Editing Constitutional monarchy (section)

====England, Scotland and the United Kingdom====

In the [[Kingdom of England]], the [[Glorious Revolution]] of 1688 furthered the constitutional monarchy, restricted by laws such as the [[Bill of Rights 1689]] and the [[Act of Settlement 1701]], although the first form of constitution was enacted with [[Magna Carta]] of 1215. At the same time, in [[Kingdom of Scotland|Scotland]], the [[Convention of Estates (1689)|Convention of Estates]] enacted the [[Claim of Right Act 1689]], which placed similar limits on the Scottish monarchy.

[[Anne, Queen of Great Britain|Queen Anne]] was the last monarch to veto an Act of Parliament when, on 11 March 1708, she blocked the [[Scottish Militia Bill]]. However Hanoverian monarchs continued to selectively dictate government policies. For instance [[King George III]] constantly blocked [[Catholic Emancipation in Britain|Catholic Emancipation]], eventually precipitating the resignation of [[William Pitt the Younger]] as prime minister in 1801.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Hague|first1=William|title=William Pitt the Younger|date=2004|publisher=HarperCollins|location=London|isbn=0007147198|pages=469–472|edition=1st}}</ref> The sovereign's influence on the choice of prime minister gradually declined over this period. [[William IV of the United Kingdom|King William IV]] was the last monarch to dismiss a prime minister, when in 1834 he removed [[Lord Melbourne]] as a result of Melbourne's choice of [[Lord John Russell, 1st Earl Russell|Lord John Russell]] as Leader of the House of Commons.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Hurd|first1=Douglas|title=Robert Peel – a biography|date=2007|publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson|location=London|isbn=978-0297848448|pages=169–170|edition=1st}}</ref><ref name="Mitchell">{{cite book|last1=Mitchell|first1=L.G.|title=Lord Melbourne 1779–1848|date=1997|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=New York|isbn=0198205929|page=147|edition=}}</ref> [[Queen Victoria]] was the last monarch to exercise real personal power, but this diminished over the course of her reign. In 1839, she became the last sovereign to keep a prime minister in power against the will of Parliament when the [[Bedchamber crisis]] resulted in the retention of Lord Melbourne's administration.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Mitchell|first1=L.G.|title=Lord Melbourne 1779–1848|date=1997|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=New York|isbn=0198205929|pages=241–242|edition=}}</ref> By the end of her reign, however, she could do nothing to block the unacceptable (to her) premierships of [[William Ewart Gladstone|William Gladstone]], although she still exercised power in appointments to the Cabinet. For example, in 1886 she vetoed Gladstone's choice of [[Hugh Childers]] as War Secretary in favour of [[Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Wilson|first1=John|title=CB - A life of Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman|url=https://archive.org/details/cblifeofsirhenry0000wils|url-access=registration|date=1973|publisher=Constable and Company Limited|location=London|isbn=009458950X|pages=[https://archive.org/details/cblifeofsirhenry0000wils/page/161 161–162]|edition=}}</ref>

Today, the role of the British monarch is by convention effectively ceremonial.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Parliament and Crown |url=https://www.parliament.uk/about/how/role/relations-with-other-institutions/parliament-crown/ |access-date=22 February 2024 |website=UK Parliament}}</ref> The [[British Parliament]] and the [[Government of the United Kingdom|Government]] – chiefly in the office of [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom]] – exercise their powers under [[Royal prerogative|"royal (or Crown) prerogative"]]: on behalf of the monarch and through powers still formally possessed by the monarch.{{sfn |Dunt|2015}}{{sfn|Parliamentary staff|2010}}

No person may accept significant public office without swearing an [[Oath of Allegiance (United Kingdom)|oath of allegiance to the King]].{{sfn|Sear|2001|page=3}} With few exceptions, the monarch is bound by [[Constitutional conventions of the United Kingdom|constitutional convention]] to act on the [[advice (constitutional)|advice]] of the government.