Abdoregalism

From the Grecco-Latin stems meaning "removed/hidden king", the term Abdoregalism is used to refer to regimes which maintain symbols and practices inspired by their royalist past but without actually being ruled by a noble head of state.

The term was first coined in the treatis "Les trônes vacants: Études sur les régimes monarchiques de par le monde dénués de roi" [Empty Thrones: Study of Monarchic but Kingless Countries of the World], (2002). In it, scholar and author Pr. David Langevin of Quebec University (Quebec, NF), compared various type of non-nobility based governments that in his view have used an absent king (or person with similar title) as justification for their continuing rule or as a unifying factor. The book contain chapters on many countries including: SNORist Russia, the NAL & New Francy.

The book proved quite controversional with the governments and populations of the various countries involved. They mainly decried what they saw as an unfair comparison between them and other systems, especialy such a universally reviled one as SNORist Russia. To this Pr. Langevin has maintained that the book does not discuss the legitimacy of the various regimes nor indeed imply any common agenda. He once commented that his book would be "no different then a book comparing various countries whose head of state is titled president".

Nevertheless, the book has been banned in at least one country and some bookstores still refuse to stock it. A few months after the release of the book, a press release revealed that the grand mufti of a small emirate (to which a chapter is devoted) declared a fatwa against Pr. Langevin. Because of all this (and despite its author's intentions), the term "Abdoregalism" has evolved a pejorative connotation.

One other result of the release of the book was a re-evalution of various past monarchist currents. This has lead to some obscure systems (such as Kenothronism) being linked together under the umbrella of Abdoregalism.