The terms minority reign and royal minority refer to the period of a sovereign's rule when he or she is legally a minor. Minority reigns are of their nature times when politicians and advisors can be especially competitive. Some scholars claim that, in Britain, primogeniture, the growth of conciliar government, and the emergence of the Parliament as a representative and administrative force all occurred within the context of the minority reigns.
Minority reigns also characterized a period in the Roman Empire from 367 to 455, the years that preceded the reign of Valentinian III, who also became emperor at the age of six. The succession of child-turned-adult emperors led to the so-called infantilization of the imperial office, which had taken hold during the long reign of Honorius, Valentinian's predecessor. Here, the imperial office operated within a severely curtailed system compared to its authority a century prior.
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