In the early modern period, the discourse on divine right of monarchy reached a peak. At the same time, depositions of monarchs by their own subjects increased as well, events which were — in theory — not possible within the political ideology of divine right. This chapter argues that the theory of divine right and the practice of depositions did indeed complement each other when taking a closer look both at the ideas of divinely legimitated monarchy and of the course of events during a deposition. In particular, the role of the dynasty and of the form of government within divine right of monarchy is discussed further and identif ied as central to early modern political thought.
political culture
,Northern Europe
,political thought
,depositions
,divine right of monarchy
