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| | United Kingdom: History, Geography, Government, and Culture — FactMonster.com |
 | | The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy, with a queen and a parliament that has two houses: the House of Lords, with 574 life peers, 92 hereditary peers, and 26 bishops; and the House of Commons, which has 651 popularly elected members. |
 | | The reign of Henry II (1154–1189), first of the Plantagenets, saw an increasing centralization of royal power at the expense of the nobles, but in 1215 King John (1199–1216) was forced to sign the Magna Carta, which awarded the people, especially the nobles, certain basic rights. |
 | | His brother, James II (1685–1688), possessed none of Charles II's ability and was ousted by the Revolution of 1688, which confirmed the primacy of parliament. |
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