On the record
An ordinary hereditary sovereign--a William IV., or a George IV.--is unfit to exercise the peer-creating power when most wanted.
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Walter Bagehot
Source
gutenberg.orgWalter Bagehot: “An ordinary hereditary sovereign--a William IV., or a George IV.--is unfit to exercise the peer-creating power when most…”
Editor's note · Context
Bagehot argues that hereditary monarchs like William IV and George IV are unsuitable for exercising critical powers during crises.
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More from Walter Bagehot
I cannot, therefore, join in the full cry against anomalies; in my judgment it may quickly overrun the scent, and so miss what we should be glad to find.
But it is natural also that persons used to analyse political institutions should look at these anomalies with a little tenderness and a little interest.
It is natural that those who by special and admirable culture have come to look at all things upon the artistic side, should start back from these queer peculiarities.
I own that I do not entirely sympathise with the horror of these anomalies which haunts some of our best critics.
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