Why did England become known as the constitutional parliamentary monarchy? The main stages of the transformation of royal power

England is a unique country. It seems to be a monarchy, but the role of the monarch today is almost there only in the performance of representative functions. It seems that there is a Constitution, but it turns out that in England, unlike the overwhelming majority of countries, it is unwritten.

What is the difference between a constitutional monarchy and an absolute monarchy ?

Raising the question: "Why did England become called a constitutional parliamentary monarchy?", We must first understand the difference between the constitutional and absolute monarchy.

And the difference is significant. Under absolute monarchy, the king (king) owns all the power in the state. All acting state bodies are completely subordinate to him and are obliged to fulfill any of his will. The constitutional monarchy is in its essence an absolutely different system in which the power of the king (king) is limited by the powers of the parliament.

The main features of the parliamentary monarchy

The constitutional parliamentary monarchy is characterized by such key moments as:

- restriction of power of the monarch;

- Legislative power passes from the king (king) to the parliament;

- The Cabinet of Ministers is formed exclusively by the legislative body, although the Prime Minister formally submits to the Parliament the King;

- all acts of the king acquire legal force only after their approval by Parliament.

In fact, we see all the main signs of a parliamentary form of government. The presence of a king in such a coordinate system is likely to be seen as devotion to traditions, although this particular figure does not fulfill any particular role.

Basic documents of the parliamentary monarchy in England

Let us try to understand why England became known as the constitutional parliamentary monarchy, proceeding from the norms of important laws. This form of government was born in the state gradually. Although the completely limited power of the king took shape in the 17-18th century, certain moments can be traced already in the 12th century. By the way, it is worth noting the uniqueness of the system of public administration in Britain. The fact is that England is one of the few countries in the world with an unwritten Constitution. The rights and duties of public authorities regulate individual constitutional laws adopted even during the reign of absolutely different dynasties of kings.

The first important constitutional document that answers the question: "Why did England become known as a constitutional parliamentary monarchy?" - the Magna Carta. The uniqueness of Article 12 of this document is that, usually during the time of absolute monarchy, the parliament or its prototype did not actually have any functions. Here, the Council of the Kingdom (the prototype of the English Parliament, which consisted of feudal lords) was given the exclusive right to authorize or prohibit the monarch to collect taxes.

In the Bill of Rights of 1689, the king was forbidden:

- to abolish laws passed by the parliament;

- Collect taxes without the consent of the legislature (repeated the norm of the Magna Carta);

- recruit an army in peacetime without special permission;

- freedom of elections to parliament (elements of a modern democratic society are traced);

- Freedom of statements of politicians in the parliament, it was forbidden to prosecute members of parliament for statements during parliamentary sessions;

- The frequency of the convening of the parliament should be frequent.

The role of the Cabinet of Ministers in the formation of a constitutional monarchy in England

If we analyze the entire period of English history until the middle of the 17th century, we will see that as such there was no government, because all power belonged to the king. In the 17th century, English monarchs held Privy Councils at court. The number of members of these meetings was not static, the name was also constantly changing. Under King George, who did not know English and, accordingly, did not participate in the meetings of the Council, there arose a need to elect a presiding officer.

Gradually the evolution of the form of the Council took place, which in essence turned into the Cabinet of Ministers, controlled and accountable to the parliament.

Conclusion

In this article, we tried to answer the question: "Why did England become known as a constitutional parliamentary monarchy?" We identified the main reasons for the transformation of the management system. The formation of a parliamentary monarchy in England as a form of government by the state has shown its effectiveness.