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Monarchy

  • MonarchyNearly half of independent states were monarchies at the start of the 19th century.
  • Constitutional monarchyNo British monarch has vetoed an Act of Parliament since 1708. Queen Anne blocked the Scottish Militia Bill that March.
  • Absolute monarchyRussia was the last European country to abolish absolute monarchy. Its rule by one king or tsar ended only in 1905.
  • EmpireKorea proclaimed itself an empire in 1897, just before Japan annexed it.
  • RegentIn 2016, a regent took office in Thailand at the age of 96. Prem Tinsulanonda set a record for oldest regent.
  • Habsburg monarchyThe Habsburg monarchy began with a single castle in present-day Switzerland. Its builder was Radbot of Klettgau.
  • Enlightened absolutismEmperor Joseph II summed up his rule in nine words: "Everything for the people, nothing by the people."
  • Absolutism (European history)Louis XIV made nobles live at Versailles to weaken them. Away from home, they depended on the king for status.
  • Divine right of kingsThe divine right of kings is the claim that a monarch answers to God and to nobody on earth. In 1193, Richard I of England gave that claim voice at his trial during the diet at Speyer. He said: "I am born in a rank which recognizes no…
  • TetrarchyTwo Roman emperors retired together on May 1, 305, under Diocletian's Tetrarchy. Its plan soon fell apart.
  • The CrownFor 24 hours in 1936, Edward VIII was still king in the Irish Free State. George VI was already king everywhere else.

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