How European countries lost their monarchy. Countries with absolute monarchy

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A monarchical state or, in other words, a monarchy is a state in which power, in whole or in part, belongs to one person - the monarch. It can be a king, a king, an emperor, or, for example, a sultan, but any monarch rules for life and transfers his power by inheritance.

Today there are 30 monarchical states in the world and 12 of them are monarchies in Europe. the list of countries-monarchies located in Europe, which is given below.

List of monarchies in Europe

1. Norway - kingdom, constitutional monarchy;
2. Sweden - kingdom, constitutional monarchy;
3. Denmark - a kingdom, a constitutional monarchy;
4. Great Britain - a kingdom, a constitutional monarchy;
5. Belgium - kingdom, constitutional monarchy;
6. The Netherlands - a kingdom, a constitutional monarchy;
7. Luxembourg - duchy, constitutional monarchy;
8. Liechtenstein - principality, constitutional monarchy;
9. Spain - kingdom, parliamentary constitutional monarchy;
10. Andorra - a principality, a parliamentary principality with two co-rulers;
11. Monaco - principality, constitutional monarchy;
12. The Vatican is a papal state, an elective absolute theocratic monarchy.

All monarchies in Europe are countries in which the form of government is a constitutional monarchy, that is, one in which the power of the monarch is significantly limited by an elected parliament and the constitution adopted by it. The only exception is the Vatican, where absolute rule is exercised by an elected Pope.

Currently, monarchies (we are talking about constitutional forms of government) exist in many European countries, including the most developed of them. For example, in all the Scandinavian countries there are reigning rulers: in Sweden - Carl XVI Gustaf, in Norway - Harald V, in Denmark - Queen Margaret II. One of the highest standards of living is in Luxembourg, which, in fact, is also a constitutional monarchy in terms of the form of government. Luxembourg has a GDP per capita of over $100,000. In addition to these countries, the monarchy is also preserved in Spain, Great Britain, Belgium, the Netherlands and some dwarf states - Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco. It is interesting that another new monarch appeared not so long ago - this is the newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron. This happened because since the time of the Middle Ages, the French ruler receives the title of co-ruler of Andorra, which Macron became.

Evolution of European Monarchies

Monarchies began to disappear en masse in Europe in the 20th century. If we look at Europe at the beginning of the last century, we will see that almost all countries of that time had a monarchical form of government - the only exception was the French Republic (at that time already the Third, now the Fifth Republic in France). Back in the 19th century, there were disputes about who the French were - monarchists or republicans. These views changed along with the form of government in France: after the plebiscite proclaimed Emperor Napoleon, after it there was the Restoration and a short resumption of the rule of the Bourbon dynasty, which survived another revolution.

In 1848, a republic was again restored in France, but Napoleon's nephew, elected president, decided to return imperial power to his family. However, the defeat in the Franco-Prussian War and other problems led to another change in the political system in favor of the republic. At present, the external symbols of the French Republic are purely revolutionary: the banner, the Marseillaise, Marianne. Although the uniform of the guardsmen is Napoleonic. This is a pretty important difference. The descendants of Napoleon are still alive in France to this day, although some of them adhere to socialist views.

Queen Elizabeth II and Commonwealth Prime Ministers, May 1960

// wikipedia.org

The most famous of modern monarchies is, of course, British. In England, talk periodically breaks out that the monarchy should be abolished and a republic should be introduced. But the British like the monarchy, it is a kind of symbol of the country. Residents of republics in this sense can find it difficult to understand those who live in kingdoms: they do not understand why a monarchy is needed at all. Indeed, the existence of constitutional monarchies in the modern world, in modern Europe, seems almost absurd: the king, for example, in Sweden has absolutely no power, but everyone honors and respects him, despite the fact that he suffers from dyslexia.

king and law

Modern monarchs also violate established traditions when entering into marriages. For example, the current king of Norway, Harald V, did not look for a bride among persons of royal blood. While still crown prince, he fell in love with Sonya Haraldsen, whom he secretly dated for nine years. Sonya came from a wealthy family, she was engaged in design, but according to the then laws, Harald could not marry her. When he threatened to give up the throne in order to marry her, the Norwegian government decided to revise the law of succession to the throne. As a result, Harald married his chosen one in 1968. He was followed by the Swedish king Carl XVI Gustaf, who made Silvia Sommerlath of German-Brazilian origin his queen.

Another legal precedent is associated with the Swedish royal family: Queen Silvia first gave birth to a daughter, Victoria, and Prince Carl Philip was born second. According to the then Swedish laws, Karl Philip should have the first right to the throne. But since Victoria was first proclaimed crown princess, after the birth of the prince, serious debate unfolded on the topic of whether to transfer the title of heir to a newborn boy or leave it to Victoria. A more liberal point of view has won, so now Victoria is first in line for the Swedish throne (by the way, in 2010 she married her fitness trainer).

King of Sweden Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia at the celebration in honor of the 40th anniversary of the coronation, September 15, 2013

// wikipedia.org

Now the visits of kings and members of their families to other countries, including Russia, are an important reason for strengthening international ties, especially in business. For many businessmen and company representatives, meetings at the level of heads of state, which formally are the kings of Sweden, Norway and the queen of Denmark, are of great importance.

Norway is a more democratic country, its inhabitants rarely remember the king, and even the heir to the throne, Haakon, while studying at the naval school, did not particularly advertise his origin, lived among other students, and they did not recognize him until a rumor spread that that he is from the royal family. After graduating from Berkeley, he even wanted to renounce the throne, besides, he had all the data for a good start in ordinary life: education, capital, the opportunity to get a good job. In the modern world, a lot of formalities that burden the life of royal families seem to be something completely unnecessary, and at the same time they do not give real powers. Naturally, sometimes the temptation to give up the crown is great. However, the prince was persuaded not to leave the throne: after all, his duty to his homeland. Nevertheless, he, like his “colleagues”, married a girl of non-royal blood, whose biography was also the subject of extensive discussion: by the time of the engagement, she managed to give birth to a child whose father was in prison at that time for drug trafficking, and she herself she confessed to using them. Nevertheless, after deliberation, the government agreed to this marriage, but her son did not receive a title of nobility.

The way of life of monarchs

The royal family is not completely, but only partially, as a rule, supported by the state budget. There is, of course, the so-called civil list - the amount allocated from the budget for the maintenance of the monarch, his family, home, court, as well as expenses for art and charity. Sometimes this amount can be quite large. In the UK, the Civil List was abolished in 2012 and replaced by a Royal Grant, which is now renewed every year. This is due to the fact that in England the amount of the civil list was usually approved for the entire period of the reign of the monarch, but over the past decades, the pound sterling has noticeably depreciated.

Buckingham Palace, the official residence of the British monarchs

// wikipedia.org

In Sweden, the size of the civil list is approved by the Riksdag. But in addition, the king has, for example, his own farm. And the most common type of business for royal families is the exploitation of their own title and image of the royal family. Postcards, books, brochures, all kinds of souvenirs are produced in large quantities, which ultimately brings families a significant income. Publications about newborns in the royal family come out almost every year - the whole country can follow the growing up of the heir. The royal family usually has its own photographer, who has the right to arrange photo shoots for them for such souvenir publications. Such products are usually very popular with tourists and generally work to maintain the image of the monarchy.

The symbolism of the monarchy is reflected in many state signs, in particular on state money. The rulers themselves take part in this: for example, in Denmark, Queen Margrethe II of her youth was traditionally depicted on coins, and when the question arose of making her image more relevant, reflecting age-related changes, she herself spoke in favor of this.

The same Danish queen has a spouse - a Frenchman of non-royal origin, so he only has the title of prince consort. At the same time, neither the queen nor the prince-consort has real power. They can participate in the opening of a meeting of parliament, formally approve the composition of the government - after all, the queen is formally the head of the executive branch. These are all symbols of royalty. And even the radical left parties are not so actively in favor of the introduction of the republic - the image of the monarchy is so familiar and important.

Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and Prince Consort Henrik of Denmark in Stockholm, at the wedding of the Swedish Princess Victoria, 2010

// wikipedia.org

Monarchies during World War II

During World War II, when Denmark and Norway were occupied by the Germans, the Norwegian king managed to emigrate to England. Nevertheless, he was considered the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of Norway, which resisted the Germans, and said that the struggle does not stop as long as there is at least one occupier on the territory of Norway. His wife and son were in Sweden at the time, and Norway actually surrendered to the Germans in June 1940. The Germans planned to declare a four-year-old prince as ruler and appoint regents, so it was necessary to take the Norwegian royal family out of Sweden. This was done with the help of special services through the territory of Finland, adjacent to the ocean. Then they were sent to America.

The royal family and the little prince became a symbol of resistance, he was even enrolled in the Norwegian Air Force, which was based in Canada. Photos of a little boy in military uniform circulated everywhere. The Danish king was under house arrest in Copenhagen. Nevertheless, he performed various symbolic actions: he rode a horse, walked without guards. Crowds often gathered around him - this was such a sign of Danish resistance to the initially mild German occupation. After the war, there was no longer much republican sentiment in Northern Europe. Now the royal families in these countries are an important symbol.

From absolute to constitutional monarchy: the case of Sweden

The transition from absolute to constitutional monarchies occurred gradually. In England, this happened at the beginning of the 18th century, and before that, as you know, there was. In Sweden, starting from the 16th century, the Vasa dynasty ruled (before that, the country was under the control of Denmark), and from that moment they count their new history. They had a so-called mixed monarchy: there was a king, there was an aristocracy, there was also a parliament - the Riksdag. And each was considered a source of power, so there was a constant struggle between them. Moreover, the Riksdag included four estates: the nobility, the clergy, the burghers and the peasants, which was not the case in other countries. Therefore, the internal political history of Sweden for a long time was like a tug-of-war: for example, in 1632 the king died, his six-year-old daughter Christina remained queen, under whom a regency council was immediately created, the aristocrats began to empty the treasury, sign off their possessions, and so on. However, when the queen matured and came of age, they had to stop. Christina was a strong ruler, very educated, but she soon got tired of power and in 1654 she abdicated, bequeathing the reign to her husband Carl Gustav of the Palatinate. After him, royal power and absolutism were successfully developed by Charles XI, and then by Charles XII, well known in Russia thanks to.

Charles XII, King of Sweden from 1697 to 1718

// wikipedia.org

It is noteworthy that in Denmark and Sweden at that moment there was a so-called constitutional absolutism, no matter how contradictory it may sound. It was written in the laws that all power belongs to the king. Charles XII was already an absolute monarch, although the Riksdag was preserved under him, but the state council became royal with advisory functions. But, as we know, Charles XII devoted himself to foreign policy and wars and therefore left no heirs. Moreover, having left Stockholm in 1700, he never returned there. His military campaigns greatly crippled the financial condition of the country. In addition, the Swedish noblewomen simply had no one to marry: all the young nobility went to fight the king, many died. Many had to marry a commoner and lose their noble status.

Charles XII died during a campaign against Norway. His death has long been the subject of controversy and all sorts of conspiracy theories: were his enemies killed, or his own, who were tired of fighting, or even the British? As a result, after his death, two of his sisters remained, one of whom, Ulrika Eleonora, the wife of a Hessian prince, became queen. But she was forced to sign many conditions, as a result of which she practically lost power.

This period, associated with an increase in civil rights, lasted until 1772 and was called the "era of freedom." In 1772, King Gustav III made a coup and temporarily restored absolutism, becoming one of the enlightened rulers of Europe. It is noteworthy that he talked and corresponded quite a lot with Catherine II (not so long ago they published their full correspondence - in French, of course, the language; it is curious that they mostly discussed not politics, but the upbringing of children and other everyday issues). But in 1792 he was killed at the opera. The throne was taken by his son, Gustav IV, who was overthrown in 1809. His uncle, brother of Gustav III, Duke Karl of Södermanland ascended the throne, who went down in history under the name of Charles XIII. But he was already old and had no legitimate heirs. His reign fell on the era of the Napoleonic Wars. Everything that happened ended with the Napoleonic Marshal Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte coming to power, who founded a new dynasty that rules in Sweden to this day. The descendants of Jean-Baptiste in the last quarter of the 19th century carried out a series of reforms that contributed to the expansion of the powers of the Riksdag, as a result of which Sweden finally became a constitutional monarchy.

Note: CM - constitutional monarchy;

AM - absolute monarchy;

ATM is an absolute theocratic monarchy.

Republican form of government originated in antiquity, but became most widespread in the periods of modern and recent history. In 1991, there were 127 republics in the world, but after the collapse of the USSR and Yugoslavia, their total number exceeded 140.

Under a republican system, the legislature usually belongs to the parliament, and the executive - to the government. At the same time, a distinction is made between presidential, parliamentary and mixed republics.

Presidential republic characterized by a significant role of the president in the system of state bodies, the combination in his hands of the powers of the head of state and head of government. It is also called a dualistic republic, thereby emphasizing the fact that the strong executive power is concentrated in the hands of the president, and the legislative power is in the hands of the parliament.

Distinctive features of this form of government:

extra-parliamentary method of electing the president (either by the population - Brazil, France, or by the electoral college - the USA),

· extra-parliamentary method of forming the government, that is, it is formed by the president. The president is both formally and legally the head of government (there is no prime minister as in the United States), or he appoints the head of government. The government is only responsible to the president and not to the parliament, since only the president can dismiss him,

In general, with this form of government, the president has much greater powers compared to a parliamentary republic (he is the head of the executive branch, approves laws by signing, has the right to dismiss the government), but in a presidential republic, the president, as a rule, is deprived of the right to dissolve parliament , and the parliament is deprived of the right to express no confidence in the government, but can remove the president (impeachment procedure).

The classical presidential republic is the United States of America. The United States Constitution is based on the principle of separation of powers. According to this constitution, legislative power belongs to the Congress, executive - to the president, judicial - to the Supreme Court. The president, elected by the electoral college, forms the government from persons belonging to his party.

Presidential republics are common in Latin America. This form of government is also found in some countries of Asia and Africa. True, sometimes in these countries the power of the head of state actually goes beyond the constitutional framework, and, in particular, the Latin American presidential republics were characterized by researchers as super-presidential.

Parliamentary (parliamentary) republic characterized by the proclamation of the principle of the supremacy of parliament, to which the government bears full responsibility for its activities.

In such a republic, the government is formed by parliamentary means from among the deputies of the parties that have a majority of votes in parliament. It remains in power as long as it has the support of a parliamentary majority. This form of government exists in countries with developed, largely self-regulating economies (Italy, Turkey, Germany, Greece, Israel). Elections under such a system of democracy are usually held according to party lists, that is, voters do not vote for a candidate, but for a party.

The main function of the parliament, in addition to the legislative, is to control the government. In addition, the parliament has important financial powers, since it develops and adopts the state budget, determines the ways of the country's socio-economic development, and decides on the main issues of the state's domestic, foreign and defense policy.

The head of state in such republics, as a rule, is elected by the parliament or a specially formed broader board, which includes, along with members of the parliament, representatives of the subjects of the federation or representative regional self-government bodies. This is the main form of parliamentary control over the executive branch.

In Italy, for example, the president of the republic is elected by the members of both chambers at their joint meeting, but at the same time, three representatives from each region, elected by regional councils, participate in the elections. In the Federal Republic of Germany, the President is elected by the Federal Assembly, consisting of the members of the Bundestag and an equal number of persons elected by the Landtags on the basis of proportional representation. In parliamentary republics, elections can also be universal, for example, in Austria, where the president is elected by the population for a term of 6 years.

Under this form of government, one speaks of a "weak" president. However, the head of state has fairly broad powers. He promulgates laws, issues decrees, has the right to dissolve parliament, formally appoints the head of government (only the head of the party that won the election), is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and has the right to grant amnesty to convicts.

The president, being the head of state, is not the head of the executive branch, that is, the government. The prime minister is formally appointed by the president, but this can only be the head of the faction with a parliamentary majority, and not necessarily the head of the winning party. It should be noted that the government is competent to govern the state only when it enjoys the confidence of parliament.

mixed republic(also called a semi-presidential, semi-parliamentary, presidential-parliamentary republic) - a form of government that cannot be considered a variety of either a presidential or a parliamentary republic. Of the modern, mixed ones include the fifth republic in France (after 1962), Portugal, Armenia, Lithuania, Ukraine and Slovakia.

A special form of state government - socialist republic (which arose in the 20th century in a number of countries as a result of the victory of socialist revolutions). Its varieties: the Soviet Republic and the People's Democratic Republic (the former USSR, the countries of Eastern Europe until 1991, as well as China, Vietnam, North Korea, Cuba, which remain socialist republics to this day).

The republican form of government can be considered the most progressive and democratic. It was chosen for themselves not only by economically developed states, but also by most of the countries of Latin America that freed themselves from colonial dependence in the last century, and almost all former colonies in Asia that gained independence in the middle of our century, as well as African states, most of which achieved independence only in the 60-70s of the XX century. and even later.

At the same time, it must be borne in mind that such a progressive form of government by no means unifies the republics. They are quite different from each other in political, social and other respects.

It should be noted a peculiar form of government - interstate associations: Commonwealth, UK led (commonwealth) and Commonwealth of Independent States(CIS, which includes Russia).

Legally, the British Commonwealth of Nations was formalized back in 1931. Then it included Great Britain and its dominions - Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, Newfoundland and Ireland. After the Second World War and the collapse of the British colonial empire, the Commonwealth included the absolute majority of the former possessions of Britain - about 50 countries with a total territory of more than 30 million km 2 and a population of over 1.2 billion people located in all parts of the world.

Members of the Commonwealth have the unconditional right to unilaterally withdraw from it whenever they wish. They were used by Myanmar (Burma), Ireland, Pakistan. All states that are members of the Commonwealth have full sovereignty in their internal and external affairs.

In Commonwealth states that have a republican form of government, the Queen of Great Britain is proclaimed "the head of the Commonwealth ... a symbol of a free association of independent states - its members." Some members of the Commonwealth - Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia (Australia), New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Tuvalu, Mauritius, Jamaica and some others - are officially referred to as "states within the Commonwealth". The supreme power in these countries formally continues to belong to the British monarch, who is represented in them by the governor-general, appointed on the recommendation of the government of this state. The supreme body of the Commonwealth is the conference of heads of government.

In 1991, simultaneously with the signing of the Belovezhskaya agreements on the dissolution of the USSR, it was decided to create Commonwealth of Independent States(Russia, Ukraine, Belarus). Subsequently, all the former republics of the USSR joined the CIS, except for the three Baltic states. Objectives: to promote the integration of the CIS member countries in the economic, political and humanitarian fields, to maintain and develop contacts and cooperation between peoples, state institutions of the Commonwealth countries. The CIS is an open organization for other countries to join. Over the years, sub-regional associations emerged within the CIS: the Central Asian Economic Community (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Russia, Georgia, Turkey and Ukraine were accepted as observers) and GUUAM (Georgia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Moldova). In 1996, the Customs Union was created, uniting the economic space of Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan (subsequently Tajikistan joined them. In October 2000, the Eurasian Economic Community (EurAsEC) was formed on the basis of the customs union. Continue to form among the member countries CIS and military-political associations (for example, the Collective Security Treaty) In September 2008, after the conflict in South Ossetia, Georgia announced its desire to leave the Commonwealth.

Form of government(administrative-territorial structure of states) is an important element of the political map of the world. It is directly related to the nature of the political system and the form of government, reflects the national-ethnic (in some cases also confessional) composition of the population, historical and geographical features of the formation of the country.

There are two main forms of administrative-territorial structure - unitary and federal.

unitary state - this is a single integral state formation, consisting of administrative-territorial units, which are subordinate to the central authorities and do not possess signs of state sovereignty. In a unitary state, there is usually a single legislative and executive power, a single system of state bodies, a single constitution. Such states in the world - the vast majority.

Federation - a form of structure in which several state entities that legally have a certain political independence form one union state.

Characteristic features of the federation:

The territory of the federation consists of the territories of its individual subjects (for example, states - in Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Venezuela, India, USA; provinces - in Argentina, Canada; cantons - in Switzerland; lands - in Germany and Austria; republics, as well as other administrative entities (autonomous districts, territories, regions - in Russia);

Federal subjects are usually given the right to adopt their own constitutions;

The competence between the federation and its subjects is delimited by the federal constitution;

Each subject of the federation has its own legal and judicial systems;

In most federations, there is a single union citizenship, as well as citizenship of union units;

The federation usually has a single armed forces, a federal budget.

In a number of federations in the union parliament there is a chamber representing the interests of the members of the federation.

However, in many modern federal states, the role of general federal bodies is so great that they can essentially be considered as unitary, rather than federal states. Thus, the constitutions of such federations as Argentina, Canada, the USA, Germany, Switzerland do not recognize the right of the members of the federation to secede from it.

Federations are built along territorial (USA, Canada, Australia, etc.) and national lines (Russia, India, Nigeria, etc.), which largely determine the nature, content, and structure of the state system.

Confederation - it is a temporary legal union of sovereign states, created to ensure their common interests (members of the confederation retain their sovereign rights in both internal and external affairs). Confederate states are short-lived: they either disintegrate or turn into federations (examples: the Swiss Union, Austria-Hungary, and the United States, where a federation of states was formed from a confederation established in 1781, enshrined in the US Constitution of 1787).

Most of the world's states are unitary. Today only 24 states are federations (Table 4).

Modern political science can give a complete description of any form of state (the structure of the political organization of society) based on the form of government, the form of the state-territorial structure and the type of political regime.

Forms of government

The form of government is a way of organizing the supreme state power. There are two forms of government - monarchy and republic. Monarchy, in turn, can be of such types as:

• absolute (all the fullness of executive, legislative and judicial power is concentrated in the hands of the monarch);
• constitutional or parliamentary (the power of the monarch is limited by the constitution, the real executive and legislative power is in the hands of the parliament elected or formed by the people);
• dualistic (power is divided equally between the monarch and parliament);
• theocratic (power is in the hands of the spiritual leader who heads this or that denomination).

The republican form of government exists in such forms as

• presidential (power is concentrated in the hands of the elected president);
• parliamentary (the country is led by parliament or the prime minister; the president performs only representative functions);
• mixed (power is divided between parliament and the president).

Form of state-territorial structure

The forms of the state-territorial structure are a way of interconnection and interaction of individual parts of the state, enshrined in the constitution. There are forms like

• federation (an alliance of relatively independent subjects, subordinate in all important matters to the political center);
• unitary state (a single and indivisible state, consisting only of administrative units);
• confederation (a temporary union of states completely independent from each other).

Political regimes

The political regime is a set of methods and ways of exercising state power. There are such types of political regimes as

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• democratic (power is in the hands of the people, civil rights and freedoms are both declared and actually work);
• undemocratic (power is in the hands of the ruling elite, the political minority, civil rights and freedoms are only declared, they do not work in practice).

A non-democratic political regime also has certain subspecies: authoritarian and totalitarian (the difference lies in the level of control of power over society).

Most of the countries of foreign Europe are republics of various types with democratic political regimes. The Republics of Foreign Europe are France, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Austria.

But, despite this, there are a large number of countries in foreign Europe with a monarchical form of government. How many are there?

Monarchies of Foreign Europe

Which states can be included in the list of "Monarchist countries of foreign Europe"? It can be represented as follows.

Fig. 1 Ruling royal house of Windsor

The Vatican is not the only state with an elective theocratic absolute monarchy. The second state is Iran, where the spiritual leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, held power for a long time.

Thus, a fairly large number of large European countries are monarchies. Their share is especially great in Northern Europe abroad (if you look at their location on the map).

Rice. 2 Political map of foreign Europe

Almost all modern dynasties are connected by blood ties. The royal house of Great Britain, the Windsors, are representatives of both the Saxon-Coburg - Goth dynasty and the Glücksburg dynasty. The oldest unbroken dynasty is the princely house of Grimaldi. The throne has been passed down in a straight line from father to son for 700 years.

Fig. 3 Head of the ruling house of Monaco - Prince Albert II Grimaldi

What have we learned?

Most of the monarchical countries of Foreign Europe are constitutional monarchies. This means that all legislative, executive and judicial power is in the hands of Parliament and an elected Prime Minister or Chancellor. The monarch plays a representative role, although he can speak out on key issues of foreign and domestic policy. In some countries, such as the UK, the monarch is a significant figure in the political arena. Elizabeth II, the reigning queen, actively interfered in the activities of many prime ministers: Margaret Thatcher, Tony Blair and others.

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