Editing Absolute monarchy

{{inline citations|date=May 2025}}{{short description|Form of government in which the monarch has absolute power}}
{{Original research|date=September 2020}}
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| image2            = Haitham bin Tariq Al Said in 2024 ( هَيْثَم بْن طَارِق آل سَعِيد ) (cropped).jpg
| footer            = [[Salman of Saudi Arabia|King Salman bin Abdulaziz]] and [[Haitham bin Tariq|Sultan Haitham bin Tariq]] are the current absolute monarchs of [[Saudi Arabia]] and [[Oman]], respectively.
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{{Monarchism|expanded = types}}
{{Basic forms of government}}'''Absolute monarchy'''<ref>{{cite book |last1=Goldie |first1=Mark |last2=Wokler |first2=Robert |author-link2=Robert Wokler |date=2006-08-31 |title=The Cambridge History of Eighteenth-Century Political Thought |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=9780521374224 |page=523 |chapter=Philosophical kingship and enlightened despotism |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eFNHyh9WY3AC&pg=PA523 |access-date=13 January 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Leopardi Giroux |title=Zibaldone |date=16 July 2013 |isbn=978-0374296827 |page=1438 |publisher=Farrar, Straus and Giroux |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xzCpxEYO6JwC&pg=PA1438}}</ref> is a form of [[monarchy]] in which the sovereign is the sole source of political power, unconstrained by [[Constitutional monarchy|constitutions]], [[Legislature|legislatures]] or other checks on their authority.<ref name="Harris 2009">{{Cite book |last=Harris |first=Nathanial |year=2009 |title=Systems of Government Monarchy |publisher=Evans Brothers |isbn=978-0-237-53932-0 |lang=en |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o5SKJanyblIC}}</ref> 

The absolutist system of government saw its high point in Europe during the [[Absolutism (European history)|16th and 17th century]], associated with a form of rule unconstrained by the former checks of [[feudalism]], embodied by figures such as [[Louis XIV|Louis XIV of France, the "Sun King"]]. Attempting to establish an absolutist government along continental lines, [[Charles I of England]] viewed [[Parliament of England|Parliament]] as unnecessary, which excess would ultimately lead to the [[English Civil War]] (1642–1651) and [[Execution of Charles I|his execution]]. Absolutism declined substantially, first following the [[French Revolution]], and later after [[World War I]], both of which led to the popularization of modes of government based on the notion of [[popular sovereignty]]. Nonetheless, it provided an ideological foundation for the newer political theories and movements that emerged to oppose liberal democracy, such as [[Legitimists|Legitimism]] and [[Carlism]] in the early 19th century, or "[[integral nationalism]]" in the early 20th century.

Absolute monarchies include [[Brunei]], [[Eswatini]],<ref name="swazi-abs">{{cite news|title=Swaziland profile|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14095303|work=BBC News|date=2018-09-03|access-date=2018-07-21|archive-date=2023-09-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230915104642/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14095303|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Oman]],<ref name="oman-abs">{{cite news |title=Q&A: Elections to Oman's consultative Council |date=2011-10-13 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-15288960 |access-date=2018-07-21 |archive-date=2020-01-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200128112015/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-15288960 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Saudi Arabia]],<ref name="Cavendish78" /> [[Vatican City]],<ref name="Vatican city">{{cite web |title=Organi dello Stato |trans-title=State Departments |publisher=[[Vatican State]] |website=vaticanstate.va |url=http://www.vaticanstate.va/content/vaticanstate/en/stato-e-governo/organi-dello-stato.html |access-date=2014-01-25 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102165340/http://www.vaticanstate.va/content/vaticanstate/en/stato-e-governo/organi-dello-stato.html |archive-date=2013-11-02}}<br />
{{cite web |title=State Departments  |publisher=[[Vatican State]] |website=vaticanstate.va |url=https://www.vaticanstate.va/en/state-government/state-departments/state-departments-1.html |access-date=2019-09-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411154311/https://www.vaticanstate.va/en/state-government/state-departments/state-departments-1.html |archive-date=2020-04-11}}</ref> and the individual emirates composing the [[United Arab Emirates]], which itself is a [[federation]] of such monarchies – a [[federal monarchy]].<ref name="qat-abs">{{cite news |last1=Stephens |first1=Michael |date=2013-01-07 |title=Qatar: Regional backwater to global player |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20890765 |access-date=2018-07-21 |archive-date=2023-06-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230601164832/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20890765 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=:0>{{cite news |title=Vatican to emirates, monarchs keep the reins in modern world |newspaper=[[The Times of India]] |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/Vatican-to-Emirates-monarchs-keep-the-reins-in-modern-world/articleshow/8139118.cms |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016094408/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-05-02/education/29495629_1_monarchy-absolute-power-head |archive-date=2013-10-16}}</ref> Though absolute monarchies are sometimes supported by legal documents, they are distinct from [[constitutional monarchies]], in which the authority of the monarch is restricted (e.g. by legislature or unwritten customs) or balanced by that of other officials, such as a [[prime minister]], as is in the case of the [[United Kingdom]], or the [[Nordic countries]].<ref name="Harris 2009"/>

Absolute monarchies are similar to but should not be confused with hereditary [[Republicanism|republican]] [[dictatorships]] such as [[North Korea]] or [[Ba'athist Syria]].

==Historical examples of absolute monarchies==
{{Systems of government}}

=== Outside Europe ===
In the [[Ottoman Empire]], the [[Sultan]] wielded absolute power over the state and was considered a [[Padishah]] meaning "Great King" by his people. Many sultans wielded absolute power through heavenly mandates reflected in their titles, such as "Shadow of God on Earth". In [[ancient Mesopotamia]], many rulers of [[Assyria]], [[Babylonia]] and [[Sumer]] were absolute monarchs as well.

Throughout [[Imperial China]], many [[Emperor of China|emperors]] and one empress ([[Wu Zetian]]) wielded absolute power through the [[Mandate of Heaven]]. In [[pre-Columbian America]], the [[Inca Empire]] was ruled by a [[Sapa Inca]], who was considered the son of [[Inti]], the sun god and absolute ruler over the people and nation. Korea under the [[Joseon dynasty]]<ref>{{cite book |first=Sang-hun |last=Choi |date=27 October 2017 |title=Interior Space and Furniture of Joseon Upper-class Houses |publisher=Ewha Womans University Press |page=16 |quote=Joseon was an absolute monarchy |isbn=9788973007202 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vWNNWVwaUpMC&q=joseon+dynasty+absolute+monarchy&pg=PA16 |via=Google Books |access-date=8 November 2020 |archive-date=7 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407111606/https://books.google.com/books?id=vWNNWVwaUpMC&q=joseon+dynasty+absolute+monarchy&pg=PA16 |url-status=live }}</ref> and short-lived [[Korean Empire|empire]] was also an absolute monarchy.

===Europe===
{{Main|Absolutism (European history)}}
Throughout much of European history, the [[divine right of kings]] was the theological justification for absolute monarchy. Many European monarchs claimed [[Tsarist autocracy|supreme autocratic power]] by divine right, and that their subjects had no rights to limit their power.

Throughout the [[Age of Enlightenment]], the concept of the divine right to power and democratic ideals were given serious merit.

The [[Revolutions of 1848]], known in some countries as the ''Springtime of the Peoples''<ref>{{cite book |author=Merriman, John |year=1996 |title=A History of Modern Europe: From the French Revolution to the present |page=715}}</ref> or the ''Springtime of Nations'', were a series of [[political upheaval]]s throughout [[Europe]] in 1848. It remains the most widespread [[revolutionary wave]] in [[European history]]. By the 19th&nbsp;century, divine right was regarded as an obsolete theory in most countries in the [[Western world]], except in Russia where it was still given credence as the official justification for the Tsar's power until [[February Revolution]] in 1917 and in the [[Vatican City]] where it remains today.

====Kingdoms of England and Scotland====
[[James VI and I]] and his son [[Charles I of England|Charles&nbsp;I]] tried to import the principle of [[divine right of kings|divine right]] into Scotland and England. Charles&nbsp;I's attempt to enforce [[episcopal polity]] on the [[Church of Scotland]] led to rebellion by the [[Covenanter]]s and the [[Bishops' Wars]], then fears that Charles&nbsp;I was attempting to establish absolutist government along European lines was a major cause of the [[English Civil War]], although he did rule this way for 11&nbsp;years starting in 1629, after dissolving the [[Parliament of England]] for a time.<ref>{{cite news |title=Charles I of England |url=https://www.worldhistory.org/Charles_I_of_England/ |access-date=17 April 2023 |work=World History Encyclopedia |archive-date=4 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230904043102/https://www.worldhistory.org/Charles_I_of_England/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Denmark–Norway====
{{Further|Denmark–Norway}}

Absolutism was underpinned by a written constitution for the first time in Europe in 1665 {{langx|da|Kongeloven|lit=[[King's Law]]|label=none}} of [[Denmark–Norway]], which ordered that the Monarch: {{Blockquote|...shall from this day forth be revered and considered the most perfect and supreme person on the Earth by all his subjects, standing above all human laws and having no judge above his person, neither in spiritual nor temporal matters, except God alone.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kongeloven af 1665 |publisher=Danske konger |language=da |url=http://danskekonger.dk/kilder/kongeloven |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330135036/http://danskekonger.dk/kilder/kongeloven |archive-date=2012-03-30}}</ref><ref>A partial English translation of the law can be found in<br/>{{cite journal |first=Ernst |last=Ekman |year=1957 |title=The Danish Royal Law of 1665 |journal=The Journal of Modern History |volume=29 |issue=2 |pages=102–107|doi=10.1086/237987 |s2cid=145652129 }}</ref>}} This law consequently authorized the king to abolish all other centers of power. Most important was the abolition of the [[Rigsraad|Council of the Realm]] in Denmark. Absolute monarchy lasted until [[1814 in Norway]], and [[1848 in Denmark]].

====Habsburgs====
[[File: Anton von Maron 006.png|thumb|left|200px|[[Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor]]]]
{{See|House of Habsburg}}
The House of Habsburg is currently extinct in its male line, due to the death of the childless [[Charles II of Spain]] in 1700. However, the [[House of Hapsburg-Lorraine|House of Habsburg-Lorraine]] still carries the female line of the House of Habsburg.{{cn|date=May 2025}}

The first member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine to rule over the [[Holy Roman Empire]] was [[Joseph II]], a sovereign raised during the Enlightenment. Joseph II [[Serfdom Patent (1781)|extended full legal freedom to serfs]] in 1781. [[Franz Joseph I of Austria]] was [[Emperor of Austria]] from 1848 until his death in 1916 and was succeeded by [[Charles I of Austria]]. Charles I was the last Emperor of Austria and abdicated on 12 November 1918 due to [[Austria-Hungary]] losing [[World War I]].

====Hungary====
{{See|King of Hungary|Kingdom of Hungary}}
{{Expand section|date=August 2021}}

====France====
[[File:Louis XIV of France.jpg|thumb|200px|[[Louis XIV]] of France]]
{{Main|Absolute monarchy in France}}
[[Louis XIV of France]] (1638–1715) is said to have proclaimed {{langx|fr|[[L'état, c'est moi]]!|lit=I am the State!|label=none}}.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.history.com/topics/france/louis-xiv|title=Louis XIV|work=HISTORY|access-date=2018-10-05|language=en}}</ref> Although often criticized for his extravagances, such as the [[Palace of Versailles]], he reigned over France for a long period, some historians consider him an absolute monarch, while some other historians{{who|date=October 2018}} have questioned whether Louis' reign should be considered 'absolute', given the reality of the balance of power between the monarch and the nobility, as well as parliaments.<ref>Mettam, R. ''Power and Faction in Louis XIV's France'', Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1988.</ref>{{Request quotation|date=October 2018}}

The king of France concentrated legislative, executive, and judicial powers in his person. He was the supreme judicial authority. He could condemn people to death without the right of appeal. It was both his duty to punish offenses and stop them from being committed. From his judicial authority followed his power both to make laws and to annul them.<ref>Mousnier, R. ''The Institutions of France under the Absolute Monarchy, 1598-2012 V1.'' Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1979.</ref>

====Prussia====
{{Further|Prussia}}
[[File:Friedrich der Große - Johann Georg Ziesenis - Google Cultural Institute (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|200 px|King [[Frederick the Great|Frederick II]] of Prussia, "the Great"]]
In [[Brandenburg-Prussia]], the concept of absolute monarch took a notable turn from the above with its emphasis on the monarch as the "first servant of the state", but it also echoed many of the important characteristics of absolutism. Prussia was ruled by the [[House of Hohenzollern]] as a [[feudal monarchy]] from 1525 to 1701 and an absolute monarchy from 1701 to 1848, after which it became a [[federalism|federal]] [[Constitutional monarchy|semi-constitutional]] monarchy from 1848 to 1918 until the monarchy was abolished during the [[German Revolution]].<ref>''The Western Experience'', Seventh Edition, Boston: [[McGraw-Hill]], 1999.</ref>

[[Frederick I of Prussia|Frederick I]] was the first ''[[King in Prussia]]'', beginning his reign on 18 January 1701.<ref name=Beier162>{{cite book|title=Die Chronik der Deutschen|first=Brigitte|last=Beier|publisher=wissenmedia|year=2007|page=162|isbn=978-3-577-14374-5|language= German}}</ref> King [[Frederick the Great]] adopted the title ''King of Prussia'' in 1772, the same year he annexed most of Royal Prussia in the [[First Partition of Poland]], and practiced [[enlightened absolutism]] until his death in 1786. He introduced a general civil code, abolished torture and established the principle that the Crown would not interfere in matters of justice.<ref>David Fraser, ''Frederick the Great: King of Prussia'' (2001) [https://archive.org/details/frederickgreatki00fras/page/n5/mode/2up online]</ref> He also promoted an advanced secondary education, the forerunner of today's German [[Gymnasium (school)|gymnasium]] (grammar school) system, which prepares the brightest pupils for university studies. The [[Prussian education system]] was emulated in various countries, including the United States.

====Russia====
{{Further|Russian Empire}}
[[File: Zar Alexander II.jpg (cropped).jpg|Photograph of Tsar Alexander II, 1878–81|thumb|right|200 px]]
Until 1905, the [[tsar]]s and [[emperor]]s of Russia governed as absolute monarchs. [[Ivan the Terrible|Ivan IV]] ("the Terrible") was known for his reign of terror through the ''[[oprichnina]]''. Following the [[Time of Troubles]] in the early 17th century, the traditional alliance of autocratic monarchy, the church, and the aristocracy was widely seen as the only basis for preserving the social order and Russian statehood, which legitimized the rule of the [[House of Romanov|Romanov dynasty]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lieven |first1=Dominic |editor1-last=Bang |editor1-first=Peter Fibiger |editor2-last=Bayly |editor2-first=Christopher Alan |editor3-last=Scheidel |editor3-first=Walter |title=The Oxford World History of Empire |date=2021 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-753276-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nz0HEAAAQBAJ |language=en |chapter=The Russian Empire (1453–1917) |page=965}}</ref> [[Peter the Great|Peter I]] ("the Great") reduced the power of the [[Russian nobility]] and strengthened the central power of the monarch, establishing a bureaucracy. This tradition of absolutism was expanded by [[Catherine II of Russia|Catherine II]] and her descendants. Although [[Alexander II of Russia|Alexander II]] made some reforms and established an independent judicial system, Russia did not have a representative assembly or a constitution until the [[Russian Revolution of 1905|1905 Revolution]]. However, the concept of absolutism was so ingrained in Russia that the [[Russian Constitution of 1906]] still described the monarch as an autocrat. 

Russia became the last European country (excluding [[Vatican City]]) to abolish absolutism, and it was the only one to do so as late as the 20th century (the [[Ottoman Empire]] drafted [[Ottoman constitution of 1876|its first constitution]] in 1876). Russia was one of the four continental empires which collapsed [[Aftermath of World War I|after World War I]], along with [[German Empire|Germany]], [[Austria–Hungary]], and the [[Ottoman Empire]]. In 1918, the [[execution of the Romanov family|Bolsheviks executed the Romanov family]], ending three centuries of Romanov rule.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Decades of Reconstruction |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2017 |isbn=9781107165748 |pages=331 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vZokDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA331 |editor-last=Planert |editor-first=Ute |editor-last2=Retallack |editor-first2=James |access-date=5 January 2023 |archive-date=11 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211110511/https://books.google.com/books?id=vZokDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA331 |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Sweden====
{{Further|Swedish Empire}}
The form of government instituted in [[Swedish Empire|Sweden]] under King [[Charles XI of Sweden|Charles XI]] and passed on to his son, [[Charles XII of Sweden|Charles XII]] is commonly referred to as absolute monarchy; however, the Swedish monarch was never absolute in the sense of wielding [[arbitrary power]]. The monarch still ruled under the law and could only legislate in agreement with the [[Riksdag of the Estates]]; rather, the absolutism introduced was the monarch's ability to run the government unfettered by the [[Privy Council of Sweden|privy council]], contrary to earlier practice. The absolute rule of Charles XI was instituted by the crown and the Riksdag in order to carry out the [[Reduction (Sweden)|Great Reduction]] which would have been made impossible by the privy council which comprised the high nobility.

After the death of Charles XII in 1718, the system of absolute rule was largely blamed for the ruination of the realm in the [[Great Northern War]], and the reaction tipped the balance of power to the other extreme end of the spectrum, ushering in the [[Age of Liberty]]. After half a century of largely unrestricted parliamentary rule proved just as ruinous, King [[Gustav III of Sweden|Gustav III]] seized back royal power in the [[Revolution of 1772|coup d'état of 1772]], and later once again abolished the privy council under the [[Union and Security Act]] in 1789, which, in turn, was rendered void in 1809 when [[Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden|Gustav IV Adolf]] was deposed in a coup and the [[Instrument of Government (1809)|constitution of 1809]] was put in its place. The years between 1789 and 1809, then, are also referred to as a period of absolute monarchy.

==Contemporary trends==
Many nations formerly with absolute monarchies, such as [[Jordan]], [[Kuwait]], [[Morocco]] and [[Qatar]], have ''[[de jure]]'' moved towards a [[constitutional monarchy]]. However, in these cases, the monarch still retains tremendous powers, even to the extent that by some measures, parliament's influence on political life is viewed as negligible or merely consultative.{{efn|"By 1985 the legislature appeared to have become more firmly established and recognized as a body in which notables representing authentic forces in the political spectrum could address national issues and problems. But it had not gained real autonomy or a direct role in the shaping of government policies." [...] "In spite of its formally defined role in the lawmaking and budgetary processes, the parliament had not established itself as an independent branch of government, owing to the restrictions on its constitutional authority and the dominating influence of the king. The fact that the king has been able to govern for long periods by ''zahir'' after dissolving the legislative body has further underscored the marginality of the chamber." — J.R. Tartter (1986)<ref>{{cite book |last=Tartter |first=Jean R. |date=1986 |chapter=Government and politics |editor1-last=Nelson |editor1-first=Harold D. |title=Morocco, a country study |publisher=Foreign Area Studies: The American University |pages=246–247 |url=https://www.loc.gov/collections/country-studies/ |series=Area Handbook |oclc=12749718 |via= |access-date=2022-03-25 |archive-date=2023-12-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231212024428/https://www.loc.gov/collections/country-studies/ |url-status=live }}</ref>}}<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Tusalem |first1=Rollin F. |date=16 September 2021 |title=Bringing the legislature back in: Examining the structural effects of national legislatures on effective democratic governance |journal=Government and Opposition |volume=58 |issue=2 |pages=291–315 |doi=10.1017/gov.2021.32 |s2cid=240505261 |url=https://doi.org/10.1017/gov.2021.32 |language=en |issn=0017-257X|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Rafayah |first1=Shakir |date=29 January 2022 |title=What role for political parties in Jordan? |magazine=Arab Weekly |lang=en |url=https://thearabweekly.com/what-role-political-parties-jordan |access-date=25 March 2022 |archive-date=1 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230601205815/https://thearabweekly.com/what-role-political-parties-jordan |url-status=live }}</ref>

In [[Bhutan]], the government moved from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy following planned parliamentary elections to the [[Tshogdu]] in 2003, and the [[2008 Bhutanese National Assembly election|election of a National Assembly in 2008]].

In [[Nepal]], there were several swings between constitutional rule and direct rule related to the [[Nepalese Civil War]], the [[Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre)|Maoist insurgency]], and the 2001 [[Nepalese royal massacre]], with the [[Kingdom of Nepal|Nepalese monarchy]] being abolished on 28&nbsp;May 2008.<ref>{{cite news |last=Sharma |first=Gopal |date=2008-05-29 |title=Nepal abolishes centuries-old Hindu monarchy |lang=en |work=[[Reuters]] |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nepal-king-idUSISL5996320080529 |access-date=2020-12-01 |archive-date=2023-06-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230604181350/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nepal-king-idUSISL5996320080529 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In [[Tonga]], the [[King of Tonga|king]] had majority control of the [[Legislative Assembly of Tonga|Legislative Assembly]] until 2010.<ref>[http://parliament.gov.to/constitution1.htm Constitution of Tonga] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081119232721/http://parliament.gov.to/constitution1.htm|date=2008-11-19}}, s. 61</ref>

=== Liechtenstein ===
[[Liechtenstein]] has moved towards expanding the power of the monarch—the [[Prince of Liechtenstein]] was given vast expanded powers after a [[2003 Liechtenstein constitutional referendum|referendum]] to amend the [[Constitution of Liechtenstein]] in 2003, which led [[BBC News]] to describe the prince as an "absolute monarch again".<ref name="Liechtenstein">{{cite news |title=Liechtenstein prince wins powers |date=2003-03-16 |website=[[BBC News]] |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2853991.stm |access-date=2015-10-26 |archive-date=2015-12-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151215091943/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2853991.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> The referendum granted the monarch the powers to dismiss the government, nominate judges and [[veto]] legislation, among others.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Osborn |first1=Andrew |title=European prince wins new powers |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2003/mar/17/andrewosborn |website=The Guardian |access-date=20 March 2024 |date=17 March 2003 |archive-date=20 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240320073725/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2003/mar/17/andrewosborn |url-status=live }}</ref> Just prior to the referendum, the [[Venice Commission]] of the [[Council of Europe]] published a comprehensive report analysing the amendments, opining that they were not compatible with the European standards of democracy, effectively making Liechtenstein a ''[[de facto]]'' absolute monarchy.<ref>{{cite web |author1=Henrik Zahle |author2=Pieter Van Dijk |author3=Jean-Claude Scholsem |title=On the amendments to the constitution of Liechtenstein proposed by the Princely House of Liechtenstein |url=http://www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/default.aspx?pdffile=CDL-AD(2002)032-e |website=venice.coe.int |publisher=[[Venice Commission]] |access-date=6 May 2024 |location=Strasbourg |date=16 December 2002 |archive-date=28 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200228150407/http://www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/default.aspx?pdffile=CDL-AD(2002)032-e |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Prince Hans-Adam II]] had also previously threatened to leave the country and move his assets out of Liechtenstein if voters had chosen to restrict his powers.<ref name="Liechtenstein"/>

=== Vatican City ===
{{Main|Vatican City}}
Vatican City continues to be an absolute monarchy, but is unique because it is also a [[microstate]], [[ecclesiastical jurisdiction]], and [[elective monarchy]]. As of 2023, Vatican City has a population of 764 residents (regardless of citizenship). It is the smallest state in the world [[List of countries and dependencies by area|both by area]] and [[List of countries and dependencies by population|by population]]. The [[Pope]] is the absolute monarch of Vatican City, and is elected by a [[papal conclave]] with a two-thirds supermajority.<ref name="BXVI-MP">Benedict XVI (11 June 2007). [https://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/motu_proprio/documents/hf_ben-xvi_motu-proprio_20070611_de-electione_lt.html De aliquibus mutationibus in normis de electione Romani Pontificis] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222062902/http://w2.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/la/motu_proprio/documents/hf_ben-xvi_motu-proprio_20070611_de-electione.html |date=22 December 2017 }} (in Latin). ''[[Motu proprio]]''. Vatican City: Vatican Publishing House.</ref><ref name="BBC-BXVI">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6242466.stm "Pope alters voting for successor"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070914235308/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6242466.stm |date=14 September 2007 }}. ''[[BBC News]]''. 26 June 2007.</ref>

As governed by the Holy See, Vatican City State is an [[Sacerdotal state|sacerdotal]]-[[Monarchy|monarchical]] state ruled by the Pope, who is the [[bishop of Rome]] and head of the [[Catholic Church]].<ref name="factbook">{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/holy-see-vatican-city/ |title=Holy See (Vatican City) |work=CIA—The World Factbook |date=22 September 2021 |access-date=25 January 2021 |archive-date=26 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220126204237/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/holy-see-vatican-city/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Unlike [[citizenship]] of other states, which is based either on ''[[jus sanguinis]]'' or ''[[jus soli]]'', citizenship of Vatican City is granted on ''jus officii'', namely on the grounds of appointment to work in a certain capacity in the service of the Holy See. It usually ceases upon cessation of the appointment. Citizenship is also extended to the spouse and children of a citizen, provided they are living together in the city.<ref name=citizenship>{{cite web |url=https://www.vaticanstate.va/phocadownload/leggi-decreti/Leggesullacittadinanzalaresidenzaelaccesso.pdf |title=Law on citizenship, residence and access |publisher=Vatican City State |date=22 February 2011 |access-date=31 July 2022 |language=it |archive-date=17 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220717184754/https://www.vaticanstate.va/phocadownload/leggi-decreti/Leggesullacittadinanzalaresidenzaelaccesso.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Current absolute monarchs==
{{legend|#E6E6AA|Denotes subnational monarchy}}
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
|-
! Realm !! Image !!  Monarch
! Born !! Age !! Since !! Length !! Succession !! class=unsortable| Ref(s)
<!--Do not add Afghanistan. "Emir" simply means "leader" in Arabic and does not necessarily refer to a monarch. Per WP:NOR, countries can only be added with a reliable source plainly stating the country is a monarchy.-->
|-
|{{flag|Brunei|name=Nation of Brunei, Abode of Peace}}
|[[File:Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah - 53857993945.jpg|150x150px]]||{{sort|Hassanal Bolkiah|[[List of Sultans of Brunei|Sultan]] [[Hassanal Bolkiah]]}}
|{{Birth date|1946|7|15|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1946|7|15|age=no}}
|{{dts|4 October 1967}}||{{ayd|1967|10|04}}|| [[Succession to the Bruneian throne|Hereditary]]||<ref name="brunei">{{Cite web
 |author=Government of Brunei
 |title=Prime Minister
 |work=The Royal Ark
 |publisher=Office of the Prime Minister
 |url=http://www.pmo.gov.bn/pmo1/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=50&Itemid=82
 |access-date=12 November 2011
 |url-status=dead
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111007033949/http://www.pmo.gov.bn/pmo1/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=50&Itemid=82
 |archive-date=7 October 2011
}}</ref>
|-style="background:#e6e6aa;"
|{{flag|Sharjah|name=Emirate of Sharjah}}
|[[File:London Book Fair Simon Master Chairman's Award - son Altesse Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, winner 2017 - London Book Fair 2017 (cropped).jpg|100px]]||{{sort|Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi|[[List of rulers of individual Emirates of the United Arab Emirates#List of rulers of the Emirate of Sharjah|Ruler]] [[Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi]]}}
|{{Birth date|1939|7|2|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1939|7|2|age=no}}
|{{dts|25 January 1972}}||{{ayd|1972|01|25}}||[[Al Qasimi|Hereditary]]||<ref name="UAE monarchs" />
|-style="background:#e6e6aa;"
|{{flag|Fujairah|name=Emirate of Fujairah}}
|[[File:حمد_بن_محمد_الشرقي.jpg|100px|link=|alt=]]||{{sort|Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi|[[List of rulers of individual Emirates of the United Arab Emirates#List of rulers of the Emirate of Fujairah|Ruler]] [[Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi]]}}
|{{Birth date|1949|2|22|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1949|2|22|age=no}}
|18 September 1974||{{ayd|1974|9|18}}||[[Al Sharqi|Hereditary]]||<ref name="UAE monarchs" />
|-style="background:#e6e6aa;"
|{{flag|Ajman|name=Emirate of Ajman}}
| ||{{sort|Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi III|[[List of rulers of individual Emirates of the United Arab Emirates#List of rulers of the Emirate of Ajman|Ruler]] [[Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi III]]}}
|{{Birth year|1931}}
|{{age in years|1931}} years
|{{dts|6 September 1981}}||{{ayd|1981|9|6}}||[[Al Nuaimi|Hereditary]]||<ref name="UAE monarchs" />
|-
|{{flag|Eswatini|name=Kingdom of Eswatini}}
|[[File:King Mswati III 2024.jpg|138x138px]]||{{sort|Mswati III|[[Ngwenyama]] [[Mswati III]]}}
|{{Birth date|1968|4|19|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1968|4|19|age=no}}
|{{dts|25 April 1986}}||{{ayd|1986|04|25}}||[[Succession to the Swazi throne|Hereditary and elective]]||<ref>{{Citation
  | last = Simelane
  | first = H.S.
  | contribution = Swaziland: Mswati III, Reign of
  | year = 2005
  | title = Encyclopedia of African history
  | editor-last = Shillington
  | editor-first = Kevin
  | volume = 3
  | pages = 1528–30
  | publisher = Fitzroy Dearborn
  | id = 9781579584559}}</ref>
|-style="background:#e6e6aa;"
|{{flag|Dubai|name=Emirate of Dubai}}
|[[File:Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (15-02-2021).jpg|100px]]||{{sort|Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum|[[List of rulers of individual Emirates of the United Arab Emirates#List of rulers of the Emirate of Dubai|Ruler]] [[Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum]]}}
|{{Birth date|1949|7|15|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1949|7|15|age=no}}
|{{dts|4 January 2006}}||{{ayd|2006|01|04}}||[[House of Maktoum|Hereditary]]||<ref name="UAE monarchs" />
|-style="background:#e6e6aa;"
|{{flag|Umm al-Quwain|name=Emirate of Umm al-Quwain}}
|[[File:No image.svg|100px|link=|alt=]]||{{sort|Saud bin Rashid Al Mualla|[[List of rulers of individual Emirates of the United Arab Emirates#List of rulers of the Emirate of Umm Al Quwain|Ruler]] [[Saud bin Rashid Al Mualla]]}}
|{{Birth date|1952|10|1|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1952|10|1|age=no}}
|{{dts|2 January 2009}}||{{ayd|2009|1|2}}||[[Al Mualla|Hereditary]]||<ref name="UAE monarchs" />
|-style="background:#e6e6aa;"
|{{flag|Ras al-Khaimah|name=Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah}}
|[[File:Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr al Qasimi.jpg|100px]]||{{sort|Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi|[[List of rulers of individual Emirates of the United Arab Emirates#List of rulers of the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah|Ruler]] [[Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi]]}}
|{{Birth date|1956|2|10|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1956|2|10|age=no}}
|{{dts|27 October 2010}}||{{ayd|2010|10|27}}||[[Al Qasimi|Hereditary]]||<ref name="UAE monarchs" />
|-
|{{flag|Kingdom of Saudi Arabia}}
|[[File:Salman of Saudi Arabia - 2020 (49563590728) (cropped).jpg|100px]]||{{sort|Salman bin Abdul‘aziz|[[King of Saudi Arabia#Kings of Saudi Arabia (1932–present)|King]] [[Salman of Saudi Arabia|Salman bin Abdul‘aziz]]}}
|{{Birth date|1935|12|31|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1935|12|31|age=no}}
|{{dts|23 January 2015}}||{{ayd|2015|01|23}}|| [[Succession to the Saudi Arabian throne|Hereditary and elective]]||<ref>{{cite news |title=Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah dies |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-30945324 |work=[[BBC News]] |date=23 January 2015 |access-date=23 January 2015 |archive-date=22 January 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150122233542/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-30945324 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Oman|name=Sultanate of Oman}}
|[[File:Haitham bin Tariq Al Said.jpg|100px]]||[[List of rulers of Oman#Sultans|Sultan]] [[Haitham bin Tariq Al Said]]
|{{Birth date|1954|10|11|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1954|10|11|age=no}}
|{{dts|11 January 2020}}
|{{ayd|2020|01|11}}
|[[List of rulers of Oman|Hereditary]]||<ref>{{Cite web
 |author=Sultan Qaboos Centre for Islamic Culture
 |title=About H.M the Sultan
 |publisher=Government of Oman, Diwan of the Royal Court
 |url=http://sqcic.gov.om/HM.html
 |access-date=12 November 2011
 |url-status=dead
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118223700/http://sqcic.gov.om/HM.html
 |archive-date=18 January 2012
}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book
  | author = Nyrop, Richard F
  | title = Area Handbook for the Persian Gulf States
  | publisher = Wildside Press LLC
  | year = 2008
  | page = 341
  | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=BPX0h_wbFtEC
  | isbn = 978-1-4344-6210-7}}</ref>
|-style="background:#e6e6aa;"
|{{flag|Abu Dhabi|name=Emirate of Abu Dhabi}}
|[[File:Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi (2023-12-06) (cropped).jpg|130x130px]]||{{sort|Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan|[[List of rulers of individual Emirates of the United Arab Emirates#List of rulers of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi|Ruler]] [[Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan]]}}
|{{Birth date|1961|3|11|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1961|3|11|age=no}}
|{{dts|13 May 2022}}||{{ayd|2022|05|13}}||[[House of Nahyan|Hereditary]]||<ref name="UAE monarchs">{{cite journal |last1=Walters |first1=Timothy |last2=Barwind |first2=Jack A. |title=Media and Modernity in the United Arab Emirates: Searching for the Beat of a Different Drummer |journal=Free Speech Yearbook |date=January 2004 |volume=41 |issue=1 |pages=151–163 |doi=10.1080/08997225.2004.10556311 |s2cid=108530356 |quote=Seven absolute monarchs exercise political power over a federation established in 1971.}}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Vatican City|name=Vatican City State}}
| [[File:Cardinal Robert F. Prevost at the Consistory on 30 September 2023 (cropped portrait).jpg|alt=Portrait of Pope Leo XIV|frameless|133x133px]]
|[[Pope]] [[Pope Leo XIV|Leo XIV]]
||{{Birth date|1955|9|14|df=yes}}
|{{age in years and days|1955|9|14|age=no}}
|{{dts|8 May 2025}}||{{ayd|2025|05|08}}||[[Papal conclave|Elective]]|| <ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-04-21 |title=Catholics around the world mourn Pope Francis |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y656415lzo |access-date=2025-04-21 |website=www.bbc.com |language=en-GB}}</ref>
|}

=== Saudi Arabia ===
{{Main|Politics of Saudi Arabia}}[[Saudi Arabia]] is an absolute monarchy, and according to the [[Basic Law of Saudi Arabia]] adopted by Royal Decree in 1992, the King must comply with [[Sharia]] (Islamic law) and the [[Quran]].<ref name=Cavendish78>{{cite book |title=World and Its Peoples: the Arabian Peninsula |last=Cavendish |first=Marshall |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-7614-7571-2 |page=[https://archive.org/details/worlditspeoplesm0000unse/page/78 78] |publisher=Marshall Cavendish |url=https://archive.org/details/worlditspeoplesm0000unse/page/78 }}</ref> The Quran and the body of the [[Sunnah]] (traditions of the Islamic [[Prophets and messengers in Islam|prophet]], [[Muhammad]]) are declared to be the Kingdom's Constitution, but no written modern constitution has ever been promulgated for Saudi Arabia, which remains the only Arab nation where no national elections have ever taken place since its founding.<ref name= Gerhard>{{cite book |title=Encyclopedia of world constitutions, Volume 1 |last=Robbers |first=Gerhard |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-8160-6078-8 |page=791|publisher=Facts On File }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=1 November 2011 |title=Qatar elections to be held in 2013 - Emir |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-15537725 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120106200756/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-15537725 |archive-date=2012-01-06 |access-date=27 February 2021 |work=BBC News}}</ref> No political parties or national elections are permitted.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://graphics.eiu.com/PDF/Democracy_Index_2010_web.pdf |title=The Economist Democracy Index 2010 |author=The Economist Intelligence Unit |newspaper=The Economist |access-date=6 June 2011 |archive-date=6 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180606141853/http://graphics.eiu.com/PDF/Democracy_Index_2010_web.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=Cavendish78/> The Saudi government is the world's most authoritarian regime in 2023 measured by the electoral democracy score of the [[V-Dem Democracy indices]].<ref name="vdem_dataset">Coppedge, Michael, John Gerring, Carl Henrik Knutsen, Staffan I. Lindberg, Jan Teorell, Nazifa Alizada, David Altman, Michael Bernhard, Agnes Cornell, M. Steven Fish, Lisa Gastaldi, Haakon Gjerløw, Adam Glynn, Allen Hicken, Garry Hindle, Nina Ilchenko, Joshua Krusell, Anna Lührmann, Seraphine F. Maerz, Kyle L. Marquardt, Kelly McMann, Valeriya Mechkova, Juraj Medzihorsky, Pamela Paxton, Daniel Pemstein, Josefine Pernes, Johannes von Römer, Brigitte Seim, Rachel Sigman, Svend-Erik Skaaning, Jeffrey Staton, Aksel Sundström, Eitan Tzelgov, Yi-ting Wang, Tore Wig, Steven Wilson and Daniel Ziblatt. 2021. "V-Dem [Country–Year/Country–Date] Dataset v11.1" Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Project. https://doi.org/10.23696/vdemds21 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230807060439/https://www.v-dem.net/data/dataset-archive/ |date=2023-08-07 }}.</ref>

==Scholarship==
There is a considerable variety of opinion by historians on the extent of absolutism among European monarchs. Some, such as [[Perry Anderson]], argue that quite a few monarchs achieved levels of absolutist control over their states, while historians such as Roger Mettam dispute the very concept of absolutism.<ref>Mettam, Roger.  ''Power and Faction in Louis XIV's France'', 1991.</ref>  In general, historians who disagree with the appellation of ''absolutism'' argue that most monarchs labeled as ''absolutist'' exerted no greater power over their subjects than any other ''non-absolutist'' rulers, and these historians tend to emphasize the differences between the absolutist [[rhetoric]] of monarchs and the realities of the effective use of power by these absolute monarchs.  Renaissance historian [[William J. Bouwsma|William Bouwsma]] summed up this contradiction:
{{blockquote|Nothing so clearly indicates the limits of royal power as the fact that governments were perennially in financial trouble, unable to tap the wealth of those ablest to pay, and likely to stir up a costly revolt whenever they attempted to develop an adequate income.<ref>Bouwsma, William J., in Kimmel, Michael S. ''Absolutism and Its Discontents: State and Society in Seventeenth-Century France and England''.  New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Books, 1988, 15</ref>|William Bouwsma}}

[[Anthropology]], [[sociology]], and [[ethology]] as well as various other disciplines such as [[political science]] attempt to explain the rise of absolute monarchy ranging from extrapolation generally, to certain [[The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Napoleon|Marxist explanations]] in terms of the [[class struggle]] as the underlying dynamic of human historical development generally and absolute monarchy in particular.

In the 17th century, French legal theorist [[Jean Domat]] defended the concept of absolute monarchy in works such as ''"On Social Order and Absolute Monarchy"'', citing absolute monarchy as preserving natural order as [[God]] intended.<ref>{{cite web |author=Domat, Jean |author-link=Jean Domat |date=18 April 2009 |title=On Defense of Absolute Monarchy |series=Cornell College Student Symposium |place=Mount Vernon, IA |publisher=[[Cornell College]] |url=http://symposium.cornellcollege.edu/2009/04/18/jean-domat-on-defense-of-absolute-monarchy/ |access-date=12 May 2015 |archive-date=28 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028234633/https://symposium.cornellcollege.edu/2009/04/18/jean-domat-on-defense-of-absolute-monarchy/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Other intellectual figures who supported absolute monarchy include [[Thomas Hobbes]] and [[Charles Maurras]].

==See also==
{{Portal|Monarchy}}
{{div col begin|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Autocracy]]
* [[Authoritarianism]]
* [[Constitutional monarchy]]
* [[Criticism of monarchy]]
* [[Democracy]]
* [[Despotism]]
* [[Dictatorship]]
* [[Enlightened absolutism]]
* [[Jacques Bossuet]]
* [[Monarchomachs]]
* [[Presidential system]]
* [[Theonomy]]
* [[Thomas Hobbes]]
* [[Totalitarianism]]
* [[Tyranny]]
{{div col end}}

==Footnotes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist|25em}}

==Further reading==
* [[Perry Anderson|Anderson, Perry]]. (1961, 1974). ''Lineages of the Absolutist State''. London: Verso.
* Beloff, Max. ''The Age of Absolutism 1660–1815''.
* [[Jerome Blum|Blum, Jerome]], et al. (1970). ''The European World'', vol 1, pp 267–466.
* [[Jerome Blum|Blum, Jerome]], et al. (1951). ''[[Lord and Peasant in Russia from the Ninth to the Nineteenth Century]]''. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
* Kimmel, Michael S. (1988). ''Absolutism and Its Discontents: State and society in seventeenth-century France and England''.  New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Books.
* Méttam, Roger. (1988). ''Power and Faction in Louis XIV's France''. New York: Blackwell Publishers.
* Miller, John (ed.) (1990). ''Absolutism in Seventeenth-Century Europe''.  New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
* Wilson, Peter H. (2000). ''Absolutism in Central Europe''. New York: Routledge.
* Zmohra, Hillay. (2001). ''Monarchy, Aristocracy, and the State in Europe – 1300–1800''.  New York: Routledge.

{{Authoritarian types of rule}}
{{Political ideologies |state=expanded}}
{{History of Europe}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Absolute Monarchy}}
[[Category:Monarchy]]
[[Category:Political theories]]
[[Category:Authoritarianism]]