Kings and Queens
Monarchial
system of government has been in existence for many centuries now. Rule by a king or queen
is a very old form of government. The first kings whose names we know ruled
thousands of years ago in Mesopotamia and Egypt.
Today, many countries
in Europe still have kings or queens. These countries include England, Belgium,
Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and Sweden. But kings and queens today
have much less power than such rulers once had.
MONARCHY
AND ROYALTY
Rule by a king or queen
is known as monarchy. When a monarch (king or queen) comes to power, we say
that he or she “takes the throne.” A throne is a special chair used by a
monarch on formal occasions.
The ceremony in which
the monarch takes the throne is called a coronation. At the coronation, a crown
is placed on the monarch’s head. Some countries still hold an elaborate
coronation when a new monarch takes the throne. Britain did in 1953, when Queen
Elizabeth II was crowned.
Crown
Kings and queens wear crowns
for fancy occasions as a sign of their power and rank. This crown was worn by
Stephen I, who became the first king of Hungary in 1001. Crowns are usually
made of precious metals, like gold, and decorated with jewels.
Castle in Bavaria
Kings and queens live in
palaces or castles. King Louis II of Bavaria (now part of Germany) had this
fairy-tale castle built in the late 1800s.
Changing of the Guard
Queen Elizabeth II of
Britain lives at Buckingham Palace in London. A colorful ceremony takes place
daily at the palace, when a new group of palace guards comes on duty. This
ceremony, shown here, is called Changing of the Guard.
Prince Charles, Prince
Harry, and Prince William
Prince Charles, left,
is the oldest son of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth. Charles has two sons, Prince
William, right, and Prince Harry, middle. Charles will follow his
mother and become king. William, Charles’s oldest son, will succeed Charles as
king.
Queen Beatrix
Beatrix became queen of
The Netherlands in 1980. She has few powers as queen and appoints a prime
minister to run the government. Today, most kings and queens have little power
to rule.
The word royal is used
to describe people who are related to a monarch. The members of a monarch’s
immediate family are known as the royal family. The son of a king or queen is
called a prince. The daughter is a princess.
PASSING
ON THE CROWN
A monarch has the right
to rule until the end of his or her life. Kings and queens also have the right
to pass on the crown to one of their children, usually the oldest son. The son
who expects to inherit the throne is called the crown prince.
If a king has no sons,
his oldest daughter may take the throne as queen after his death. But most
queens have gotten their title by marrying a king.
A ruling family is known
as a dynasty when it stays in power long enough and many from that family take
the throne. However, sometimes a monarch was not very good. If somebody else
gained enough support, that person could overthrow the monarch and take his or
her place. The newcomer’s family then became the royal family and started a new
dynasty.
KINGS,
EMPERORS, KAISERS, AND TSARS
A king or queen usually
rules a single nation. Throughout history, many monarchs have tried to extend
their rule over other lands. A monarch who rules many lands is sometimes called
an emperor or empress. The territory of an emperor or empress is their empire.
King and Emperor
A king rules his own
country. An emperor rules other lands as well. William I, shown here, was king
of a German land called Prussia. In 1871, many German lands came together to
form a German empire, and William I became emperor of Germany. Germany hasn’t
had an emperor since 1918.
Carl Gustaf of Sweden
Carl XVI Gustaf became
king of Sweden in 1973. Since 1975, Sweden’s king has had no power to govern.
The job of the king or queen is purely ceremonial.
Louis XIV of France
King Louis XIV ruled
France from 1643 to 1715. He believed that his right to rule came from God and
that he could do whatever he liked. He had total control over France and the
French people.
There have been other
names for emperors through history. The rulers of the Roman Empire disliked the
title of emperor. They preferred to be known as caesars after the family name
of one of their early leaders, Julius Caesar. The word caesar became kaiser
in German. Germany’s emperors in the 1800s were known as kaisers. The name tsar
(or czar) for the traditional rulers of Russia also comes from caesar.
ABSOLUTE
MONARCHY
Kings and queens once
ruled with absolute (total) power. Their word was law, and they could do
whatever they liked. Some kings developed the idea that they ruled by “divine
right.” According to this idea, a king had a special relationship with God. He
could therefore rule without interference from anybody else.
CHANGES
IN MONARCHY
Through the years, the
absolute power and divine right of kings was reduced. In time, an elected
president replaced the monarch in many countries. Other countries kept their
monarchs but limited their powers to govern.
The American colonies
were ruled by the king of Britain until the American Revolution (1775-1783)
ended the king's rule over them. In France, the French Revolution (1789-1799)
got rid of the monarchy. In Russia, the monarchy lasted until the Russian
Revolution of 1917. Germany had a monarch until World War I ended in 1918.
Today, the duties of kings and queens in Europe are largely ceremonial.
