Basically, there are many forms of government when viewed based on the sources of power and the power structure of a particular state.
Referring to this, one type of government is monarchy. This government with monarchical attributes is characterized by being ruled by a king or queen who inherits his position from the meaning of his family which is often referred to as the “royal family”.
As for real examples of forms of power with a monarchy, for example Sweden. Which generally rests on the identity of the cultural elements and the symbolism of the society it represents and thereby embodying that identity within society while also projecting it onto outsiders.
Read Also : Theocratic Government System, Definition and Types and Characteristics
Monarchy
Monarchy is a political system based on undivided sovereignty or the rule of one person. This term applies to countries where the supreme authority is held by the king.
Monarchy itself consists of different but interdependent institutions, namely government and state administration, courts, and various customs on the other hand which provide a social environment for members of the dynasty, their friends, and associated elites.
Definition of Monarchy
Monarchy is a form of government in which total sovereignty is vested in one person, namely the head of state called the king, who holds the position until death or abdication.
In this form of government, the position of king is achieved through hereditary rights of succession (for example, they are relatives, often sons or daughters of a previous king), although there are elective monarchies, i.e. the position of king is obtained after being elected, the papacy is sometimes sometimes called elective monarchy.
There are even hereditary rulers who are not considered kings, such as Dutch stadtholders . Many kings used religious reasons , such as being chosen by God, as justification for their rule.
Read Also : What Does Direct Democracy Mean? Definition and characteristics
Definition of Monarchy According to Experts
The definition of monarchy according to experts, among others:
-
Legal Dictionary
Monarchy is a form of government in which a group, usually a family (referred to as a “dynasty”) rules the country, and a king (head of state) is assigned. The power of kings can vary, and kings can fit into one of three categories. That is;
- Crowned Republican monarchy
- constitutional monarchy
- Monarchy absolutely
History of Monarchy Government System
Historically monarchies entailed not only political organization or financial administrative functions but also “palace society,” a term coined by the German-born 20th-century sociologist Norbert Elias to denote the various groups of nobility associated with dynastic monarchies (or “kingdoms”). ) through a network of personal ties. All such ties are evident in symbolic and ceremonial courtesy.
Monarchy is also the result of the desire of a people, be it urban, tribal, or multi-tribe “people”, to educate a traditional leader who will properly represent its historical achievements and advance its interests.
Example of a monarchy
Examples of countries that apply an absolute monarchy form of government throughout history, for example:
1. Sweden
When Charles XII inherited the throne from his father, King Charles XI, the form of government was referred to as absolute monarchy, but not technically a monarchy. The Swedish king never enjoyed absolute power over the people, and was only allowed to make laws if the country’s nobles, clergy, and peasants, agreed.
In this example of monarchy, the “absolute” nature of Charles’ rule was actually his power to govern free from the interference of the Swedish high nobility, which was a marked departure from the way monarchies had been run in the past. After the death of Charles XII in 1718, monarchical absolutism was blamed for the kingdom’s downfall during the Great Northern War.
Read Also : Democratic Government System, Definition and Characteristics
2. Russia
Peter the Great took power from the Russian nobility and gave it to the Czars, thus making Russia a bureaucracy and a police state (a totalitarian state controlled by a political police force that surreptitiously oversees the activities of its citizens). Consequently, the Russian Czar ruled as absolute monarch until 1905.
Catherine the Great, and later her descendants, developed this absolutism (known as Tsarist autocracy) during her reign. Although Alexander II reformed the system and even established a separate judicial system, Russia did not have a constitution, or a representative assembly until the 1905 Revolution.
Despite the fact that Russia has been deprived of these things for so long, the idea of absolutism is such a part of Russian culture that the Russian Constitution of 1906 still describes the Emperor as absolute ruler.
Apart from Vatican City, Russia is actually the last European country to finally abolish absolutism, making it the only country to do so in the 20th century.
Those were articles that we could present to all readers regarding the meaning of monarchy according to experts, history, and examples of countries that have implemented it. Hopefully it will provide insight and increase knowledge for all.