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Monarchies in the Americas

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  American monarchies
  Non-American monarchies
  Countries with pretenders, where modern borders align with the historical borders of the respectively claimed thrones
St. Edward's Crown, although actually a part of the British Crown Jewels, is used in the heraldry of those American states with Elizabeth II as sovereign.[1][2]

There are presently 13 monarchies in the Americas; that is: self-governing states and territories in North and South America where supreme power resides with an individual, who is recognised as the head of state. Each is a constitutional monarchy, wherein the sovereign inherits his or her office, usually keeps it until death or abdication, and is bound by laws and customs in the exercise of their powers. Ten of these monarchies are independent states, and equally share Elizabeth II– who resides primarily in the United Kingdom– as their respective sovereign, making them part of a global grouping known informally as the Commonwealth realms, while the remaining three are dependencies of European monarchies. As such, none of the monarchies in the Americas have a resident monarch.

These crowns continue a history of monarchy in the Americas that reaches back to before European colonisation. Both tribal and more complex pre-Columbian societies existed under monarchical forms of government, with some expanding to form vast empires under a central king figure, while others did the same with a decentralised collection of tribal regions under a hereditary chieftain. None of the contemporary monarchies, however, are descended from those pre-colonial royal systems, instead either having their historical roots in, or still being a part of, the current European monarchies that spread their reach across the Atlantic Ocean, beginning in the mid 1300s.

From that date on, through the Age of Discovery, European colonisation brought extensive American territory under the control of Europe's monarchs, though the majority of these colonies subsequently gained independence from their rulers. Some did so via armed conflict with their mother countries, as in the American Revolution and the Hispanic American wars of independence, usually severing all ties to the overseas monarchies in the process. Others gained full sovereignty by legislative paths, such as Canada's patriation of its constitution from the United Kingdom. A certain number of former colonies became republics immediately upon achieving self-governance. The remainder continued with endemic constitutional monarchies– in the cases of Mexico, Brazil, and Haiti– with their own resident monarch, and for places such as Canada and some island states in the Caribbean sharing their monarch with their former metropole, the most recently created being that of Belize in 1981. There is currently no major campaign to abolish the monarchy in any of the ten states, although there is a minority of republicans in some.

Current monarchies

Country Type Succession Monarch Reign since Heir apparent
Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda Kingdom; constitutional and federal Cognatic primogeniture[N 1] Elizabeth II 6 February 1952[N 2] Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
The Bahamas The Bahamas Kingdom; constitutional Cognatic primogeniture[N 1] Elizabeth II 6 February 1952[N 3] Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Barbados Barbados Kingdom; constitutional Cognatic primogeniture[N 1] Elizabeth II 6 February 1952[N 4] Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Belize Belize Kingdom; constitutional Cognatic primogeniture[N 1] Elizabeth II 6 February 1952[N 5] Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Canada Canada Kingdom; constitutional and federal Cognatic primogeniture[N 1] Elizabeth II 6 February 1952 Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Grenada Grenada Kingdom; constitutional Cognatic primogeniture[N 1] Elizabeth II 6 February 1952[N 6] Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Jamaica Jamaica Kingdom; constitutional Cognatic primogeniture[N 1] Elizabeth II 6 February 1952[N 7] Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Kitts and Nevis Kingdom; constitutional and federal Cognatic primogeniture[N 1] Elizabeth II 6 February 1952[N 8] Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Saint Lucia Saint Lucia Kingdom; constitutional Cognatic primogeniture[N 1] Elizabeth II 6 February 1952[N 9] Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Kingdom; constitutional Cognatic primogeniture[N 1] Elizabeth II 6 February 1952[N 10] Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Territory Type Succession Monarch Reign since Heir apparent
Anguilla Anguilla
(United Kingdom)		 Territory Cognatic primogeniture Elizabeth II 6 February 1952 Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Aruba Aruba
(Kingdom of the Netherlands)		 Constituent country Absolute primogeniture Beatrix 30 April 1980 Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange
Bermuda Bermuda
(United Kingdom)		 Territory Cognatic primogeniture Elizabeth II 6 February 1952 Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
British Virgin Islands British Virgin Islands
(United Kingdom)		 Territory Cognatic primogeniture Elizabeth II 6 February 1952 Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Cayman Islands Cayman Islands
(United Kingdom)		 Territory Cognatic primogeniture Elizabeth II 6 February 1952 Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Falkland Islands Falkland Islands
(United Kingdom)		 Territory Cognatic primogeniture Elizabeth II 6 February 1952 Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Greenland Greenland
(Kingdom of Denmark)		 Division Cognatic primogeniture Margrethe II 14 January 1972 Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark
Montserrat Montserrat
(United Kingdom)		 Territory Cognatic primogeniture Elizabeth II 6 February 1952 Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Netherlands Antilles Netherlands Antilles
(Kingdom of the Netherlands)		 Constituent country Absolute primogeniture Beatrix 30 April 1980 Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
(United Kingdom)		 Territory Cognatic primogeniture Elizabeth II 6 February 1952 Charles, Prince of Wales[3]
Turks and Caicos Islands Turks and Caicos Islands
(United Kingdom)		 Territory Cognatic primogeniture Elizabeth II 6 February 1952 Charles, Prince of Wales[3]

American monarchies

While the one monarch of each of the American monarchies resides predominantly in Europe, each of the states are sovereign, and thus have distinct local monarchies seated in their respective capitals, with the monarch's day-to-day governmental and ceremonial duties generally carried out by an appointed local viceroy.

Antigua and Barbuda

Main article: Monarchy of Antigua and Barbuda

The monarchy of Antigua and Barbuda has its roots in the Spanish monarchy, under the authority of which the islands were first colonised in the late 1400s, and later the British monarchy, as a Crown colony. On 10 June 1973, the country gained independence from the United Kingdom, retaining the then reigning monarch, Elizabeth II, as monarch of the newly created monarchy of Antigua and Barbuda. The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda, presently Dame Louise Lake-Tack.[4]

Elizabeth and her royal consort, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, included Antigua and Barbuda in their 1966 Caribbean tour, and again in the Queen's Silver Jubilee tour of October 1977. Elizabeth returned once more in 1985.[5] For the country's 25th anniversary of independence, on 30 October 2006, Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, opened Antigua and Barbuda's new parliament building, reading a message from his mother, the Queen. HRH The Duke of York visited Antigua and Barbuda in January 2001.[4]

The Bahamas

Main article: Monarchy of The Bahamas

The monarchy of The Bahamas has its roots in the Spanish monarchy, under the authority of which the islands were first colonised in the late 1400s, and later the British monarchy, as a Crown colony, after 1717. On 1 November 1981, the country gained independence from the United Kingdom, retaining the then reigning monarch, Elizabeth II,[6] as monarch of the newly formed monarchy of The Bahamas. The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor-General of the Bahamas, presently Arthur Dion Hanna.[7]

Barbados

Main article: Monarchy of Barbados

The monarchy of Barbados has its roots in the English monarchy, under the authority of which the island was claimed in 1625 and first colonised in 1627,[8] and later the British monarchy. By the 18th century, Barbados became one of the main seats of the British Crown's authority in the British West Indies, and then, after an attempt in 1958 at a federation with other West Indian colonies, continued as a self-governing colony until, on 30 November 1966, the country gained independence from the United Kingdom, retaining the then reigning monarch, Elizabeth II, as monarch of the newly formed monarchy of Barbados. The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor-General of Barbados, presently Sir Clifford Husbands.[9]

In 1966, Elizabeth's cousin, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, opened the second session of the first parliament of the newly established country,[8] before the Queen herself, along with Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, toured Barbados. Elizabeth returned for her Silver Jubilee in 1977, and again in 1989, to mark the 350th anniversary of the establishment of the Barbadian parliament.[8][10]

Former Prime Minister Owen Arthur called for a referendum on Barbados becoming a republic to be held in 2005,[11] though the vote was then pushed back to "at least 2006" in order to speed up Barbados' integration in the CARICOM Single Market and Economy. It was announced on 26 November 2007 that the referendum would be held in 2008, together with the general election that year.[12] The vote was, however, postponed again to a later point, due to administrative concerns.[13]

Belize

Main article: Monarchy of Belize

Belize was, until the 15th century, a part of the Mayan Empire, containing smaller states headed by a hereditary ruler known as an ajaw (later k’uhul ajaw).[N 11] The present monarchy of Belize has its roots in the Spanish monarchy, under the authority of which the area was first colonised in the 1500s, and later the British monarchy, as a Crown colony. On 21 September 1981, the country gained independence from the United Kingdom, retaining the then reigning monarch, Elizabeth II, as monarch of the newly formed monarchy of Belize.[14] The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor-General of Belize, presently Sir Colville Young.[15]

Canada

Main article: Monarchy of Canada
Painting of the Four Mohawk Kings, done during their visit with Queen Anne in 1710.

Canada's aboriginal peoples had systems of governance organised in a fashion similar to the occidental concept of monarchy;[16] European explorers often referred to hereditary leaders of tribes as kings.[17] The present monarchy of Canada has its roots in the French and English monarchies, under the authority of which the area was colonised in the 14 and 1500s, and later the British monarchy. The country became a self-governing federation on 1 July 1867, recognised as a kingdom in its own right,[18] but did not have full legislative autonomy from the British Crown until the passage of the Statute of Westminster on 11 December 1931,[19] retaining the then reigning monarch, George V, as monarch of the newly formed monarchy of Canada. The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor General of Canada, presently Michaëlle Jean, and in each of the provinces by a lieutenant governor.[20]

Grenada

Main article: Monarchy of Grenada

The monarchy of Grenada has its roots in the French monarchy, under the authority of which the islands were first colonised in the mid 17th century, and later the English and then British monarchy, as a Crown colony.[21] On 7 February 1974, the country gained independence from the United Kingdom, retaining the then reigning monarch, Elizabeth II, as monarch of the newly created monarchy of Grenada. The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor-General of Grenada, presently Carlyle Glean.[22]

Jamaica

Main article: Monarchy of Jamaica
Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (far left), and his wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (centre), at the Half Moon Hotel, Montego Bay, 13 March 2008.

The monarchy of Jamaica has its roots in the Spanish monarchy, under the authority of which the islands were first colonised in the late 1500s, and later the English and then British monarchy, as a Crown colony. On 6 August 1962, the country gained independence from the United Kingdom, retaining the then reigning monarch, Elizabeth II, as monarch of the newly created monarchy of Jamaica. The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor-General of Jamaica, presently Sir Kenneth O. Hall.[23]

In 1966, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, accompanied by his son, Charles, Prince of Wales, toured Jamaica as part of his visit to open that year's Commonwealth Games.[24] The Queen herself visited Jamaica in 2002; despite some republican sentiments in the country, she was enthusiastically welcomed.[25][26][27] However, in September of the following year, the former Prime Minister of Jamaica, P.J. Patterson, advocated making Jamaica into a republic by 2007.[28]

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Main article: Monarchy of Saint Kitts and Nevis

The monarchy of Saint Kitts and Nevis has its roots in the English and French monarchies, under the authority of which the islands were first colonised in the early 1600s, and later the British monarchy, as a Crown colony. On 10 June 1973, the country gained independence from the United Kingdom, retaining the then reigning monarch, Elizabeth II, as monarch of the newly created monarchy of Antigua and Barbuda.[29] The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor-General of Saint Kitts and Nevis, presently Sir Cuthbert Sebastian.[30]

Saint Lucia

Main article: Monarchy of Saint Lucia

The Caribs who occupied the island of Saint Lucia in pre-Columbian times had a complex society, with hereditary kings and shamans. The present monarchy has its roots in the Dutch, French, and English monarchies, under the authority of which the island was first colonised in 1605, and later the British monarchy, as a Crown colony. On 22 February 1979, the country gained independence from the United Kingdom, retaining the then reigning monarch, Elizabeth II, as monarch of the newly created monarchy of Saint Lucia.[31] The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor-General of Saint Lucia, presently Dame Pearlette Louisy.[32]

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Main article: Monarchy of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

The present monarchy of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has its roots in the French monarchy, under the authority of which the island was first colonised in 1719, and later the British monarchy, as a Crown colony. On 27 October 1979, the country gained independence from the United Kingdom, retaining the then reigning monarch, Elizabeth II, as monarch of the newly created monarchy of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.[33] The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor-General of Vincent and the Grenadines, presently Sir Frederick Ballantyne.[34]

Settled monarchies

Denmark

Main article: Monarchy of Denmark
An illustration of Hákon, the King of Norway who took possession of Greenland in 1261, and his son Magnus, from Flateyjarbók.

Greenland is one of the three constituent countries of the Kingdom of Denmark, with Queen Margrethe II as the reigning sovereign. The territory first came under monarchical rule in 1261, when the populace accepted the overlordship of the King of Norway; by 1360, Norway had entered into a personal union with the Kingdom of Denmark, which became more entrenched with the union of the kingdoms into Denmark–Norway in 1536. After the dissolution of this arrangement in 1814, Greenland remained as a Danish colony, and, after its role in World War II, was granted its special status within the Kingdom of Denmark in 1953. The monarch is represented in the territory by the Rigsombudsmand[35] (High Commissioner), presently Soren Moller.[36]

The Netherlands

Main article: Monarchy of the Netherlands

Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles are both constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and thus have Queen Beatrix as their sovereign. Aruba was first settled under the authority of the Spanish Crown circa 1499, but was acquired by the Dutch in 1634, under whose control the island has remained, save for an interval between 1805 and 1816, when Arbua was captured by the Royal Navy of King George III. The Netherlands Antilles were originally discovered by explorers sent in the 1490s by the King of Spain, but were eventually conquered by the Dutch West India Company in the 17th century, whereafter the islands remained under the control of the Dutch Crown as colonial territories. The Netherlands Antilles achieved the status of an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1954, from which Aruba was split in 1986 as a separate constituent country of the larger kingdom.[37] The monarch is represented in each region by the Governor of Aruba, presently Fredis Refunjol,[38] and the Governor of the Netherlands Antilles, presently Frits Goedgedrag.[39]

The United Kingdom

Main article: Monarchy of the United Kingdom

The British Crown possesses a number of overseas territories in the Americas, for whom Queen Elizabeth II is monarch. In North America are Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Montserrat, and the Turks and Caicos Islands, while the Falkland Islands, and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are located in South America. The Caribbean islands were colonised under the authority or the direct instruction of a number of European monarchs, mostly English, Dutch, or Spanish, throughout the first half of the 17th century. By 1681, however, when the Turks and Caicos Islands were settled by Englishmen, all of the above mentioned islands were under the control of England's King Charles II. Colonies were merged and split through various reorganizations of the Crown's Caribbean regions, until 19 December 1980, the date that Anguilla became a British Crown territory in its own right. The monarch is represented in these jurisdictions by: the Governor of Anguilla, presently Andrew George;[40] the Governor of Bermuda, presently Richard Gozney;[41] the Governor of the British Virgin Islands, presently David Pearey;[42] the Governor of the Cayman Islands, presently Stuart Jack;[43] the Governor of Montserrat, presently Peter Andrew Waterworth;[44] and the Governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands, presently Gordon Wetherell.[45]

The Falkland Islands, off the south coast of Argentina, were simultaneously claimed for Louis XIV of France, in 1764, and George III of the United Kingdom, in 1765, though the French colony was ceded to Charles III of Spain in 1767. By 1833, however, the islands were under full British control. The South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands were discovered by Captain James Cook for George III in January 1775, and from 1843 were governed by the British Crown-in-Council through the Falkland Islands, an arrangement that stood until the South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands were incorporated as a distinct British overseas territory in 1985. The monarch is represented in these regions by Alan Huckle, who is both the Governor of the Falkland Islands and the Commissioner for South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.[46]

Succession laws

  male primogeniture, to be changed to equal primogeniture
  male primogeniture

The succession orders in the current American monarchies are determined by primogeniture. Most states and regions, including those Commonwealth realms in the Americas, as well as those American territories under the British and Danish crowns, adhere to male primogeniture, whereby sons have precedence over daughters in the order of succession. For the Commonwealth realms, this line is governed by provisions of the Act of Settlement and the English Bill of Rights, whether by willing deference to the act as a British statute or as a patriated part of the particular realm's constitution.[47] Only Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles have, as per the constitution of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, equal primogeniture, whereby the eldest child inherits the throne, regardless of gender.[48]

Suggestions of change have been raised in the Commonwealth realms in regards to the order of succession;[49][50][51][52][53][54] however, as these states share one monarch with other countries, all with legislative independence and/or independent regulations regarding the order of succession, any change would have to be made simultaneously in all of the Commonwealth realms to maintain the shared monarchy. With no imminent need for change– with males in the first four places in the line of succession– proposals are repeatedly postponed to a later time. For Greenland, however, the 2005 elected Danish parliament passed a law altering the line of succession to the throne of Denmark (and thus Greenland as well), and, after the next election on 13 November 2007, the next parliament will have to pass the law again, where after it has to be confirmed in a referendum in which at least 40% of all potential voters will have to support the change for it to take place.[55][56]

Former monarchies

File:2758500908 8786e57047.jpg
The monument to Cuauhtémoc, the last sovereign king of the Aztec Empire.

Most pre-Columbian cultures of the Americas developed and flourished for centuries under monarchical systems of government. By the time Europeans arrived on the continents in the late 15th and early 16th centuries, however, many of these civilizations had ceased to function, due to various natural and artificial causes. Those that remained up to that period were eventually defeated by the agents of European monarchical powers, who, while they remained on the European continent, thereafter established new American administrations overseen by delegated viceroys. Some of these colonies were, in turn, replaced by either republican states or locally founded monarchies, ultimately overtaking the entire American holdings of some European monarchs; those crowns that once held or claim territory in the Americas include the Spanish, Portuguese, French, Swedish, and Russian, and even Baltic Courland, Holy Roman, Prussian and Norwegian. Certain of the locally established monarchies were themselves also overthrown through revolution, leaving five current pretenders to American thrones.

Endemic monarchies

Araucania and Patagonia

Main article: Kingdom of Araucania and Patagonia

The Kingdom of Araucania and Patagonia was a short-lived constitutional monarchy founded by French lawyer Orelie-Antoine de Tounens in 1860, encompassing the lower half of present-day Argentina and a small segment of Chile, where Mapuche were fighting to maintain their sovereignty against the advancing Chilean and Argentine authorities.[57] Orelie-Antoine, who felt that the indigenous peoples would be better served in negotiations with the surrounding powers by a European leader,[57] was elected by the Mapuche to be their king.[58] His efforts to gain international recognition prompted the Chileans to occupy Araucanía between 1861 and 1883, and King Orelie-Antoine was captured in 1862, to be imprisoned in an asylum in Chile. His descendant, Prince Felipe, lives in France and, though the Mapuche Nation continues to recognise the Araucanian monarchy,[58] though he has renounced his claim to the Araucanian and Patagonian throne.[59]

Aztec

Main article: Aztec Empire

The Aztec Empire existed in the central Mexican region between c. 1325 and 1521, and was formed by the triple alliance of the tlatoque (the Nahuatl term for "speaker", also translated in English as "king") of three city-states: Tlacopan, Texcoco, and the capital of the empire, Tenochtitlan.[60] While the lineage of Tenochtitlan's kings continued after the city's fall to the Spanish on 13 August 1521, they reigned as puppet rulers of the King of Spain until the death of the last dynastic tlatoani, Luis de Santa María Nanacacipactzin, on 27 December 1565.[61]

Brazil

Main article: Brazilian Empire

Brazil was created as a kingdom on 16 December 1815, when Prince João, Prince of Brazil, who was then acting as regent for his ailing mother, Queen Maria, elevated the colony to a constituent country of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves.[62] While the royal court was still based in Rio de Janeiro, João ascended as king of the united kingdom the following year, and returned to Portugal in 1821,[63] leaving his son, Prince Pedro, Prince of Brazil, as his regent in the Kingdom of Brazil. In September of that same year, the Portugese parliament threatened to diminish Brazil back to the status of a colony, dismantle all the royal agencies in Rio de Janeiro, and demanded Pedro return to Lisbon.[63] The Prince, however, feared these moves would trigger separatist movements and refused to comply; instead, at the urging of his father, he declared Brazil an independent constitutional monarchy on 12 October 1822, and he was crowned emperor on 1 December as Pedro I.[64] After Pedro abdicated the throne on 7 April 1831, the Brazilian empire saw only one more monarch: Pedro II,[63] who reigned for 58 years before a coup d'état overthrew the monarchy on 15 November 1889. There are presently two pretenders to the defunct Brazilian throne: Prince Luís of Orléans-Braganza, head of the Vassouras branch of the Brazilian Imperial Family, and, according to legitimist claims, de jure Emperor of Brazil; and Prince Pedro Carlos of Orléans-Braganza, head of the Petrópolis line of the Brazilian Imperial Family, and heir to the Brazilian throne according to royalists.[65]

Haiti

The entire island of Hispaniola was first claimed on 5 December 1492, by Christopher Columbus, for Queen Isabella, and attempts were immediately made at establishing colonies. However, in 1664, King Louis XIV formally claimed the western half of Hispaniola, and established the first French settlement in 1670,[66] with the colony administered by a governor-general representing the French crown,[67] an arrangement that stood until the French Revolution toppled the monarchy of France on 21 September 1792. Though the French government retained control over the region of Saint-Domingue, on 22 September 1804, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, who had served as Governor-General of Saint-Domingue since 30 November 1803, declared himself as head of an independent Empire of Haiti, with his coronation as Emperor Jacques I taking place on 6 October that year. After his assassination on 17 October 1806, the country was split in half, the northern portion eventually becoming the Kingdom of Haiti on 28 March 1811, with Henri Christophe installed as King Henri I.[68] When King Henri committed suicide on 8 October 1820, and his son, Jacques-Victor Henry, Prince Royal of Haiti, was murdered by revolutionaries ten days later, the kingdom was merged into the southern Republic of Haiti, of which Faustin-Élie Soulouque was elected president on 2 March 1847. Two years later, on 26 August 1849, the Haitian national assembly declared the president as Emperor Faustin I, thereby re-establishing the Empire of Haiti. But this monarchical reincarnation was to be short lived as well, as a revolution broke out in the kingdom in 1858, resulting in Faustin abdicating the throne on 18 January 1859.[69]

Inca

Main article: Incan Empire
Túpac Amaru, the last Sapa Inca of the Incan Empire.

The Incan Empire spread across the north western parts of South America between 1200 and 1573, ruled over by a monarch addressed as the Sapa Inca, Sapa, or Apu. The civilization emerged in the Kingdom of Cusco, and expanded to become the Ttahuantin-suyu, or "land of the four sections", each ruled by a governor or viceroy called Apu-cuna, under the leadership of the central Sapa Inca. The empire eventually fell to the Spanish in 1533, when the last king, Atahualpa, was captured and executed on 29 August.[70] The conquerors installed other Incan kings– beginning with Atahualpa's brother, Túpac Huallpa– and the line continued in this manner until the death of Túpac Amaru in 1572.[71]

Maya

Main article: Mayan Empire

The Mayan Empire was located on the Yucatán Peninsula and into the isthmian portion of North America, and was formed of a number of ajawil, ajawlel, or ajawlil– heirarchical polities headed by an hereditary ruler known as a kuhul ajaw (the Mayan term indicating a sovereign leader).[N 11] Despite constant warfare and shifts in regional power, most Maya kingdoms remained a part of the empire's landscape, even following subordination to hegemonic rulers through conquest or dynastic union. Nonetheless, the Mayan empire began its decline in the 8th and 9th centuries, and by the time of the arrival of the Spanish, only a few kingdoms remained, such as Tayasal, Mam, Kaqchikel, and the K'iche' Kingdom of Q'umarkaj. On 13 March 1697, the last Itza Mayan king was defeated at Tayasal by the forces of King Philip IV of Spain.[72]

Mexico

Main articles: First Mexican Empire and Second Mexican Empire

With the victory of the Mexicans over the Spanish imperial army in 1821, the Viceroyalty of New Spain came to a conclusion. The newly independent Mexican Congress still desired that King Ferdinand VII, or another member of the House of Bourbon, agree to be installed as Emperor of Mexico, thereby forming a type of personal union with Spain. The Spanish monarchy, however, refused to recognise the new state, and decreed that it would allow no other European prince to take the throne of Mexico. Thus, the Mexican Agustín de Iturbide was crowned as Augustine I on 19 May 1822, with an official decree of confirmation issued two days following. Only a few months later, Augustine dissolved a factious congress, thereby prompting an enraged Antonio López de Santa Anna to mount a coup, which led to the declaration of a republic on 1 December 1822. In order to end the unrest, Augustine abdicated on 19 March 1823 and left the country, and the Mexican monarchy was abolished. After hearing that the situation in Mexico had only grown worse since his abdication, Iturbide returned from England on 11 May 1824, but was detained upon setting foot in Mexico and, without trial, was executed.[73]

Portrait of Maximilian I of Mexico, by Franz Xaver Winterhalter.

Benito Juárez, elected as President of Mexico on 19 January 1858, suspended all repayments on Mexico's foreign debts (save those owed to the United States), leading France, the United Kingdom, and Spain to send a joint expeditionary force that took Veracruz in December 1861. Juárez then repaid the debts, after which British and Spanish troops withdrew, but King Napoleon III of France used the situation as a pretext to overthrow the republic and install a monarch friendly to the interests of France. Archduke Maximilian, brother of the Emperor of Austria, was elevated as Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico, thereby re-establishing the Mexican monarchy, but the new emperor ultimately did not bow to Napoleon's wishes, leading the latter to withdraw the majority of his influence from Mexico. Regardless, Maximilian was still viewed as a French puppet, and an illegitimate leader of the country. As well, at the end of the American Civil War, US troops moved to the Mexico-US border as part of a planned invasion, seeing the establishment of the Second Mexican Empire as an infringement on their Monroe Doctorine. Backed by the Americans, ex-president Juárez mobilised to retake power, and defeated Maximilian at Querétaro on 15 May 1867. The Emperor was arraigned before a military tribunal, sentenced to death, and executed at the Cerro de las Campanas on 19 June 1867.[74]

Prince Maximilian von Götzen-Itúrbide, great-great-great-grandson of Agustín I and grandson of Prince Agustín de Iturbide y Green (the adopted son of Maximilian I), is the current head of the House of Habsburg-Iturbide and pretender to the Mexican throne.[75]

Miskito

The Miskito people of Central America were governed by the authority of a monarch, but one who shared his royal powers with a governor and a general. The origins of the monarchy are unknown; however, its sovereignty was lost when King Edward I of the Miskito Nation signed the Treaty of Friendship and Alliance with King George II of the United Kingdom, putting the Miskito kingdom under the British protection and law. At the cessation of the American Revolutionary War, King George III of the United Kingdom, via the Treaty of Paris, relinquished control of the Miskito's lands, though Britain continued an unofficial protectorate over the kingdom to protect Miskito interests against Spanish encroachments. After British interest in the region waned, Nicaragua dissolved and occupied the Miskito kingdom in 1894,[76] with the monarch thereafter becoming known as the Hereditary Chief. Norton Cuthbert Clarence is the current pretender to the Miskito Kingdom and Hereditary Chief of the Miskito Nation.[77]

Taíno

The Taínos were an indigenous civilization spread across those islands today lying within the Bahamas, Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles. These regions were divided into kingdoms (the island of Hispaniola alone was segmented into five kingdoms), which were themselves sometimes sub-divided into provinces. Each kingdom was led by a cacique, or "chieftain", who was advised in his exercise of royal power by a council of priests/healers known as bohiques.[78] The line of succession, however, was matrilineal, whereby if there was no male heir to become cacigue, the title would pass to the eldest child, whether son or daughter, of the deceased's sister.[79] After battling for centuries with the Carib, the Taíno empire finally succumbed to disease and genocide brought by the Spanish colonisers.[80][81]

Colonial monarchies

Courland

Main article: Duchy of Courland and Semigallia

After a number of failed attempts at colonising Tobago, Duke Jacob Kettler of Courland and Semigallia sent one more ship to the island, which landed there on 20 May 1654, carrying soldiers and colonists, who named the island New Courland. At approximately the same time, Dutch colonies were established at other locations on the island, and eventually outgrew those of the Duchy of Courland in population. When the Duke was captured by Swedish forces in 1658, Dutch settlers overtook the Courland colonies, forcing the Governor to surrender. After a return of the territory to Courland through the 1660 Treaty of Oliwa, a number of attempts were made by the Duke of Courland at re-colonisation, but these met with failure, and he sold New Courland in 1689.[82]

France

After King Francis I commissioned Jacques Cartier to search out an eastern route to Asia, the city of Port Royal was founded on 27 July 1605 in what is today Nova Scotia. From there, the French Crown's empire in the Americas grew to include areas of land surrounding the Great Lakes and down the Mississippi River, as well as islands in the Caribbean, and the north eastern shore of South America; the Viceroyalty of New France was eventually made into a royal province of France in 1663 by King Louis XIV.[83] Some regions were lost to the Spanish or British Crowns through conflict and treaties, and those that were still possessions of the French king on 21 December 1792 came under republican rule when the French monarchy was abolished on that day.[84][85]

Russia

Tsar Alexander II, Emperor of Russia, who sold Alaska to the United States in 1867.

The first permanent Russian settlements in what is today the US state of Alaska were set down in the 1790s, forming Russian Alaska, after Tsar Peter I called for expeditions across the Bering Strait in 1725,[86] with the region administered by the head of the Russian-American Company as the Emperor's representative. Another Russian outpost, Fort Ross, was established in 1812 in what is presently California.[87] The colonies, however, were never profitable enough to maintain Russian interest in the area, with the population only ever reaching a maximum of 700. Fort Ross was sold in 1841, and in 1867, a deal was brokered whereby Tsar Alexander II sold his Alaskan territory to the United States for $7,200,000, and the official transfer took place on 30 October that year.[88]

Spain

Main article: Monarchy of Spain

Beginning in 1492 with the voyages of Christopher Columbus under the direction of Isabella I of Castile, the Spanish Crown amassed a large American empire over three centuries, spreading first from the Caribbean to Central America, most of South America, Mexico, what is today the Southwestern United States, and the Pacific coast of North America up to Alaska.[89][90] These regions formed the majority of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, the Viceroyalty of Peru, the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, and the Viceroyalty of New Granada, in each of which the Spanish monarch was represented by a viceroy. By the early 19th century, however, the Spanish sovereign's possessions in the Americas began a series of independence movements, which culminated in the Crown's loss of all its colonies on the mainland of North and South America by 1825. The remaining colonies of Cuba and Puerto Rico were occupied by the United States following the Spanish-American War, ending Spanish rule in the Americas by 1899.[91]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Absolute primogeniture is being considered. Cite error: The named reference "Prim" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  2. ^ As Queen of the United Kingdom; since 10 June 1973 as Queen of Antigua and Barbuda.
  3. ^ As Queen of the United Kingdom; since 1 November 1981 as Queen of The Bahamas.
  4. ^ As Queen of the United Kingdom; since 30 November 1966 as Queen of Barbados.
  5. ^ As Queen of the United Kingdom; since 21 September 1981 as Queen of Belize.
  6. ^ As Queen of the United Kingdom; since 7 February 1974 as Queen of Grenada.
  7. ^ As Queen of the United Kingdom; since 6 August 1962 as Queen of Jamaica.
  8. ^ As Queen of the United Kingdom; since 19 September 1983 as Queen of Saint Kitts and Nevis.
  9. ^ As Queen of the United Kingdom; since 22 February 1979 as Queen of Saint Lucia.
  10. ^ As Queen of the United Kingdom; since 27 October 1979 as Queen of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
  11. ^ a b Both terms appear in early Colonial texts (including Papeles de Paxbolón) where they are used as synonymous to Aztec and Spanish terms for supreme rulers and their domains – tlahtoani (Tlatoani) and tlahtocayotl, rey, or magestad and reino, señor and señorío, or dominio. Cite error: The named reference "Maya1" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

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Other references

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