Bearers
Among the reigning monarchs of Europe, the title is currently carried by the sovereigns of Belgium, Luxembourg, and Spain. The present king chose not to relinquish the ancient titles of the Spanish crown, but he does not use them.
The current King of Lesotho, the Prince of Monaco and the Prince of Liechtenstein have not been awarded the title despite being Roman Catholics; the monarchs of Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Tonga, and the United Kingdom are Protestant; and the remaining world monarchs are of other religions.
One of the rights of a "Most Catholic" queen – either regnant or consort – is the privilège du blanc, meaning that she may wear white when meeting the Pope rather than the normal black used by other consorts and heads of state.
The best-known example of this title is the Catholic Monarchs (Los Reyes Católicos), used solely in reference to Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon.
In the past, some monarchs with this title have also been granted the right to other specific styles:
- Hungary: His Apostolic Majesty (awarded c. 1000, renewed in 1758)
- France: His Most Christian Majesty (awarded c. 1380)
- Portugal: His Most Faithful Majesty (awarded in 1748)
Read more about this topic: Rex Catholicismus
Famous quotes containing the word bearers:
“I wish glib and indiscriminate critics of industrialists had some conception of the problems that have to be met by factory management.... General condemnation of employers is a favorite indoor sport of the uninformed intelligentsia who assume the role of lance- bearers for labor.”
—Mary Barnett Gilson (1877–?)
“If we do take statements to be the primary bearers of truth, there seems to be a very simple answer to the question, what is it for them to be true: for a statement to be true is for things to be as they are stated to be.”
—J.L. (John Langshaw)
“This death’s livery which walled its bearers from ordinary life was sign that they have sold their wills and bodies to the State: and contracted themselves into a service not the less abject for that its beginning was voluntary.”
—T.E. (Thomas Edward)