Monarchism

History

Monarchical rule is among the oldest political institutions. The similar form of societal hierarchy known as chiefdom or tribal kingship is prehistoric. Chiefdoms provided the concept of state formation, which started with civilizations such as Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt and the Indus Valley civilization. In some parts of the world, chiefdoms became monarchies.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Enlightenment began. This resulted in new anti-monarchist ideas which resulted in several revolutions such as the 18th century American Revolution and the French Revolution which were both additional steps in the weakening of power of European monarchies.

Africa

Central Africa

Ethiopia

In 1974, one of the world's oldest monarchies was abolished in Ethiopia with the fall of Emperor Haile Selassie.

Asia

China

For most of its history, China was organized into various dynastic states under the rule of hereditary monarchs. Beginning with the establishment of dynastic rule by Yu the Great c. 2070 BC, and ending with the abdication of the Xuantong Emperor in AD 1912, Chinese historiography came to organize itself around the succession of monarchical dynasties. Besides those established by the dominant Han ethnic group or its spiritual Huaxia predecessors, dynasties throughout Chinese history were also founded by non-Han peoples.

Japan

The emperor of Japan or Tennō (天皇; pronounced ), literally "ruler from heaven" or "heavenly sovereign", is the hereditary monarch and head of state of Japan. The Imperial Household Law governs the line of imperial succession. The emperor is personally immune from prosecution and is also recognized as the head of the Shinto religion, which holds the emperor to be the direct descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu. According to tradition, the office of emperor was created in the 7th century BC, but modern scholars believe that the first emperors did not appear until the 5th or 6th centuries AD. During the Kamakura period, from 1185 to 1333, the shōguns were the de facto rulers of Japan, with the emperor and the imperial court acting largely as figureheads. During the subsequent Muromachi and Edo periods, the shōguns remained the de facto rulers, while the emperors exercised little real power. In 1867, shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu stepped down, restoring Emperor Meiji to power. The Meiji Constitution was adopted In 1889, after which the emperor became an active ruler with considerable political power that was shared with the Imperial Diet, although the Emperors exercised less power during the later Taishō and Shōwa periods. After World War II, the 1947 Constitution of Japan was enacted, defining the emperor as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people. The emperor has exercised a purely ceremonial role ever since.

Europe

Austria-Hungary

Following the collapse of Austria-Hungary, the Republic of German-Austria was proclaimed. The Constitutional Assembly of German Austria passed the Habsburg Law, which permanently exiled the Habsburg family from Austria. Despite this, significant support for the Habsburg family persisted in Austria. Following the Anschluss of 1938, the Nazi government suppressed monarchist activities. By the time Nazi rule ended in Austria, support for monarchism had largely evaporated.

France

France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the Kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions.

Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I, King of the Franks (r. 507–511), as the first king of France. However, historians today consider that such a kingdom did not begin until the establishment of West Francia, during the dissolution of the Carolingian Empire in the 800s.

Germany

In 1920s Germany, a number of monarchists gathered around the German National People's Party (founded in 1918), which demanded the return of the Hohenzollern monarchy and an end to the Weimar Republic; the party retained a large base of support until the rise of Nazism in the 1930s, as Adolf Hitler staunchly opposed monarchism.

Italy

The aftermath of World War II saw the return of monarchist and republican rivalry in Italy, where a referendum was held on whether the state should remain a monarchy or become a republic. The republican side won the vote by a narrow margin, and the modern Republic of Italy was created.

Sweden

In Sweden during the so-called Age of Liberty (1719–1772), the actual exercise of power by Swedish monarchs was severely limited and restricted to chairing the sixteen-member Privy Council (riksrådet), where the king had two votes and the casting vote in the event of a tie. The king could not dismiss the councillors, and they could easily outvote him. However, in addition to his constitutional role, the king continued to play a strong symbolic role as the official representative of the state and as the formal guarantor of the independence of the government.

Spain

After the 1931 Spanish local elections, King Alfonso XIII voluntarily left Spain and republicans proclaimed a Second Spanish Republic. After the assassination of opposition leader José Calvo Sotelo in 1936, right-wing forces banded together to overthrow the Republic. During the Spanish Civil War of 1936 to 1939, General Francisco Franco established the basis for the Spanish State (1939–1975). In 1938, the autocratic government of Franco claimed to have reconstituted the Spanish monarchy in absentia (and in this case ultimately yielded to a restoration, in the person of King Juan Carlos).

In 1975, Juan Carlos I became King of Spain and began the Spanish transition to democracy. He abdicated in 2014, and was succeeded by his son Felipe VI.

United Kingdom

In England, royalty ceded power to other groups in a gradual process. In 1215, a group of nobles forced King John to sign Magna Carta, which guaranteed the English barons certain liberties and established that the king's powers were not absolute. King Charles I was executed in 1649, and the Commonwealth of England was established as a republic. Highly unpopular, the republic was ended in 1660, and the monarchy was restored under King Charles II. In 1687–88, the Glorious Revolution and the overthrow of King James II established the principles of constitutional monarchy, which would later be worked out by Locke and other thinkers. However, absolute monarchy, justified by Hobbes in Leviathan (1651), remained a prominent principle elsewhere.

Following the Glorious Revolution, William III and Mary II were established as constitutional monarchs, with less power than their predecessor James II. Since then, royal power has become more ceremonial, with powers such as refusal to assent last exercised in 1708 by Queen Anne. Once part of the United Kingdom (1801–1922), southern Ireland rejected monarchy and became the Republic of Ireland in 1949. Support for a ceremonial monarchy remains high in Britain. Queen Elizabeth II (r. 1952–2022), possessed wide support from the U.K.'s population. The current monarch of Britain is: Charles III. He assumed the throne on September 8th 2022, with the coronation on May 6th 2023.

North America

Costa Rica

The struggle between monarchists and republicans led to the Costa Rican civil war of 1823. Costa Rican monarchists include Joaquín de Oreamuno y Muñoz de la Trinidad, José Santos Lombardo y Alvarado, and José Rafael Gallegos Alvarado. in 1822, Costa Rican monarchists were loyal to Emperor Agustín de Iturbide of the First Mexican Empire.

Honduras

After the independence of the general captaincy of Guatemala from the Spanish empire, Honduras joined the First Mexican Empire for a brief period. These were divided between the annexationists, made up mostly of illustrious Spanish-descendant families and members of the conservative party who supported the idea of being part of an empire, and the liberals who wanted Central America to be a separate nation under a republican system.

Mexico

After obtaining independence from Spain, the First Mexican Empire was established under Emperor Agustín I. His reign lasted less than one year, and he was forcefully deposed. In 1864, the Second Mexican Empire was formed under Emperor Maximilian I. Maximilian's government enjoyed French aid, but opposition from America, and collapsed after three years. Much like Agustín I, Maximilian I was deposed and later executed by his republican enemies. Since 1867, Mexico has not possessed a monarchy.

Today, some Mexican monarchist organizations advocate for Maximilian von Götzen-Iturbide or Carlos Felipe de Habsburgo to be instated as the Emperor of Mexico.

Nicaragua

The miskito ethnic group inhabits part of the Atlantic coast of Honduras and Nicaragua, by the beginning of the 17th century the said ethnic group was reorganized under a single chief known as Ta Uplika, for the reign of his grandson King Oldman I this group had a very close relationship With the English, they managed to turn the Mosquitia coast into an English protectorate that would decline in the 19th century until it completely disappeared in 1894 with the abdication of Robert II.

Currently, the Miskitos who are shot between the two countries have denounced the neglect of their communities and abuses committed by the authorities. As a result of this, in Nicaragua several Miskito people began a movement of separatism from present-day Nicaragua and a re-institution of the monarchy.

United States

After the U.S. declared its independence, the form of government by which it would operate still remained unsettled. At least two of America's Founding Fathers, Alexander Hamilton and Nathaniel Gorham, believed that America should be an independent monarchy. Various proposals to create an American monarchy were considered, including the Prussian scheme which would have made Prince Henry of Prussia king of the United States. Hamilton proposed that the leader of America should be an elected monarch, while Gorham pushed for a hereditary monarchy. U.S. military officer Lewis Nicola also desired for America to be a monarchy, suggesting George Washington accept the crown of America, which he declined. All attempts ultimately failed, and America was founded a Republic.

Since the ratification of the constitution, support for monarchy has possessed a generally low popularity, though it has increased slightly over time. In 1950, 3% of Americans said it would be a good idea for America to possess a royal family, while 93% thought it would be bad. This question was re-asked in 1999, where 11% of Americans answered that in favor of a royal family would be good for the United States and 87% against. A 2013 CNN poll found that 13% of Americans would be open to the United States possessing a royal family again. A 2018 poll asking if America would be better or worse if it possessed a constitutional monarchy had 11% of Americans answering better and 36% answering worse. A 2021 poll by YouGov found that 5% of Americans would consider it a good thing for the United States to have a monarchy (7% support among men and 4% support among women), with 69% answering that it would be a bad thing. In the YouGov poll, African Americans were most likely to answer positively in favor of a monarchy at 10% support. In 2023 another poll was conducted which found 12% of Americans favored monarchy in the United States while 63% remained opposed.

South America

Brazil

From gaining its independence in 1822 until 1889, Brazil was governed as a constitutional monarchy with a branch of the Portuguese Royal Family serving as monarchs. Prior to this period, Brazil had been a royal colony which had also served briefly as the seat of government for the Portuguese Empire following the occupation of that country by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1808. The history of the Empire of Brazil was marked by brief periods of political instability, several wars that Brazil won, and a marked increase in immigration which saw the arrival of both Jews and Protestants who were attracted by Brazil's reputation for religious tolerance. The final decades of the Empire under the reign of Pedro II saw a remarkable period of relative peace both at home and internationally, coupled with dramatic economic expansion, the extension of basic civil rights to most people and the gradual restriction of slavery, culminating in its final abolition in 1888. It is also remembered for its thriving culture and arts. However, Pedro II had little interest in preserving the monarchy and passively accepted its overthrow by a military coup d'état in 1889 resulting in the establishment of a dictatorship known as the First Brazilian Republic.