So is this survey a load of crap then?
Also does anyone know the different functions of the different EU monarchies? Are all just figureheads, except Monaco and Leichenstein, or do some have more power.
In theory, nearly all continental European monarchs (the main exception being the King of Sweden, see details below) have the power, among other things, to:
- Appoint and dismiss government ministers, including the prime minister.
- Summon, adjourn and dissolve parliament, and call elections.
- Sanction and promulgate (or veto) laws, and introduce legislation.
- Appoint and dismiss other state officials, like judges and ambassadors.
All actions above, however, are normally legally valid only if countersigned by one or more government ministers, who take responsibility for the monarch's actions (as the monarch him/herself is said to be "inviolable"). In the case of appointment of prime ministers or dissolutions of parliament, other special rules also often apply, mostly having to do with whether the government has majority support in the parliament or not.
Sweden in particular is a special case in the sense that the Swedes went one step further and passed a new constitution in 1974 under which the monarch remains the ceremonial Head of State, but is completely separated from the government and the parliament. Unlike his/her European counterparts then, the Swedish king (or queen) now plays no role whatsoever in appointing ministers, dissolving parliament, calling elections, or introducing and sanctioning legislation, and is no longer the head of the Armed Forces either. As Head of State, however, it is still the King who formally signs the credentials of the Swedish ambassadors posted overseas and formally receives the credentials of foreign diplomats posted in Sweden.
It is also noteworthy that, although the Swedish monarch is not part of the government, the Swedish constitution nevertheless mandates that the government keep the monarch informed of state affairs and, accordingly, the King regularly chairs special "Councils of State" where he is formally briefed by the ministers, in addition to being also continuously informally briefed by the prime minister. Furthermore, the constitution also mandates that a new prime minister take office in a Council of State in the presence of the King and, by tradition, the King still addresses the parliament at the beginning of each legislative session before the prime minister officially presents the government's legislative agenda. More significantly, the King also retains a constitutional role in international relations as the chair of the Foreign Affairs Advisory Council, which must be consulted by the government before any major foreign policy decision is taken.