King (royalty)

King (royalty), title of a male ruler vested with authority over a single state, nation, or tribe, usually for life and by hereditary succession. The early Teutonic kings were usually elected; this practice ended, however, with the institution of primogeniture. Under the influence of Christianity, kings came to be crowned and anointed by ecclesiastical authority, a practice justified theoretically by the doctrine of the divine right of kings. Kingship by divine right was not successfully challenged until the English Revolution of 1688, or Glorious Revolution, when the power of kings was limited by constitution or custom. Among the civil powers enjoyed by such constitutional monarchs in modern times have been appointments to office, the approval or rejection of legislative measures, the negotiation of treaties, and the granting of clemency and pardon.