Do the British royalty have any actual authority in government?
The British monarch has specific governmental duties, and the U.K. parliament literally can’t open or close without the crown’s permission. But today’s queen has little real influence. Britain’s constitutional monarchy puts the sovereign at the head of the executive branch of government. She appoints the prime minister and is the only one who can summon or dissolve parliament. The queen has to give royal assent before any bill from parliament becomes law. The sovereign is head of the country’s armed forces and the only one who can declare war. In reality, the monarch hasn’t dissolved parliament of his or her own accord since 1818. The crown simply picks the leader of the majority party as prime minister. Roy
