Editing Divine right of kings (section)

== Concept ==
Divine right has been a key element of the self-legitimization of many [[absolute monarchy|absolute monarchies]], connected with their authority and right to rule.  Related but distinct notions include [[Caesaropapism]] (the complete subordination of bishops etc. to the secular power), [[Acts of Supremacy|Supremacy]] (the legal sovereignty of the civil laws over the laws of the Church), [[Absolutism (European history)|Absolutism]] (a form of monarchical or despotic power that is unrestrained by all other institutions, such as churches, legislatures, or social elites) or [[Tyranny]] (an absolute ruler who is unrestrained even by [[Moral absolutism|moral law]]).

Historically, many notions of [[rights]] have been [[authoritarianism|authoritarian]] and [[hierarchy|hierarchical]], with different people granted different rights and some having more rights than others. For instance, the right of a father to receive respect from his son did not indicate a right for the son to receive a return from that respect. Analogously, the divine right of kings, which permitted absolute power over subjects, provided few rights for the subjects themselves.<ref name=tws21decfrre>{{cite news
|title = Divine Right of Kings
|quote = [...] the idea that a king was sacred, appointed by God and above the judgment of earthly powers [...] was called the Divine Right of Kings and it entered so powerfully into British culture during the 17th century that it shaped the pomp and circumstance of the Stuart monarchs, imbued the writing of Shakespeare and provoked the political thinking of Milton and Locke.
|website = [[BBC]]
|date = October 11, 2007
|url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/inourtime/inourtime_20071011.shtml
|access-date = December 21, 2009
}}
</ref>

It is sometimes signified by the phrase "[[by the Grace of God]]" or its [[Latin]] equivalent, ''Dei Gratia'', which has historically been attached to the titles of certain reigning monarchs. Note, however, that such accountability only to God does not ''per se'' make the monarch a [[sacred king]].