Monarchs are also subject to selection by how good they are at defending themselves against foreign threats. Europe was almost constantly at war as one monarch tried to take land from another.

@rob

but need clarification on what is meant here.

yeah fair enough. I think the way I'm interpreting it, if you gave me 40 candidates and asked me to rank them, I would be able to easily sort into 5 or 6 piles, and then have to think harder for the actual order inside each pile.

@jack-waugh Ok. although I ignore categories as I browse via the recent page

Hi all,
Sorry for the delay, but this thread was recently brought up again as an example so I'd like to post a comment addressing the Code of Conduct issues raised.

Making the forum welcoming for new (and old) people is important. To that aim, we do have a code of conduct that can be helpful.

It includes this: "Please make an effort to stay on topic and to not waste people's time. Keep in mind that this is a volunteer-driven project, and that time contributed by participants and moderators is appreciated and valued. Try to keep all discussions relevant to voting theory and reform efforts. Avoid sweeping generalizations or assumptions."