Parliament
A legislature representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing government.
A parliament is a law-making body, or legislature, of a state. It typically serves three main purposes: representing the voting public, creating laws, and monitoring the executive branch through hearings and inquiries. Its function is comparable to that of a senate, synod, or congress. A parliament is the institutional form found in parliamentary systems, which are based on the fusion of powers. The word "parliament" is most often used in countries that are or were once monarchies. In some contexts, the term is reserved for parliamentary systems, but it is also applied to the legislature in certain presidential systems—for example, the Parliament of Ghana—even when that is not the official name. Parliaments are usually composed of elected members who serve as legislators.
Historically, parliaments took the form of various deliberative, consultative, and judicial assemblies. During the Middle Ages, parliamentary gatherings helped establish that monarchs were subject to law, and they first summoned representatives of common people—notably the Cortes of León in 1188 and an English parliament in 1265, which evolved into a lasting House of Commons. In the early modern period, Britain’s Glorious Revolution of 1688 established the principle of parliamentary sovereignty, through which the rule of law could be enforced. Many other modern concepts of parliamentary government developed in the Kingdom of Great Britain (1707–1800) and were later exported worldwide. The revolutions of 1848 in Europe largely failed to strengthen parliaments in most countries, as conservative forces regained control and reversed changes, but they made a return to the pre-1848 status quo impossible, leading to gradual, long-term parliamentary development across much of Europe. The expansion of suffrage in the 19th and 20th centuries led to many parliaments around the world becoming democratically elected.
**Etymology**
The English term comes from Anglo-Norman and dates to the 14th century, derived from the 11th-century Old French word *parlement* meaning 'discussion, discourse', from *parler*, 'to talk'. The meaning evolved over time, originally referring to any discussion, conversation, or negotiation through various kinds of deliberative or judicial groups, often summoned by a monarch. By the 15th century in Britain, it had come to specifically mean the legislature.
**Early parliaments**
Since ancient times, when societies were tribal, there were councils or a headman whose decisions were assessed by village elders—a system called tribalism. Some scholars suggest that in ancient Mesopotamia there was a primitive democratic government where kings were assessed by a council. The same has been said about ancient India, where some form of deliberative assemblies existed, implying some form of democracy. However, these claims are not accepted by other scholars, who view these forms of government as oligarchies.
Ancient Athens was the cradle of democracy. The Athenian assembly (ἐκκλησία, ekklesia) was the most important institution, and every free male citizen could take part in discussions. Slaves and women could not. However, Athenian democracy was not representative but direct, so the ekklesia was different from the parliamentary system.
The Roman Republic had legislative assemblies that had the final say on electing magistrates, enacting new statutes, carrying out capital punishment, declaring war and peace, and creating or dissolving alliances. The Roman Senate controlled money, administration, and the details of foreign policy.
Assemblies and councils were prevalent in Europe after the collapse of the Roman Empire. However, these assemblies are distinct from parliaments in several ways: they were not national (unlike parliaments) but localized to smaller pre-state polities; they lacked institutional regularity, formal structure, and distinctive agendas. The Parliament of England is unique in retaining the same parliamentary structure from its establishment in 1265 to the present, almost without interruption.
**England**
**Early forms of assembly**
England has long had a tradition of a body of men who would assist and advise the king on important matters. Under the Anglo-Saxon kings, there was an advisory council, the Witenagemot. The name derives from the Old English *ƿitena ȝemōt*, or *witena gemōt*, meaning "meeting of wise men." The first recorded act of a witenagemot was the law code issued by King Æthelberht of Kent around 600, the earliest surviving document in sustained Old English prose; however, the Witan was certainly in existence long before then. The Witan, along with the folkmoots (local assemblies), is an important ancestor of the modern English parliament.
As part of the Norman Conquest, the new king, William I, did away with the Witenagemot, replacing it with a Curia Regis ("King's Council"). Membership of the Curia was largely restricted to the tenants-in-chief—the few nobles who "rented" great estates directly from the king—along with ecclesiastics. William brought to England the feudal system of his native Normandy and sought the advice of the Curia Regis before making laws. This is the original body from which the Parliament, the higher courts of law, and the Privy Council and Cabinet descend. Of these, the legislature is formally the High Court of Parliament; judges sit in the Supreme Court of Judicature. Only the executive government is no longer conducted in a royal court.
Most historians date the emergence of a parliament with some degree of power, to which the throne had to defer, no later than the reign of Edward I. Like previous kings, Edward called leading nobles and church leaders to discuss government matters, especially finance and taxation. A meeting in 1295 became known as the Model Parliament because it set the pattern for later Parliaments.
- field
- Legislature
- known_for
- Representing the electorate, making laws, overseeing executive government
Lore & Background
Parliaments are deliberative, consultative, and judicial assemblies with a long history. Their appearance varies: some feature facing benches, as in the United Kingdom’s House of Commons, which is said to encourage an adversarial style of debate, while others, like Japan’s House of Representatives, use a hemicycle layout. The National Council of Switzerland offers another example of a parliamentary chamber. The range of parliaments extends across many current and former monarchies, though the term is also applied to legislatures in some presidential systems, such as the Parliament of Ghana. Defining characteristics include representation of the electorate, law-making, and oversight of the executive through hearings and inquiries. Parliaments are typically composed of elected members who serve as legislators. Historically, early parliaments in the Middle Ages established that monarchs were subject to law and first summoned commoners, as seen in the Cortes of León and the English parliament of 1265, which evolved into a lasting House of Commons. The Glorious Revolution of 1688 in Britain cemented parliamentary sovereignty, a concept later exported globally. The revolutions of 1848, though largely failing to strengthen parliaments, made a return to pre-1848 conditions impossible, leading to gradual parliamentary development across Europe. Expansion of suffrage in the 19th and 20th centuries made many parliaments democratically elected.
Reader's Guide
The significance of parliament lies in its evolution from medieval advisory councils to a central institution of democratic governance. Historically, parliaments emerged from assemblies that established that monarchs were subject to law, such as the early summoning of common people in the Cortes of León and the English parliament. The Glorious Revolution of 1688 in Britain established the primacy of parliamentary sovereignty, enforcing the rule of law. Many modern concepts of parliamentary government developed in the Kingdom of Great Britain and were later exported globally. The revolutions of 1848, though largely failing to strengthen parliaments, made a return to pre-revolutionary conditions impossible, leading to gradual parliamentary development across Europe. Expansion of suffrage in the 19th and 20th centuries led to many parliaments becoming democratically elected. Parliament’s legacy includes its role in limiting monarchical power, establishing representative government, and serving as a model for legislatures worldwide. Its effectiveness has varied across different political systems and historical periods, with some parliaments operating in parliamentary systems based on fusion of powers, while others function in presidential systems. The physical arrangement of chambers, such as the facing benches of the UK House of Commons, is said to contribute to an adversarial style of debate, contrasting with the hemicycle layout used in other parliaments.
Did You Know?
- The English term 'parliament' derives from the 11th century Old French word 'parlement' meaning 'discussion, discourse'.
From Colony to Self-Governance: The Long Road to a National Legislature
The New Zealand Parliament did not spring into existence overnight. The breakthrough finally came with the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852, which established a bicameral General Assembly.
How the House Works: Seats, Votes, and Representation
Today's House of Representatives typically fields 120 members, though overhang seats can push that number higher in a given election. Seventy-two MPs win their places by standing directly in geographic electorates, while the remaining seats are allocated to party list candidates according to each party's share of the national party vote—a hybrid design that blends local accountability with proportional fairness. Every three years the chamber is dissolved and voters return to the polls, although the government retains the power to call an early election.
The Upper House That Faded Away
The Legislative Council, serving as the upper house, was initially composed of members appointed for life by the governor. Over time the appointment mechanism shifted: from the 1890s onward, Council members served renewable seven-year terms. Yet the deeper change was political. As responsible government took hold and party politics matured, the sitting government came to control appointments to the Council just as it controlled the lower house. By the twentieth century, a bill's passage through the upper chamber had become little more than a rubber-stamp formality. The Legislative Council Abolition Act 1950 ended the arrangement, with the Council's final sitting occurring at the turn of 1951. At its close it numbered fifty-four members, speaker included. The abolition made New Zealand's legislature fully unicameral—a structure it has maintained for more than seven decades.
The Crown, the Executive, and Parliamentary Supremacy
In New Zealand's constitutional architecture, Parliament holds ultimate authority over every other branch of government. The executive is not a separate entity but is woven directly into the legislature: the prime minister and the cabinet of ministers are drawn from the House of Representatives and remain answerable to it under the principle of responsible government. The monarch—currently King Charles III—and the governor-general play a deliberately limited ceremonial role in lawmaking. They do not debate, amend, or vote on legislation. Their one indispensable act is granting royal assent, the formal signification of the Crown's approval that transforms a passed bill into enacted law. The governor-general also performs the procedural duties of formally summoning a new Parliament and dissolving the sitting one, the latter act triggering a general election. This arrangement preserves the symbolic continuity of the Crown while ensuring that real legislative power rests squarely with elected representatives.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Parliament?
Parliament is a legislative body that serves as the law-making institution of a state. It is the institutional expression of parliamentary systems, where executive and legislative powers are fused rather than strictly separated.
What are Parliament's three core functions?
Parliament represents the electorate, creates and amends laws, and holds the executive government accountable through hearings and inquiries. Together, these roles ensure that governance remains responsive and scrutinized.
How does Parliament differ from a congress or senate?
While Parliament, congress, senate, and synod all perform legislative work, Parliament is specifically tied to parliamentary systems built on the fusion of powers. The institutional relationship between the legislature and the executive is what sets it apart.
Why is Parliament important in a democracy?
Parliament gives citizens a structured channel for representation and a voice in the laws that govern them. It also acts as a check on executive authority by formally scrutinizing government actions through inquiries and oversight hearings.
Where is the term 'parliament' most commonly used?
The word is most frequently found in current or former monarchies, though some non-monarchic states also apply it to their legislature. In certain contexts the term is reserved strictly for parliamentary systems, while others use it more loosely for any law-making body.
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