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History vocabulary · Empires, States and Rulers

Monarchy

Meaning in history, with examples

/ˈmɒnəki/nounCore term

In history, monarchy means: A system of government in which a king, queen, emperor or other hereditary ruler is head of state, or a country governed in this way.

In Turkish: monarşi, krallık

How it is used

Historians distinguish absolute monarchy, where the ruler holds almost unlimited power, from constitutional monarchy, where power is limited by law and parliament. Monarchies are established, restored or abolished; the ruler is a monarch.

Example sentences

  1. France moved from absolute monarchy to a republic in only a few years.

  2. The Ottoman constitution of 1876 introduced a short-lived constitutional monarchy.

Common collocations

  • absolute monarchy
  • constitutional monarchy
  • abolish the monarchy
  • hereditary monarchy
  • restore the monarchy
  • dynastyA series of rulers who come from the same family and pass power from one generation to the next, or the period during which such a family rules.
  • reignThe period during which a king, queen, emperor or sultan rules; as a verb, to rule as a monarch.
  • sovereigntySupreme authority over a territory and its people, including the right to make laws and to govern without control from any outside power.
  • aristocracyThe highest social class in many societies, made up of noble families who usually held inherited titles, land and political influence.
  • abdicateTo give up the throne or another position of supreme power formally, either by choice or under pressure.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Empires, States and Rulers

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