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This article treats the generic title monarch. For the origins of the word king and its English use, see Germanic king. For other meanings of the word, see Monarch (disambiguation)A monarch is a type of ruler or head of state. The word derives from Greek monos archein, meaning "one ruler", and in ancient Greece it was used to designate an absolute ruler. With time, the word has been succeeded in this meaning by others, like autocrat or dictator, and the word monarch has become a more general term.
Which rulers are considered monarchs today is partially a matter of tradition, so there are no hard and fast rules. There are, however, a number of characteristics that are commonly, though not universally, distinguishing for monarchs:
- Most monarchs hold their office for life, while most other rulers do not. They are usually raised within a royal family where they are taught to expect and obey this "duty." A monarch may chose to resign his position through abdication, though this is a rare and dramatic practice.
- Exceptions to this include the French co-prince of Andorra, who is not appointed for life (he is the French President, elected for a five year period by the French people), but still generally considered a monarch because of the use of a traditionally monarchical title. Similarly, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King) of Malaysia is considered a monarch although only holding the office five years at a time. On the other hand, several life-time dictators around the world have not been considered monarchs.
- Most monarchs are, formally or informally, succeeded upon their death or abdication by members of their own family, usually their eldest child. As a result, most stable monarchies have a long legacy of rule by a single family or bloodline.
- Once again, Malaysia is an exception, as is, for obvious reasons, the Pope (who is considered the monarch of the Vatican City). Also, the practice is not totally uncommon in systems which are not considered monarchical, such as family dictatorships.
- Most monarchs hold titles that are traditional among monarchs (see below). While this is a fairly arbitrary characterstic, it might just be the best distinction between monarchs and non-monarchs at the moment.
MonarchyFor related meanings see also Monarch (disambiguation A monarchy (from the Greek monos archein , meaning "one ruler") is a form of government that has a monarch as Head of State. The distinguishing characteristic of monarchies is that the Head of State ho is the form of governmentA form of government (also referred to as a system of government or a political system is a system composed of various people, institutions and their relations in regard to the governance of a state. Definition There are several definitions of the politic involving a monarch. It can be either absoluteAbsolute monarchy is an idealized form of government, a monarchy where the ruler has the power to rule his or her country and citizens freely with no laws or legally-organized direct opposition telling him or her what to do, although some religious author or constitutionalA constitutional monarchy is a form of government established under a constitutional system which acknowledges a hereditary or elected monarch as head of state. Modern constitutional monarchies usually implement the concept of trias politica, and have the, and constitutional monarchies may even restrict the powers of the monarch to the point where he is little more than a figureheadA figurehead is a person, usually in a political role, who may hold an important title or office yet executes little actual power. Common figureheads include constitutional monarchs, such as the Emperor of Japan, or presidents in parliamentary democracies, which is a common modern practice. The word monarchy can also be used about a countryGeography Politics A country a land or a state is a geographical area and an independent political entity with its own government, administration, laws, often a constitution, police, military, tax rules, and people. All recognized states follow some degre which has such a system. Normally however, such countries identify themselves more narrowly depending on the actual title used by the monarch – e.g. as a kingdom, grand duchyA grand duchy is a form of principality which has a Grand Duke or a Grand Duchess as head of state. An early use of the title was in Grand Duchy of Lithuania (since 14th century), Grand Duchy of Moscow, and also in Tuscany, which became a grand duchy in 1, or principalityPrince Albert of Monaco on the left represents a principality where he wields adminisitrative authority. Prince Charles of Wales represents a titular principality with no administrative authority. A principality is a monarchial feudatory or sovereign stat.
Elective monarchies were once common, although only a very small portion of the population was eligible to vote. As the impact of the feudal system diminished, many monarchs were eventually allowed to introduce hereditary succession, guaranteeing that the title and office will stay within the family. Today, almost all monarchies are hereditary monarchies in which the monarchs come from one royal family with the office of sovereign being passed from one family member to another upon the death or abdication of the incumbent. Contemporary elective monarchies include Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and the Holy See.
A sovereign is the monarch of a sovereign state. Although non-sovereign states have often had monarchs historically (not least within the Holy Roman Empire), all European monarchs since 1918 have been sovereigns. Outside Europe there still exist several monarchs of subnational entities however, most notably in Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates. A more obscure example is the Kings of the French Wallis and Futuna territory. In a few cases a monarch is associated with a particular group (or nation) within a state, such as Te Arikinui Te Atairangikaahu of the Maori (the Maori Queen ) and Osei Tutu II of the Ashanti.
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