Making Sense of Constitutional Monarchism in Post-Napoleonic France and Germany, by Markus J. Prutsch

Constitutional monarchy, according to Vernon Bogdanor, describes a state headed by a sovereign who rules according to the constitution, whether it is codified or not. Constitutional monarchy emerged as the prevalent form of government in nineteenth-century Europe and, despite the challenges arising from revolutions, wars, industrial or social change, it proved to be a system of sturdy health. In 1914 Europe contained only a few republican governments, including France, Portugal and Switzerland. However, the secret of the dazzling success story of constitutional–monarchical systems in the wake of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars is, despite a long history of scholarly research, not easily unveiled. Neither is there a conclusive definition of ‘constitutional monarchy’. The identification of the system’s specific national formation can be considered a classical topic in legal and political history, and the national point of view has so far produced impressive results and discussions. Recently, researchers have taken an interest in comparative and transfer studies, opening up new perspectives on the history of nineteenth-century constitutional monarchy and exploring its European and transnational dimensions. The discussion of whether there is one (or more than one) European model with national specifications is ongoing.

Ancient history · Comparative history · Constitution · Constitutional monarchy · Government (linguistics) · Monarchy · Political history · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Sovereignty · State (computer science) · American Constitutional Law and Politics · History · Judicial and Constitutional Studies · Law · Philosophy · Seventeenth-Century Political and Philosophical Thought