She also owns the third-largest country, Canada. First among these is Australia, which, if its Antarctic territories are included, is the second-largest country on earth. This constitutional statement includes some vast territories where the Queen is quite separately the sovereign head of state and legal owner. Her legal title runs thus: “by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith”. It is, in fact, the British crown and its wearer, Elizabeth II. But the core surviving feudal structure in the modern world is inherited, transnational and covers many countries. Today we have two kinds of feudal state: the inherited state, usually with a monarch at its head, such as the UK and the state that claims ownership of all land and is feudal in its conception and often totalitarian, such as China. With the expansion of the British empire, this version of the feudal system was imposed on about a quarter of the world.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |