Some people think the King of England is just a sybolic role. And people there say the monarch in the UK reigns but he doesn't rule. That really isn't correct, actually either one of those things. The monarch does have a job, a very important job. He's the head of state. The prime minister is the head of government. (In the US, the president is both the head of state and of government.) And as head of state, he outranks everyone, although he has very few remaining powers. But he does still have a lot of so-called residual powers. He has the sole power to pardon. And he must sign legislation for it to become law. (The last monarch to veto legislation was Queen Anne in the 1700's.) And he must open parliament. Or it can't conduct business. Every year they do a ceremony, which they say goes back to the reign of King Charles I in the 1600's. The king sends his Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod (usually just called Black Rod) to give them permission to open parliament that year. (The king would never do that. Because among other things, the king is never allowed in the House of Commons. He'd literally be arrested if he even tried to enter.) Then as they see Black Rod approach, they symbolically slam the door in his face. This really happened in 1642, which is why they still do it. They do it, they say, to symbolize their independence from the monarchy. Then Black Rod lifts his rod above his head (she's a woman now) and knocks three times. Always three. And they eventually let him in, and another session begins. King Charles fought parliament in the English Civil War. And the relationship between parliament and the monarchy has never been good since then. Actually, parliament had King Charles I executed on January 30, 1, 1649, for treason.
Also, you know the prime minister might be elected to that office (actually elected by whoever is in the majority in parliament). But not really. Actually the British monarch appoints the prime minister, but always going along with the will of the people. (The last time the monarch appointed someone who was his choice was in 1834.) Here: Prime Minister of the United Kingdom - Wikipedia. I just share this information because I find this subject fascinating.
