royalists

Royalists are individuals or groups who advocate for a hereditary monarchy as the legitimate form of government and who typically oppose republics or revolutionary regimes that challenge royal authority. The term encompasses a range of positions, from those seeking a strong monarchical authority to those supporting specific royal dynasties or claims, and who may operate within constitutional or absolute frameworks depending on the era and country.

Historically, the label has been applied in several major contexts. In England and Great Britain, royalists supported the king during the English Civil War (1642–1651), backing Charles I and later the restoration of the monarchy under Charles II after the republican period. Royalist sentiment persisted in various forms through subsequent political upheavals, often tied to competing visions of royal prerogative and parliamentary power. In France, royalists were opponents of revolutionary and republican government, with many taking flight as émigrés during the Revolution and returning or remaining loyal during the Bourbon Restoration in the early 19th century.

In Iberia, royalist movements responded to liberal and constitutional changes. In Spain, Carlists advocated for a different royal line (the Carlist claim) and fought in the Carlist Wars against the liberal government of Isabel II and her successors. In Portugal, royalists supported the Miguelist line during the Liberal Wars of the early 19th century. Similar loyalties and disputes have appeared in other monarchies and post-monarchy contexts, where royalists support constitutional monarchies, restored dynasties, or ongoing monarchical authority.

Today, royalist sentiment often centers on the legitimacy and symbolic authority of a reigning monarchy, though the policies and powers of the monarchy vary widely by country.