definition of monarche?

Answer 1

A "Monarch" is a person who reigns over a state or a territory

A "Monarchy" is the form of government of which the Monarch rules

If you would like to read the details:

http://www.answers.com/monarch
http://www.answers.com/monarchy

Answer 2

A monarchy is a form of government that has a monarch as Head of State. A monarch is a type of ruler or head of state. Monarchs almost always inherit their titles and are rulers for life, that is, they have no term limit.

Answer 3

MONARCH
One who reigns over a state or territory, usually for life and by hereditary right, especially:
A sole and absolute ruler.
A sovereign, such as a king or empress, often with constitutionally limited authority: a constitutional monarch.
One that commands or rules: “I am monarch of all I survey” (William Cowper).
One that surpasses others in power or preeminence: “Mont Blanc is the monarch of the mountains” (Byron).
A monarch butterfly.

Answer 4

A monarch is a person who rules over a state or territory for their entire life, or until abdication, who becomes a monarch usually through hereditary right. They can be elected, e.g. the Pope who is chosen by a group of Cardinals.

Answer 5

monarch

n 1: a nation's ruler or head of state usually by hereditary right [syn: sovereign, crowned head] 2: large migratory American butterfly having deep orange wings with black and white markings; the larvae feed on milkweed [syn: monarch butterfly, milkweed butterfly, Danaus plexippus]

Answer 6

The simple definition is a government who's head of state is a king or queen, who believes that they have been ordained by God to rule.

Answer 7

Love the smell of plagiarism in the morn-"ings"...

Answer 8

I don't think that is the right spelling; is monarchy, and that is a kingdom

Answer 9

the ruler of the achey brakey heart.

Answer 10

A monarch (see sovereign) is a type of ruler or head of state. Monarchs almost always inherit their titles and are rulers for life, that is, they have no term limit. Historically monarchs have been more or less absolute rulers. Modern monarchs are often figureheads with little power. However, there are others with substantial or absolute power. Monarchs usually represent a larger monarchical system which has established rules and customs regarding succession, duties, and powers. A nation ruled by a monarch is called a monarchy.

The word "monarch" derives from Greek monos archein, meaning "one ruler," and referred to an absolute ruler in ancient Greece. With time, the word has been succeeded in this meaning by others, like autocrat or dictator, and the word monarch in modern usage almost always refers to a traditional system of hereditary rulership (but see the discussion on elective monarchies below).

Contents [hide]
1 Possible definitions of the term
2 Different types of monarchs
3 European monarchical titles
3.1 Monarchical titles in use by non-monarchs
4 Other monarchical titles
4.1 By region
4.2 General monarch titles
5 Succession
6 Current monarchs
7 See also
8 External links



[edit]
Possible definitions of the 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. A monarch may choose 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. (Though, a purist might regard Andorra as a diarchy.) 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 raised within a royal family where they are taught to expect and obey their future "duties," and they are, formally or informally, succeeded upon their death or abdication by members of their own family, usually their eldest son or 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 the Vatican City (the Pope bears the title "Sovereign of the State 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 characteristic, it might just be the best distinction between monarchs and non-monarchs at the moment.
[edit]
Different types of monarchs
Monarchy is the form of government involving a monarch. It can be either absolute or constitutional, and constitutional monarchies may even restrict the powers of the monarch to the point where he or she is little more than a near-powerless figurehead. The word monarchy can also be used about a country 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 duchy, or principality.

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. Existing elective monarchies include Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and the Holy See. The former system of the election of the doge in Venice is also widely known.

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 that of 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 Māori (the Māori Queen) and Osei Tutu II of the Ashanti.

[edit]
European monarchical titles
In Europe, a monarch may traditionally bear any of several titles. Each of these titles has a male and female version. The female versions are used not only in the case that the monarch is female, but also for wives of monarchs (when there is need to distinguish between the two cases, terms like Queen regnant and Queen consort are used). The converse is not true however: the husband of a queen regnant is not automatically a king (e.g. the Duke of Edinburgh is not King Philip of the United Kingdom).

There is an urban legend that female rulers are a peculiarly modern phenomenon and that this has led to more frequent use of the gender-neutral word monarch. In fact, the historical record and also known facts about many pre-historical cases show that there have been many female rulers throughout the past in a wide variety of cultures. Some pre-historical agricultural societies appear to have started with female monarchs and only later changed to succession by males.

The normal monarch title in Europe – i.e., the one used if the monarch has no higher title – is Prince (counterpart Princess), by convention. It was a common title within the Holy Roman Empire, along with a number of higher titles listed below. Such titles were granted by the Emperor, while the titulation of rulers of sovereign states was generally left to the discretion of themselves, most often choosing King (counterpart Queen). Such titulations could cause diplomatic problems, and especially the elevation to Emperor (counterpart Empress) was seen as an offensive action. During the 19th and 20th centuries most small monarchies in Europe disappeared to form larger entities, and so King has become the most common title today for male rulers, and Queen for female rulers.

Title Female counterpart Realm Latin Examples
Pope n/a* Papacy Papa Monarch of the Papal States and later Sovereign of the State of Vatican City; considered senior to Emperors in diplomatic relations
Emperor Empress Empire Imperator Roman Empire, Byzantine Empire, Holy Roman Empire, Russia (Tsar), France, Austria, Brazil, German Empire (none left in Europe after 1918), Empress of India (ceased to be used after 1947 when India was granted independence from the British Empire). The Japanese monarchy is now the only monarchy to still use the title.
King Queen Kingdom Rex Common in larger sovereign states
Viceroy Vicereine Viceroyalty Historical: Spanish Empire (Peru, New Spain), Portuguese Empire (India, Brazil), British Empire
Grand Duke Grand Duchess Grand duchy Magnus Dux Today: Luxembourg. Historical: Lithuania, Baden, Finland, Tuscany et al.
Archduke Archduchess Archduchy Arci Dux Historical: Unique only in Austria, Archduchy of Austria. Title used for member of the Habsburg dynasty.
Prince Princess Principality, Princely state Princeps Today: Monaco, Liechtenstein
Duke Duchess Duchy Dux
Count Countess County Comes
Baron Baroness Barony Baro There are normal baronies and sovereign baronies. A sovereign barony can be compared with a principality, however, this is an historical exception. Sovereign barons no longer have a sovereign barony, but only the title and style.

*Since the pope is Bishop of Rome, a celibate office forbidden to women, there is no female equivalent. Legends of female popes (see Pope Joan) refer to them as "pope." Some European languages have a feminine form of the word pope, such as the Italian papessa (to papa) or French papesse (to pape) or German Päpstin (to Papst) or English Popess, used, among other things, for the High Priestess tarot card.

Note that some of these titles have several meanings and do not necessarily designate a monarch. A Prince can be a person of royal blood (some languages uphold this distinction, see Fürst). A Duke can be a British peer. In Imperial Russia, a Grand Duke was a son or grand-son of the Tsar. Holders of titles in these alternative meanings did not enjoy the same status as actual monarchs of the same title.

Within the Holy Roman Empire, there were even more titles that were occasionally used for monarchs although they were normally noble; Margrave, Count Palatine, Landgrave. An actual monarch with such low titles still was regarded more important than a noble Duke.

Today, there are seven kingdoms, one grand duchy, one papacy, and two principalities in Europe, excluding the peculiar case of Andorra.

[edit]
Monarchical titles in use by non-monarchs
It is not uncommon that people who are not generally seen as monarchs nevertheless use monarchical titles. There are four cases of this:

Claiming an existing title, challenging the current holder. This has been very common historically. For centuries, the British monarch used, among his other titles, the title King of France, despite the fact that he had no authority over French territory since the fifteenth century. There have also been numerous antipopes.
Retaining the title of an extinct monarchy. This can be coupled with a claim that the monarchy was in fact never, or should never have been, extinct. An example of the first case is the Prince of Seborga. Examples of the second case are several deposed monarchs or otherwise pretenders to thrones of abolished monarchies, e.g., Leka, Crown Prince of Albania who is styled by some as the "King of Albania." Retaining the title of an extinct monarchy can, however, be totally free of claims of sovereignty, for example it was customary of numerous European Monarchies to include "King of Jerusalem" in their full titles. When it comes to deposed monarchs, it is customary to continue the usage of their monarchical title (e.g., Constantine II, King of the Hellenes) as a courtesy title, not a constitutional office, for the duration of their lifetime. However the title then dies with them and cannot be used by anyone else unless the crown is restored constitutionally. (Some republicans take offense at this custom, in spite of the fact that the same courtesy is often given to former republican heads of state too – a former U.S. president is usually styled "Mr. President" for the rest of his life.) Monarchs who have freely abdicated lose their right to use their former title. However where a monarch abdicated under duress (e.g., Michael I of Romania), it is customary to see the abdication as invalid and to treat them as deposed monarchs entitled to use their monarchical style for their lifetime.
Inventing a new title. This is common by founders of micronations, and also may or may not come with a claim of sovereignty. When it does, it is disregarded by state leaders. A notable example is Paddy Roy Bates, styling himself the "Prince of Sealand," but not recognized as such by any national government, thus failing at least the constitutive condition for statehood (see Sealand for a fuller discussion of his claims).
[edit]
Other monarchical titles
In China, "king" is the usual translation for the term wang 王, which designated the sovereign before the Qin dynasty and during the Ten Kingdoms period. During the early Han dynasty, China had a number of small kingdoms, each about the size of a county and subordinate to the Emperor of China.

When a difference exists, male titles are placed to the left and female titles are placed to the right of the slash.

[edit]
By region
Africa
Chieftain - Leader of a "primitive" people
Pharaoh - early Egypt
Negus - Ethiopia
Oba - Yoruba people of Nigeria
Eze - Igbo people of Nigeria
Kabaka - Baganda people of Buganda in Uganda
Almamy - Fulani people of west africa
Omukama - Bunyoro, title of some kings in Uganda
Americas
Cacique - Aboriginal Hispaniola and Borinquen
Hueyi Tlatoani - Aztec Empire
Ajaw - Maya
Sapa Inca - Tahuantinsuyu (Inca Empire)
Morubixaba - Tupi tribes
King - Colonial America (ie: King George III)
Sha-quan- King of the world used in America indian tribes
Asia
Druk Gyalpo —heriditary title given to the king of Bhutan
Chogyal — "Divine Ruler" — ruled Sikkim till 1975
Hwangje - States that unified Korea
Wang - States of Korea that do not have control over all of Korea
Badshah - India (emperor)
Huangdi - Imperial China
Maharaja/Maharani - India
Nawab, Wali - Muslim rulers of principalities or princes under Mughal (Mogul) or British Indian Empires
Nizam - Hyderabad, India
Susuhanan - the Indonesian princely state of Surakarta until its abolition
Sultan - Aceh, Brunei Darussalam
Meurah -Aceh before Islam
Yang Dipertuan Agong - king of Malaysian Federations, elected each 5 years among the reining monarch in Malaysia.
Sumeramikoto, Okimi - Japan, king
Tenno or Mikado - Japan
Shogun - Japanese military dictator, always a Samurai
Saopha- Shan, king of Shan, today as a part of Myanmar
Wang - pre-Imperial China
Phrabat Somdej Phrachaoyuhua - King of Thailand (Siam), the title literally means "The Greatest Lord whose feet are on the heads (of his subjects)"
Europe
Arqa / Thagavor - Armenian king
Germanic king
Βασιλεύς- Greek, king
Vezér - Ancient Hungarian
Fejedelem - Ancient/Medieval Hungarian
Vojvod (Serbian) / Vajda (Hungarian) - Serbian / Hungarian / Romany Title
Domn (in Romanian) / Gospodar (in Old Slavonian) - Medieval Romania (Moldova, Wallachia)
Rí, Rúirí, Rí Rúireach and Ard Rí - king, local overking, regional king, and High King in pre-Norman Ireland
Kniaz' / Knyaginya (generally translated as "prince") - Kievan Rus'
Tsar / Tsaritsa - Imperial Russia
Kunigaikshtis (Kunigaikštis) - Lithuanian, duke as in Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
Middle East
Bey
Caliph - Islamic holy title, supreme leader or vicar of prophet
Emir - Arabic holy title, prince
Khan - Mongol Emperor or Turkish, Afghan, Pashtun or other Central Asian chieftain
Malik/Malika - Arabic leader, king
Mirza - Title of Persian, North African, or Turkish rulers, later adopted through persian influence in the mughal empire
Melekh/Malkah - Jewish kings of the Kingdoms of Judah and Israel
Padishah - Persia, Ottoman Empire, Moghuls, emperor, highest monarch
Pharaoh - ancient Egypt
Shah - Persia/Iran, Afghanistan, king
Shahenshah - Persia/Iran, "King of Kings" or emperor
Shaikh - Arabic leader, prince
Sultan/Sultana - Arabic King, Majesty
Oceania
Chieftain - Leader of a "primitive" people
King - there were/are also kings in Oceania (i.e. Tonga,Wallis and Futuna, Nauru, Tonga)
Houeiki - Chief status in the Tongan traditional system.
[edit]
General monarch titles
Autocrat - General term for absolute monarch.
Emperor/Empress - Empire
Grand Duke/Grand Duchess - Grand Duchy
King/Queen - Kingdom
Prince/Princess - Sovereign Principality
Sovereign Duke/Count/Baron - Sovereign Duchy/County/Barony - (Grand)Children have the title Princely-{title}, like Princely-Lord
[edit]
Succession
Succession from one monarch to another varies from country to country. Traditionally, hereditary succession within members of one family has been most common. The usual hereditary succession is based on some cognatic principles and on seniority, though sometimes merit has played a part. Thus, the most common hereditary system in feudal Europe was based on cognatic primogeniture, where a lord was succeeded by his eldest son, and failing sons, by either daughters or by sons of daughters. The system of tanistry was semi-elective and gave weight also to merits and capability. The Quasi-Salic succession provided firstly for male members of the family to succeed, and secondarily males descended from female lines. In most feudal fiefs, females (such as daughters and sisters) were allowed to succeed, should the male line fail, but usually the husband of the heiress became the real lord and most often also received the title, jure uxoris. Great Britain and Spain today continue this model of succession law, in the form of cognatic primogeniture. In more complex medieval cases, the sometimes conflicting principles of proximity and primogeniture battled, and outcomes could have been idiosyncratic.

As the average life span among the nobility increased (thanks to lords limiting their personal participation in dangerous battles, and generally improved sustenance and living conditions among the wealthy), an eldest son was more likely to reach majority age before the death of his father, and primogeniture became increasingly favoured over proximity, tanistry, seniority and election.

Later, when lands were strictly divided among noble families and tended to remain fixed, agnatic primogeniture (practically the same as Salic Law) became more usual: the succession would go to the eldest son of the monarch, or, if the monarch had no sons, the throne would pass to the nearest male relative through the male line.

In some countries however, inheritance through the female line was never wholly abandoned, so that if the monarch had no sons, the throne would pass to the eldest daughter and to her posterity. (This, cognatic primogeniture, was the rule that let Elizabeth II become Queen.)

In 1980, Sweden became the first European monarchy to abolish the preference for males altogether, declaring equal primogeniture or full cognatic primogeniture, so that the eldest child of the monarch, whether male or female, now ascends to the throne. Other kingdoms (Norway in 1990, Belgium in 1991 and the Netherlands) have since followed suit.

In some monarchies, such as Saudi Arabia, succession to the throne usually first passes to the monarch's next eldest brother, and only after that to the monarch's children (agnatic seniority). In some other monarchies (e.g. Jordan), the monarch chooses who will be his successor, who need not necessarily be his eldest son.

[edit]
Current monarchs
NOTE: The table comprises all sovereign monarchs of the world today, but is severely incomplete with regard to the non-sovereign monarchs.

Name Born Title Since / Between Succession
Norodom Sihanouk (abdicated) 1922 King of Cambodia 1941-1955, 1993-2004 Election by 9-member "Throne Council" Norodom Sihamoni
Bhumibol Adulyadej 1927 King of Thailand 1946 Maha Vajiralongkorn
Michael I (deposed) 1921 King of Romania 1927-1930, 1940-1947 Hereditary Princess Margarita
Elizabeth II 1926 Queen of Antigua and Barbuda
Queen of Australia
Queen of the Bahamas
Queen of Barbados
Queen of Belize
Queen of Canada
Queen of Grenada
Queen of Jamaica
Queen of New Zealand
Queen of Papua New Guinea
Queen of Saint Kitts and Nevis
Queen of Saint Lucia
Queen of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Queen of the Solomon Islands
Queen of Tuvalu
Queen of the United Kingdom

Paramount Chief of the Great Council of Chiefs (fiji)
Duke of Lancaster
Duke of Normandy
Lord of Mann
Defender of the faith
Head of the Commonwealth of Nations 1952 Cognatic primogeniture The Prince of Wales
Tunku Abdul Halim 1924 Sultan of Kedah (in Malaysia) 1958 Hereditary
Fuad II(deposed) 1952 King of Egypt 1953 Hereditary Prince Muhammad Ali
Malietoa Tanumafili II 1913 Paramount Chief of Samoa 1962 Election by the Fono
Constantine II (deposed) 1940 King of Greece 1964 - 1974 Equal primogeniture Crown Prince Pavlos
Taufa'ahau Tupou IV 1918 King of Tonga 1965 Hereditary The Tupoutoʻa
Hassanal Bolkiah 1946 Sultan of Brunei 1967 Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah Bolkiah
Goodwill Zwelethini 1948 King of the Zulus (in South Africa) 1968
Qaboos 1940 Sultan of Oman 1970
Jigme Singye Wangchuk 1955 King of Bhutan 1972 Crown Prince of Bhutan
Margrethe II 1940 Queen of Denmark 1972 Cognatic primogeniture Crown Prince Frederik
Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani (deposed) 1930 or 1932 Emir of Qatar 1972 - 1995 Hamad bin Khalifa
Carl XVI Gustaf 1946 King of Sweden 1973 Equal primogeniture Crown Princess Victoria
Ahmad Shah 1930 Sultan of Pahang (in Malaysia) 1974 Hereditary
Hamad ibn Muhammad ash-Sharqi 1949 Emir of Fujairah (one of the United Arab Emirates) 1974
Juan Carlos I 1938 King of Spain
HONORARY TITLES
King of Jerusalem
King of Castile and Leon
King of Aragon
King of Navarra
King of Valencia
Count of Barcelona
King of Jaen
King of Murcia
King of Toledo
King of Granada 1975 Hereditary The Prince of Asturias
Ismail Petra Sultan of Kelantan (in Malaysia) 1979 Hereditary
Beatrix 1938 Queen of the Kingdom of the Netherlands 1980 Equal primogeniture The Prince of Orange
Alhaji Muhammadu Kabir Usman ? Emir of Katsina (in Nigeria) 1981
Rashid ibn Ahmad Al Mu'alla 1930 Emir of Umm al-Qaiwain (one of the United Arab Emirates) 1981
Iskandar 1932 Sultan of Johor (in Malaysia) 1981 Hereditary
Humayd ibn Rashid Al Nuaimi 1931 Emir of Ajman (one of the United Arab Emirates) 1981
Mswati III 1968 King of Swaziland 1982
Sultan III ibn Muhammad al-Qasimi 1939 Emir of Sharjah (one of the United Arab Emirates) 1987
Andrew Bertie 1929 Prince Great Master of the Sovereign Order of Malta 1988 Election by a council
Hans-Adam II 1945 Prince of Liechtenstein 1989 Hereditary Hereditary Prince Alois
Akihito 1933 Emperor of Japan 1989 Crown Prince Naruhito
Harald V 1937 King of Norway 1991 Equal primogeniture Crown Prince Haakon Magnus
Muwenda Mutebi 1955 King of Buganda (in Uganda) 1993
Albert II 1934 King of the Belgians 1993 Equal primogeniture The Duke of Brabant
Solomon Gafabusa Iguru 1949 King of Bunyoro-Kitara (in Uganda) 1994
Jacques Chirac 1932 French Co-prince of Andorra 1995 Election by the French people (term ends in 2007) None
Hamad bin Khalifa 1950 Emir of Qatar 1995 Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani
Letsie III 1963 King of Lesotho 1996
Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Sultan of Terengganu (in Malaysia) 1998 Hereditary
Abdullah II 1962 King of Jordan 1999 Choice by predecessor Prince Hussein
Mohammed VI 1963 King of Morocco 1999 Prince Moulay Hassan
Henri 1955 Grand Duke of Luxembourg 2000 Agnatic primogeniture Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume
Sharafuddin Idris Shah Sultan of Selangor (in Malaysia) 2001 Hereditary
Joan Enric Vives Sicília 1949 Episcopal Co-prince of Andorra 2001 Appointed None
Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin 1943 Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King of Malaysia) 2001 Election among local monarchs The Sultan of Terengganu, if rotation is upheld
Raja of Perlis (in Malaysia) 2000 Hereditary
Gyanendra 1947 King of Nepal 2001 Crown Prince Paras
Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifah 1950 King of Bahrain 2002 Shaikh Salman
Norodom Sihamoni 1953 King of Cambodia 2004 Election by 9-member "throne council"
Tomasi Kulimoetoke II ,
Soane Patita Maituku , Visesio Moeliku ,
1918 Lavelua of Wallis and Futuna
(a French territory in the Pacific Ocean)
2004 3 traditional monarchs of Wallis and Futuna. Chosen by tribe commission - official ruler is the Administrator-Superior of Wallis and Futuna and the President of the Territorial Assembly of Wallis and Futuna
Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahayan 1948 Emir of Abu Dhabi, President and Sheikh of United Arab Emirates 2004
Albert II of Monaco 1958 Prince of Monaco 2005 Primogeniture Princess Caroline of Monaco
Pope Benedict XVI 1927 Pope (Sovereign of the State of Vatican City) 2005 Election by College of Cardinals Election by College of Cardinals upon death
Abdullah 1924 King of Saudi Arabia 2005 Election by family Crown Prince Sultan
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum 1949 Emir of Dubai (one of the United Arab Emirates) 2006
Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah 1929 Emir of Kuwait 2006
[edit]
See also