Britannic Monarchy (Napoleon's Australian Victory)

Empress Elizabeth, current Britannic monarch

The Britannic monarchy is a term used to describe the personal union of the nations of the Britannic Commonwealth. The five independent nations of the Commonwealth: the Indian Empire, Kingdom of Britain, Kingdom of Saint Helena, and Dominions of Van Diemen's Land and Sumatra, all share the Britannic monarchy. In each nation, the monarch has different titles and styles, and possesses a distinct legal personality.

The current Britannic monarch is Elizabeth, who is concurrently Empress of India, and Queen of Britain, Saint Helena, Van Diemen's Land, and Sumatra.

History

The Britannic monarchy can be traced back to the monarchy of the United Kingdom. When that nation was abolished following the 1813 English Campaign of the Napoleonic Wars, the then-king George III and the remainder of the British Royal family and government were forced into exile on Saint Helena, where they established an independent kingdom.

At the same time, the colonial government of Van Diemen's Land, upon hearing of the fall of Britain, declared their independence as a Dominion in personal union with the British crown. British India, still under the control of the British East India Company, remained free and operated as an independent country until 1827, when a large popular movement forced the Company administration to make great reforms. The result was the establishment of the Indian Empire, and Queen Charlotte of Saint Helena and Van Diemen's Land was offered the imperial throne.

Thus in 1830 the Britannic monarchy relocated to India, where it remains based to the present day. In 1930 the Indian residencies of Sumatra and Malay were granted independence as separate kingdoms, with the Britannic monarch as head of state. The loss of the Kingdom of Malay after the Asia-Pacific War was a great blow to the monarchy.

Successive Britannic monarchs had always harboured a dream of regaining the British homeland lost during the Napoleonic Wars. Many Britons in the British successor-state of Scotland shared this dream, and it was one of the many causes of the British Spring conflict which shook Britain from 2013-14. After the upheaval, however, the Britannic faction was able to establish a new Kingdom of Britain over approximately two-thirds of the island, and Empress Elizabeth accepted the queen-ship.

Britannic Realms

Country	Subjects	Capital	Date Established	Monarch's Title
Empire of India	1.3 billion	Delhi	1830	Her Imperial and Royal Majesty, Elizabeth, Empress of India and Sovereign over her other Realms and Territories, Defender of the Faiths. Head of the Britannic Commonwealth
Kingdom of Saint Helena	10,000	Jamestown	1813	Her Majesty, Elizabeth, Queen of Saint Helena and Sovereign over her other Realms and Territories, Defender of the Faith. Head of the Britannic Commonwealth
Dominion of Van Diemen's Land	2 million	Hobart	1813	Her Majesty, Elizabeth, Queen of Van Diemen's Land and Sovereign over her other Realms and Territories. Head of the Britannic Commonwealth
Dominion of Sumatra	50 million	Bencoolen	1930	Her Majesty, Elizabeth, Queen of Sumatra and Sovereign over her other Realms and Territories. Head of the Britannic Commonwealth
Kingdom of Britain	35 million	Edinburgh	2014	Her Royal Majesty, Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Britain and Sovereign over other Realms Territories, Defender the Faith, Liberator Isles. Head Britannic Commonwealth

Role

Political

In each of the five nations sharing the monarchy, the Britannic monarch is the head of state, and the font of all authority. In the four nations in which the monarch does not reside, they are represented by a Governor (or in the case of Britain, by a Viceroy) who exercises royal authority on their behalf. As all five Britannic monarchy states are parliamentary democracies, the monarch, and their representatives, take little active part in the day-to-day running of government. The vast majority of the monarch's functions: passing laws, making appointments, declaring war etc. are carried out only on the advice of the relevant Prime Minister. This does not mean that the monarch is entirely powerless, and there are some functions which they may carry out at their own discretion. For example, it is the duty of the monarch (or their representative) to appoint a Prime Minister after a general election. Whilst this is generally a straightforward matter of simply appointing the leader of the party in the majority in the lower house, in the case of a hung parliament the monarch has the authority to appoint the leader they feel will be most likely to form a majority government. The monarch also has the power to dismiss the Prime Minister in the event that they lose the support of parliament. This so-called "reserve power" is very seldom used. Other prerogatives of the monarch and their representatives include referring legislation of questionable constitutionality to the courts, receiving ambassadors, and making appointments to the Imperial or Royal orders, such as the Guelphic Order (appointments to national orders such as the Order of India, and appointments to the peerages, are made on the advice of the government). The monarch also represents the Britannic states, either collectively or individually, in international gatherings.

Cultural

Since the Fall of Britain in 1813, the Britannic monarch has been viewed by Britannic people across the world as a symvol of the enduring nature of the British people and their institutions. Political scientists speculate that one of the main reasons that republicanism has never gained a solid foothold in the Britannic nations is that the monarchy is such an ingrained part of the ethno-national consciousness that the concept of "British-ness" could not exist without the monarchy.

In the Britannic Commonwealth

Since the establishment of the Britannic Commonwealth in the early years of the Twentieth Century, the Britannic monarch has also held the title of Head of the Britannic Commonwealth. The monarch presides over the biennial Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) and opens the quadrennial Britannic Games.

List of Britannic Monarchs

No.	Portrait	Regnal name	Reign over the Britannic Realms		Full name	Consort
1		George I (1738-1820) House of Hanover	15 May 1813	29 January 1820	George William Frederick	Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
			Titles: King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1760-1813, King of Saint Helena 1813-1820, King of Van Diemen's Land 1813-1820
2		Charlotte (1796-1877) House of Hanover	29 January 1820	5 May 1877	Charlotte Augusta	Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
			Titles: Queen of Saint Helena 1820-1877, Queen of Van Diemen's Land 1820-1877, Empress of India 1830-1877 Succession Right:Granddaughter of George I
3		George II (1817-1881) House of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld	5 May 1877	16 July 1881	George Leopold	Maria of Portugal
			Titles: Emperor of India 1877-1881, King of Saint Helena 1877-1881, King of Van Diemen's Land 1877-1881 Succession Right:Son of Charlotte
4		Frederick (1835-1912) House of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld	16 July 1881	2 August 1912	Frederick William	Aalyia of Bansda-in-Gujarat
			Titles: Emperor of India 1881-1912, King of Saint Helena 1881-1912, King of Van Diemen's Land 1881-1912 Succession Right:Son of Charlotte, Brother of George II
5		Alexandra (1867-1936) House of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld	2 August 1912	20 January 1936	Alexandra Charlotte Victoria	William of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
			Titles: Empress of India 1912-1936, Queen of Saint Helena 1912-1936, Queen of Van Diemen's Land 1912-1936, Queen of Sumatra 1930-1936, Queen of Malay 1930-1936 Succession Right:Daughter of Frederick
6		George III (1895-1952) House of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld	20 January 1936	6 February 1952	Richard George	Anna of Iceland
			Titles: Emperor of India 1936-1952, King of Saint Helena 1936-1952, King of Van Diemen's Land 1936-1952, King of Sumatra 1936-1952, King of Malay 1936-1949 Succession Right:Son of Alexandra
7		Elizabeth (1926-present) House of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld	6 February 1952	Present	Elizabeth Anna	Malhar of Boroda
			Titles: Empress of India 1952-present, Queen of Saint Helena 1952-present, Queen of Van Diemen's Land 1952-present, Queen of Sumatra 1952-present, Queen of Britain 2013-present Succession Right:Daughter of George III