24 Facts About Monarchy of the United Kingdom

1.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories.

FactSnippet No. 415,707
2.

The Government of the United Kingdom is known as His Majesty's Government.

FactSnippet No. 415,708
3.

From 1649 to 1660, the tradition of monarchy was broken by the republican Commonwealth of England, which followed the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.

FactSnippet No. 415,709
4.

However, a treaty cannot alter the domestic laws of the United Kingdom; an Act of Parliament is necessary in such cases.

FactSnippet No. 415,710
5.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom was killed whilst besieging a castle; John succeeded him.

FactSnippet No. 415,711
6.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom attempted to establish English domination of Scotland.

FactSnippet No. 415,712
7.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom's campaigns conquered much French territory, but by 1374, all the gains had been lost.

FactSnippet No. 415,713
8.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom was wary of allowing his Catholic elder half-sister Mary I to succeed, and therefore drew up a will designating Lady Jane Grey as his heiress.

FactSnippet No. 415,714
9.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom pursued disastrous wars in France and she attempted to return England to Roman Catholicism.

FactSnippet No. 415,715
10.

Early Scottish monarchs did not inherit the Crown directly; instead, the custom of tanistry was followed, where the monarchy alternated between different branches of the House of Alpin.

FactSnippet No. 415,716
11.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom continued to ruthlessly eliminate opposition, and when he died in 1034 he was succeeded by his grandson, Duncan I, instead of a cousin, as had been usual.

FactSnippet No. 415,717
12.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom's forces met with disaster at Flodden Field; the king, many senior noblemen, and hundreds of soldiers were killed.

FactSnippet No. 415,718
13.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom's fled to England, and the Crown went to her infant son James VI, who was brought up as a Protestant.

FactSnippet No. 415,719
14.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom provoked opposition by ruling without Parliament from 1629 to 1640, unilaterally levying taxes and adopting controversial religious policies.

FactSnippet No. 415,720
15.

In 1660, the monarchy was restored and Charles II returned to Britain.

FactSnippet No. 415,721
16.

The Victorian era was marked by great cultural change, technological progress, and the establishment of the United Kingdom as one of the world's foremost powers.

FactSnippet No. 415,722
17.

Monarchy of the United Kingdom thus ceased to be an exclusively British institution, although it is often still referred to as "British" for legal and historical reasons and for convenience.

FactSnippet No. 415,723
18.

The monarch became separately monarch of the United Kingdom, monarch of Canada, monarch of Australia, and so forth.

FactSnippet No. 415,724
19.

Accordingly, Edward announced his intention to abdicate; the Parliaments of the United Kingdom and of other Commonwealth countries granted his request.

FactSnippet No. 415,725
20.

The whole island of Ireland continued to be a part of the United Kingdom until 1922 when what is the Republic of Ireland won independence as the Irish Free State, a separate Dominion within the Commonwealth.

FactSnippet No. 415,726
21.

Present sovereign's full style and title is "Charles the third, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of His other Realms and Territories King, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith".

FactSnippet No. 415,727
22.

The title "Head Monarchy of the United Kingdom Commonwealth" is held by the king personally, and is not vested in the British Crown.

FactSnippet No. 415,728
23.

Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom is "Quarterly, I and IV Gules three lions passant guardant in pale Or [for England]; II Or a lion rampant within a double tressure flory-counter-flory Gules [for Scotland]; III Azure a harp Or stringed Argent [for Ireland]".

FactSnippet No. 415,729
24.

Monarch's official flag in the United Kingdom is the Royal Standard, which depicts the Royal Arms in banner form.

FactSnippet No. 415,730