There are 43 territories in the world with monarchs, which include kings, princes, sultans and an emperor. However, not all of them have full powers over the nation, as happened in France under Louis XIV, who would have said the famous phrase “I am the State”. This is due to the fact that, today, there are different types of monarchy – or rather, the fact that it is different in each of the territories, with its own particularities. There are, however, five ways of categorizing these governments in a general way.
Data updated until April 2018
hereditary absolute monarchy
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CURRENTLY WITH THIS MODALITY: Saudi Arabia, Brunei, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, Swaziland
In this modality, the monarch holds supreme powers and inherits the office. Brunei, in Southeast Asia, is a sultanate of the genus. Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah has been in government for almost 50 years, but his family has commanded the territory since the 14th century. Most absolute monarchies are in the Middle East
hereditary constitutional monarchy
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CURRENTLY WITH THIS MODALITY: Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Bhutan, Canada, Denmark, Spain, Solomon Islands, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Morocco, Monaco, Norway, New Zealand, Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, United Kingdom, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sweden, Thailand, Tonga, Tuvalu
The real figure is subject to a constitution – even if it is not written. Their powers are more or less limited by law. Elizabeth II is an example: as queen of the United Kingdom, Australia and other nations, her role is not to govern, as that job falls to the prime ministers of countries. Even the Queen’s political tasks, such as appointing a prime minister, must follow orders from British ministers.
elective constitutional monarchy
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CURRENTLY WITH THIS MODALITY: Cambodia, Malaysia
The monarch is chosen by the votes of a few powerful people, with a mandate that can be for a determined time or for life. In Malaysia, in Southeast Asia, for example, the head of state is Yang di-Pertuan Agong, a kind of king elected by nine rulers of the Malay states. His term is five years. But who is really in charge is the prime minister and the two legislative houses
Diarchy
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CURRENTLY WITH THIS MODALITY: Andorra
In Andorra, in Europe, which is on the border between Spain and France, two heads of state rule the kingdom as co-princes. They are: the bishop of Urgell, in Catalonia (today, Joan Enric Vives i Sicily, chosen by the pope in 2003) and the president of France (Emmanuel Macron, elected in May of this year). But they are titles that do not guarantee much: power is exercised by the head of government – currently Antoni Martí – and by Parliament, both elected by the people.
Non-hereditary elective absolute monarchy
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CURRENTLY WITH THIS MODALITY: Vatican
The name is strange, but it serves to explain the situation of Vatican City. Pope Francis, when elected to head the Catholic Church, became head of the Holy See, the seat of the religion. However, the Vatican City State, an administrative entity whose system of government is the absolutist monarchy, is subordinate to the Holy See. Thus, Francis is pope and king elected by the College of Cardinals, with full powers
Reader Question – Rogério Barbosa Ferraz Junior, Lins (SP)
SOURCES CIA Factbook; The International Legal Status of the Vatican/Holy See Complex, by John R. Morss