How is ot legal under EU law to have a monarchy which forbids catholics taking the throne?

Question

The monarch is also an unelected head of state!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11

Answer 1

I'm Catholic, but I think it would be wrong to have a Catholic monarch for one simple reason; the Queen is the Head of the Church of England. I wouldn't like it if an Anglican became Pope.

About the monarchy being undemocratic; if there was a referendum on whether to keep the monarchy or not, the Queen would win easily. I have never heard a republican call for such a referendum, they just want parliament to abolish the monarchy.

In practice, the Queen rules at the pleasure of her subjects. If her popularity ever dropped, the MPs would move to get rid of her, but that won't happen. The Queen as an average approval rating of 75%, most politicians would kill to have ratings that high. Also, the monarchy is a lot cheaper than a republic would be. 66p per person per year is a bargain. For that we get a link to a thousand years of history and a unifying national figure most countries are envious of.

Having a non-political head of state can be very useful. For example, if a tyrannical Prime Minister even managed to get to power, the monarch would be the only one who could remove such a PM and call an election. This is what happened in Thailand after the 1981 coup, when the King stepped in to restore democracy. In a sense, the UK's unelected head of state is democracy's last line of defence.

Answer 2

if you aren't British why do you care?!

I have never understood why people in one country become outraged by the laws of another... personally i really don't care what the laws of your country are.. if you choose to live under that law.. that is your business.. .isn't' that what democracy is about... allowing each subgroup to create the rules that THEY feel are best to live under?!

Answer 3

What throne?

Answer 4

The marriage of Lord Nicholas Windsor, youngest child of the Duke and Duchess of Kent, to Paola Doimi de Frankopan in 2006, is thought to be the first British royal marriage to take place at the Vatican since the Reformation. It was blessed by the Queen, who has written to the couple paying tribute to their shared devoutness.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk...

The Laws in relation to this area are currently in the process of change.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...

As for the Monarchy being unelected, as a constitutional monarch, The Queen does not 'rule' the country, but fulfils important ceremonial and formal roles as Head of State.

http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page4676....

I also agree with the previous poster, and I am sure the people of Britain (including myself) can decide this issue for themselves.

Answer 5

True the monarch is an unelected head of state, but a monarch can be forced to abdicate the throne.

I assume you are speaking of Britain. It's truly one of those laws that has never been taken away even if they aren't going to enforce it.

Take Minnesota for example, they have a law that if a woman is driving a car that the husband has to run in front of the car with flags warning people around them that a woman is driving the car. Of course, this certainly isn't done, but they've just never removed it from the books.

When this law was being put into effect, most of Britain was in turmoil because of the constant flip flopping of religions. One monarch was Catholic and making it the country religion and then the next was Anglican and making the country that religion.

As a way to "break away" from Catholic influence, Parliament created the law that no Catholic could take the throne, thus making Britain into an Anglican country and also making it that no Scottish prince or princess could take the throne either.

I doubt this law is still effectively used, but as it stands, most people in Britain aren't Catholic anyway. And pretty much all of royalty has been raised as Anglican and thus remain so.