King in Council, or Royal Majesty, (most formally ''Konungen i Statsrådet'', but a term for it most often used in legal documents was Kunglig Majestät or short form Kungl.Maj:t or K.M:t. in

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

) was a term of constitutional importance that was used in Sweden before 1975 when the

1974 Instrument of Government The Basic Laws of Sweden ( sv, Sveriges grundlagar) are the four constitutional laws of the Kingdom of Sweden that regulate the Swedish political system, acting in a similar manner to the constitutions of most countries. These four laws are: t ...

came into force. ''Royal Majesty'' denoted several functions, but most importantly, it was the commonly used term that designated the supreme

executive authority The Executive, also referred as the Executive branch or Executive power, is the term commonly used to describe that part of government which enforces the law, and has overall responsibility for the governance of a state. In political systems ba ...

under the

1809 Instrument of Government The 1809 Instrument of Government ( sv, 1809 års regeringsform), adopted on 6 June 1809 by the Riksdag of the Estates and King Charles XIII, was the constitution of the Kingdom of Sweden from 1809 to the end of 1974. It came about as a result ...

: where the

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

made all decisions of state in the presence of his cabinet ministers. The 1974 Instrument of Government removed the Monarch from all exercise of formal political powers and created its successor: the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

( sv, Regeringen) chaired and led in all aspects by the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

History of the term ''Kunglig Majestät''

The term ''Kunglig Majestät'' was earliest in use in Sweden in the 16th century, when the

King of Sweden The monarchy of Sweden is the monarchical head of state of Sweden,See the Instrument of Government, Chapter 1, Article 5. which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system.Parliamentary system: see the Instrument ...

and other kings in Europe began to use the title

Majesty Majesty (abbreviated HM for His Majesty or Her Majesty, oral address Your Majesty; from the Latin ''maiestas'', meaning "greatness") is used as a manner of address by many monarchs, usually kings or queens. Where used, the style outranks the st ...

, which only the Holy Roman Emperor earlier used. The prefix "Royal" was probably added to differ the title from the

Imperial Majesty Imperial Majesty (''His/Her Imperial Majesty'', abbreviated as ''HIM'') is a style used by Emperors and Empresses. It distinguishes the status of an emperor/empress from that of a King/Queen, who are simply styled Majesty. Holders of this style h ...

. Originally the term ''Kunglig Majestät'' therefore referred to the

Monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority and power i ...

personally but later only to him (her) as a Sovereign in the Privy Council (Council of State) (Swedish: ''Statsrådet'' "Council of State", before 1789 ''Riksrådet'' "Council of the Realm"). Most commonly, decisions in the council required the king's formal participation. But when the king was away in other countries, or in remote parts within the country, the Council of State could reign in his name (sections 39–43 in the Instrument of Government 1809). After 1863, the

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

, or if he was prevented, the nearest in line to the throne, could reign as Regent (Swedish: ''Regent'') in the king's name. When there was no person in line to the throne available, the Council of State alone again could reign in the king's or the crown's name. The same rules are today used in the new

Instrument of Government The Instrument of Government was a constitution of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland. Drafted by Major-General John Lambert in 1653, it was the first sovereign codified and written constitution in England. Antecedence The ' ...

when the king is unable to fulfil his duties, but the title now is '' riksföreståndare,'' instead of Regent. "Riksföreståndare" is a historic Swedish title with medieval roots. The term ''Kunglig Majestät'' was also used by three courts acting on the king's behalf and using the king's seal according to section 23 in the 1809 Instrument of Government. This was a remnant from the Judicial committee – ''Justitierevisionen'' ("the Justice revision") of the Privy Council or the Council of the Realm (Swedish: ''Riksrådet''), before the Supreme Court was established in 1789. The different uses of the term ''Kunglig Majestät'' were thus: *''Kungl. Maj:t i Statsrådet'' ("The King in the

Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head o ...

"),''Lilla Uppslagsboken'', edition of 1964-1967, binding 6, Förlagshuset Norden AB, Nordens boktryckeri, Malmö 1974, column 25; and ''Nordisk Familjebok, Encyklopedi och konversationslexikon'', edition of 1952 (the fourth), Förlagshuset Norden AB, Förlagshuset Nordens Boktryckeri, Malmö 1953, 13th binding, column 34 (both in Swedish). *''Kungl. Maj:t i kommandokonselj'' ("The King in the 'Command Council' "), i.e. with military advisers (mostly the Minister for Defence) from the Ministry of Defence (Swedish: ''Försvarsdepartementet'') *''Kungl. Maj:t i Högsta Domstolen'' ("The King in the Supreme Court) *''Kungl. Maj:t i Regeringsrätten'' ("The King in the Supreme Administrative Court") *''Kungl. Maj:t i Kammarrätten'' ("The King in the Administrative High Court")

Current usage

Today, with the exception of remnants of previous usage, the term Royal Majesty is at present in Sweden only used for Royal orders of knighthood, .''Royal Court of Sweden''
"The

Royal Court of Sweden The Royal Court of Sweden ( sv, Kungliga Hovstaterna) is the official name for the organisation ( royal households) that supports the monarch, and the royal house. The incumbent monarch, King Carl XVI Gustaf, is head of the Royal Court. The Royal ...

designates the order as being the ''Order of Knights'' and the order is in their English translation designated as ''Order of His Majesty the King''."

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:King In Council (Sweden) Swedish monarchy Legal history of Sweden Royal styles

History of the term ''Kunglig Majestät''

Current usage

See also

References

External links