God Save the Queen: The Strange Persistence of Monarchies Contributor(s): Altman, Dennis (Author) |
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ISBN: 1950354989 ISBN-13: 9781950354986 Publisher: Scribe Us OUR PRICE: $15.30 Product Type: Paperback Published: April 2022 |
Additional Information |
BISAC Categories: - Political Science | Constitutions - Political Science | Imperialism - Political Science | Colonialism & Post-colonialism |
Dewey: 325.320 |
LCCN: 2021385211 |
Physical Information: 0.6" H x 5.3" W x 8.2" (0.45 lbs) 160 pages |
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
Publisher Description: An avowed republican investigates the unexpected durability and potential benefits of constitutional monarchies. When he was deposed in Egypt in 1952, King Farouk predicted that there would be five monarchs left at the end of the century: the kings of hearts, diamonds, clubs, spades, and of England. To date, his prediction has proved wrong, and while the twentieth century saw the collapse of monarchies across Europe, many democratic societies have remained monarchies. God Save the Queen is the first book to look at constitutional monarchies globally, and is particularly relevant given the pro-democracy movement in Thailand and recent scandals around the British and Spanish royal families. Is monarchy merely a feudal relic that should be abolished, or does the division between ceremonial and actual power act as a brake on authoritarian politicians? And what is the role of monarchy in the independent countries of the Commonwealth that have retained the Queen as head of state? This book suggests that monarchy deserves neither the adulation of the right nor the dismissal of the left. In an era of autocratic populism, does constitutional monarchy provide some safeguards against the megalomania of political leaders? Is a President Boris potentially more dangerous than a Prime Minister Boris? |