Dynasty
Meaning of Dynasty
From Wikipedia:
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Aย dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,ย usually in the context of aย monarchicalย system, but sometimes also appearing inย republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a “house“, “family” or “clan“, among others. The longest surviving dynasty in the world is theย Imperial House of Japan, otherwise known as the Yamato dynasty, whose reign is traditionally dated toย 660 BCย and historically attested fromย AD 781.[citation needed]
Historiansย periodizeย the histories of many states andย civilizations, such asย Ancient Iranย (3200 – 539 BC),ย Ancient Egyptย (3100 โ 30 BC) andย Ancient and Imperial Chinaย (2070 BC โ AD 1912), using a framework of successive dynasties. As such, the term “dynasty” may be used to delimit the era during which a family reigned.
Before the 18th century, most dynasties throughout the world have traditionally been reckonedย patrilineally, such as those that follow theย Frankishย Salic law. In polities where it was permitted, succession through a daughter usually established a new dynasty in her husband’s family name. This has changed in all of Europe’s remaining monarchies, whereย succession lawย and conventions have maintained dynastic namesย de jureย through a female.
Dynastic politics has declined over time, owing to a decline in monarchy as a form of government, a rise in democracy, and a reduction within democracies of elected members from dynastic families.
Etymology
The wordย dynastyย derives fromย Latinย dynastia, which comes fromย Ancient Greekย ฮดฯ ฮฝฮฑฯฯฮตฮฏฮฑย (dynastรฉia), where it referred to ‘power’, ‘dominion’, and ‘rule’ itself.ย It was theย abstract nounย ofย ฮดฯ ฮฝฮฌฯฯฮทฯย (dynรกstฤs),ย theย agent nounย ofย ฮดฯฮฝฮฑฮผฮนฯย (dynamis) ‘power” or ‘ability’,ย fromย ฮดฯฮฝฮฑฮผฮฑฮนย (dรฝnamai) ‘to be able’.
Terminology
The word “dynasty” is sometimes used informally for people who are not rulers but are, for example, members of a family with influence and power in other areas, such as a series of successive owners of a major company. It is also extended to unrelated people, such as major poets of the same school or various rosters of a single sports team.
The dynastic family or lineage may be known as a “noble house”,ย which may beย styledย as “imperial”, “royal”, “princely”, “ducal”, “comital” or “baronial”, depending upon the chief or presentย titleย borne by its members.
Dynast
A ruler from a dynasty is sometimes referred to as a “dynast”, but this term is also used to describe any member of a reigning family who retains aย right to succeedย to aย throne. For example,ย King Edward VIIIย ceased to be a dynast of theย House of Windsorย following his abdication.
In historical andย monarchistย references to formerly reigning families, a “dynast” is a family member who would have had succession rights, were the monarchy’s rules still in force. For example, after the 1914 assassinations ofย Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austriaย and hisย morganaticย wife, their sonย Maximilian, Duke of Hohenberg, was bypassed for the Austro-Hungarian throne because he was not aย Habsburgย dynast. Even after theย abolitionย of the Austrian monarchy, Duke Maximilian and his descendants have not been considered the rightful pretenders by Austrian monarchists, nor have they claimed that position.
The term “dynast” is sometimes used only to refer toย agnaticย descendants of a realm’s monarchs, and sometimes to include those who hold succession rights throughย cognaticย royal descent. The term can therefore describe overlapping but distinct sets of people. For example,ย David Armstrong-Jones, 2nd Earl of Snowdon, a nephew ofย Queen Elizabeth II, is in theย line of succession to the British crown; making him a British dynast. On the other hand, since he is not a patrilineal member of the British royal family, he is therefore not a dynast of the House of Windsor.
Comparatively, the German aristocratย Prince Ernst August of Hanover, a male-line descendant ofย King George III, possesses no legal British name, titles or styles (although he is entitled to reclaim the formerย royal dukedomย ofย Cumberland). He was born in the line of succession to the British throne and was bound by Britain’sย Royal Marriages Act 1772ย until it was repealed when theย Succession to the Crown Act 2013ย took effect on 26 March 2015.ย Thus, he requested and obtained formal permission from Queen Elizabeth II to marry the Roman Catholicย Princess Caroline of Monacoย in 1999. Yet, a clause of the Englishย Act of Settlement 1701 remained in effect at that time, stipulating that dynasts who marry Roman Catholics are considered “dead” for the purpose of succession to the British throne.ย That exclusion, too, ceased to apply on 26 March 2015, with retroactive effect for those who had been dynasts before triggering it by marriage to a Roman Catholic.
Dynastic marriage
A “dynastic marriage” is one that complies with monarchicalย house lawย restrictions, so that the descendants are eligible to inherit the throne or other royal privileges. For example, the marriage ofย King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlandsย toย Mรกxima Zorreguietaย in 2002 was dynastic, making their eldest child,ย Princess Catharina-Amalia, theย heir apparentย to the Crown of the Netherlands. The marriage of his younger brother,ย Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau, in 2003 lacked government support and parliamentary approval. Thus, Prince Friso forfeited his place in theย order of succession to the Dutch throne, and consequently lost his title as a “Prince of the Netherlands”, and left his children without dynastic rights.
History
Historiansย periodizeย the histories of many states andย civilizations, such asย Ancient Iranย (3200 – 539 BC),ย Ancient Egyptย (3100 โ 30 BC) andย Ancient and Imperial Chinaย (2070 BC โ AD 1912), using a framework of successive dynasties. As such, the term “dynasty” may be used to delimit the era during which a family reigned, and also to describe events, trends and artifacts of that period (e.g., “aย Ming dynastyย vase”). Until the 19th century, it was taken for granted that a legitimate function of a monarch was to aggrandize his dynasty: that is, to expand the wealth and power of his family members.
Before the 18th century, most dynasties throughout the world have traditionally been reckonedย patrilineally, such as those that follow theย Frankishย Salic law. In polities where it was permitted, succession through a daughter usually established a new dynasty in her husband’s family name. This has changed in all of Europe’s remaining monarchies, whereย succession lawย and conventions have maintained dynastic namesย de jureย through a female. For instance, theย House of Windsorย will be maintained through the children ofย Queen Elizabeth II, as it did with theย monarchy of the Netherlands, whose dynasty remained theย House of Orange-Nassauย through three successiveย queens regnant. The earliest such example among major European monarchies was in theย Russian Empireย in the 18th century, where the name of theย House of Romanovย was maintained throughย Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna. This also happened in the case ofย Queen Maria II of Portugal, who marriedย Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Kohรกry, but whose descendants remained members of theย House of Braganza, per Portuguese law; in fact, since the 1800s, the only female monarch in Europe who had children belonging to a different house wasย Queen Victoriaย and that was due to disagreements over how to choose a non German house. Inย Limpopo Provinceย ofย South Africa,ย Balobeduย determined descentย matrilineally, while rulers have at other times adopted the name of their mother’s dynasty when coming into her inheritance. Less frequently, a monarchy has alternated or been rotated, in a multi-dynastic (or polydynastic) systemโthat is, the most senior living members of parallel dynasties, at any point in time, constitute the line of succession.
Longevity
Dynasties lasting at least 250 years include the following. Legendary lineages that cannot be historically confirmed are not included.
| Era | Dynasty | Length of rule |
|---|---|---|
| 781 CE โ present (attested)[citation needed] | Yamato | 2803 years |
| 3rd Century BCE – 1618 CE | Pandya | 2018 years est. |
| 3rd Century BCE – 1279 CE | Chola | 1579 years est. |
| 57 BCE โ 935 CE | Silla | c.โ1000ย years |
| 950s CE โ present (titleย Tuสปi Tongaย to 1865 CE) |
Tonga | c.1068 years (c.โ910ย years) |
| c.โ780ย โ 1812 CE | Bagrationi | c.โ1032ย years |
| c.โ1700ย BCE โ 722 BCE | Adaside | c.โ978ย years |
| 665 โ 1598 CE | Baduspanids | 933 years |
| 987 โ 1792 CE and 1814 โ 1848 | Capetian | 839 years |
| 1046โ256 BCE | Zhouย (Western Zhouย andย Eastern Zhou) | 790 years |
| 37 BCE โ 668 CE | Goguryeo | 705 years |
| 1270 โ 1974 CE | Solomon | 704 years |
| 651 โ 1349 CE | Bavand dynasty | 698 years |
| 1299 โ 1922 CE | Ottoman | c.โ623ย years |
| 1228 โ 1826 CE | Ahom | 598 years |
| 1326 โ 1884 CE | Sisodia | 558 years |
| 1392 โ 1910 CE | Joseonย andย Korean Empire | 518 years |
| 750 โ 1258 CE | Abbasid | 508 years |
| 1370 โ 1857 CE | Timurid | 487 years |
| 918 โ 1392 CE | Goryeo | 474 years |
| 247 BCE โ 224 CE | Arsacid | 471 years |
| 202 BCE โ 9 CE, 25 โ 220 CE | Hanย (Western Hanย andย Eastern Han) andย Shu Han | 448 years |
| 858 – 1301 CE | รrpรกd | 443 years |
| 224 โ 651 CE | Sassanian | 427 years |
| 1010 BCE โ 586 BCE | Davidic | 424 years |
| 730 BCE โ 330 BCE | Achaemenid | 400 years |
| 1271 โ 1635 CE | Yuanย andย Northern Yuan | 364 years |
| 1428 โ 1527, 1533 โ 1789 CE | Later Lรชย (Primitive Lรช andย Revival Lรช) | 355 years |
| 1440 โ 1740, 1765 โ 1806 CE | Habsburg | 341 years |
| 1154 โ 1485 CE | Plantagenet | 330 years |
| 1699 โ present | Bendahara | 323 years |
| 960 โ1279 CE | Songย (Northern Songย andย Southern Song) | 319 years |
| 1613 โ 1917 CE | Romanov | 304 years |
| 916 โ 1218 CE | Liaoย andย Western Liao | 302 years |
| 1616 โ 1912 CE | Later Jinย andย Qing | 296 years |
| 1368 โ 1662 CE | Mingย andย Southern Ming | 294 years |
| 305 โ 30 BCE | Ptolemaic | 275 years |
| 618 โ 690, 705 โ 907 CE | Tang | 274 years |
| 1550 โ 1292 BCE | Thutmosid | 258 years |
Extant sovereign dynasties
There areย 43 sovereign statesย with aย monarchย asย head of state, of which 41 are ruled by dynasties.ย There are currently 26 sovereign dynasties.
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Political families
Though inย electedย governments, rule does not pass automatically by inheritance, political power often accrues to generations of related individuals in the elected positions ofย republics, andย constitutional monarchies. Eminence,ย influence,ย tradition,ย genetics, andย nepotismย may contribute to the phenomenon.
Family dictatorships are a different concept in which political power passes within a family because of the overwhelming authority of the leader, rather than informal power accrued to the family…”
Tag:Dynasty
