance to…
- EmpireIn 1976, the Central African Republic declared itself the Central African Empire. This state existed for only three years before reverting to a republic in…
- RegentA regent is a person appointed to execute the office of a monarch temporarily. This role arises when a ruler cannot serve due to illness, absence, or…
- Habsburg monarchyRadbot of Klettgau built Habsburg Castle in the late 10th century. This stone fortress in present-day Switzerland gave the family its name and foundation.
- Enlightened absolutismEnlightened absolutism emerged as a political philosophy during the 18th and early 19th centuries. European absolute monarchs adopted Enlightenment ideas to…
- Absolutism (European history)The word absolutism emerged long after the kings who supposedly wielded it had died. Historians applied the term post-hoc to monarchs before the French…
- Divine right of kingsIn the year 1170, Archbishop Thomas Becket died after being murdered by knights loyal to King Henry II of England. This violent event marked a turning point…
- TetrarchyRoman emperor Diocletian instituted a new system of governance in the late third century to address severe military and administrative crises.
- The CrownLegal scholars Maurice Sunkin and Sebastian Payne once wrote that the nature of the Crown has been taken for granted, in part because it is fundamental.