y the crown and entire ministry conjointly. The king
acts independently as the commander-in-chief of the land and naval
forces of the kingdom. He may conclude treaties and alliances with
foreign powers, after having consulted the minister of state, the
minister of foreign affairs, and one other member of the Council. But
if he wishes to declare war or to conclude peace he must convene in
special session the full membership of the Council and must require of
each member separately his opinion. "The king may then," it is
stipulated, "make and execute such a decision as he considers for the
best interests of the country."[826] In other words, in such a matter
the king is obliged to consult, but not necessarily to be guided by,
his ministerial advisers.

[Footnote 826: Art. 13. Ibid., 223.]

In general, it may be affirmed that this is the principle which
underlies the organization of the Swedish executive. After having been
prepared by one or more of the ministers, projects are considered by
the king in council; but the right of ultimate decision rests with the
king. It is thus that appointments to all national offices are made,
titles of nobility are conferred, ordinances are promulgated, texts of
new laws are framed, and questions of peace and war are determined.
Nominally, the ministers are responsible to the Riksdag for all acts
of the Government. But the constitution plainly states that after
matters have been discussed in the Council "the king alone shall have
the power to decide."[827] If the king's decision is palpably (p. 591)
contrary to the constitution or the general laws, the ministers are
authorized to enter protest. But that is all that they may do. The
ministers have seats in the Riksdag, where they participate in debate
and, in the name of the crown, initiate legislation. But their
responsibility lies so much more directly to the king than to the
legislature that what is commonly understood as the parliamentary
system can hardly be said to exist in the kingdom.

[Footnote 827: Art. 9. Dodd, Modern Constitutions,
II., 221.]

II. THE RIKSDAG: ELECTORAL SYSTEM

*653. Establishment of the Bicameral System, 1866.*--Until past the
middle of the nineteenth century the Swedish Riksdag, or diet,
comprised still an assemblage of the four estates of the realm--the
nobles, the clergy, the burghers, and the peasants. Throughout several
decades a prepo