Criticism of monarchy
criticism of the general form of government which assumes the power of a single person inherited or of the monarchies which control factical or ritual power of particular countries
Criticism of monarchy has occurred since classical times at least. It can be targeted against the general form of government, monarchy, or more specifically, to particular monarchical governments as controlled by hereditary royal families. In some cases, this criticism, also known as anti-monarchism, can be curtailed by legal restrictions and be considered criminal speech, as in lèse-majesté.
Monarchies in Europe and their underlying concepts, such as the Divine Right of Kings, became increasingly criticized during the Age of Enlightenment, which notably paved the way to the French Revolution and the proclamation of the abolition of the monarchy in France. Earlier, the American Revolution saw the Patriots suppress the Loyalists and expelled all royal officials.
In contemporary times, monarchies are present in the world in many forms with different degrees of royal power and involvement in civil affairs:
Absolute monarchies in Brunei, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Eswatini, the emirates of the UAE, and the Vatican City;
Constitutional monarchies in the United Kingdom and its sovereign's Commonwealth Realms, and in Bahrain, Belgium, Denmark, Japan, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Monaco, Morocco, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates.
The twentieth century, beginning with the 1917 February Revolution in Russia and accelerated by two world wars, saw many European countries replace their monarchies with republics, while others replaced their absolute monarchies with constitutional monarchies. Reverse movements have also occurred, with brief returns of the monarchy in France under the Bourbon Restoration, the July Monarchy, and the Second French Empire, the Stuarts after the English Civil War and the Bourbons in Spain after the Franco dictatorship.
Historical criticism
Antiquity
Aristotle taught that monarchy was only suitable for populations incapable of governing themselves, and believed that power ought to be shared within populations generally made up of equals. He also felt that it was easier to corrupt one individual than a multitude.
The public source identifies “Criticism of monarchy” as criticism of the general form of government which assumes the power of a single person inherited or of the monarchies which control factical or ritual power of particular countries. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Criticism, monarchy and criticism.
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The record creator and administrative purpose are central evidence, because official documentation reflects both action and institutional priorities. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 5, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5186811. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1917.
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This entry incorporates text from “Criticism of monarchy” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.