What is "apostolic king"

King \King\, n. [AS. cyng, cyning; akin to OS. kuning, D. koning, OHG. kuning, G. k["o]nig, Icel. konungr, Sw. konung, Dan. konge; formed with a patronymic ending, and fr. the root of E. kin; cf. Icel. konr a man of noble birth. [root]44. See Kin.]

1. A chief ruler; a sovereign; one invested with supreme authority over a nation, country, or tribe, usually by hereditary succession; a monarch; a prince. ``Ay, every inch a king.''
   --Shak.

   Kings will be tyrants from policy, when subjects are rebels from principle.
   --Burke.

   There was a State without king or nobles.
   --R. Choate.

   But yonder comes the powerful King of Day, Rejoicing in the east
   --Thomson.

2. One who, or that which, holds a supreme position or rank; a chief among competitors; as, a railroad king; a money king; the king of the lobby; the king of beasts.

3. A playing card having the picture of a king[1]; as, the king of diamonds.

4. The chief piece in the game of chess.

5. A crowned man in the game of draughts.

6. pl. The title of two historical books in the Old Testament. Note: King is often used adjectively, or in combination, to denote pre["e]minence or superiority in some particular; as, kingbird; king crow; king vulture. Apostolic king. See Apostolic. King-at-arms, or King-of-arms, the chief heraldic officer of a country. In England the king-at-arms was formerly of great authority. His business is to direct the heralds, preside at their chapters, and have the jurisdiction of armory. There are three principal kings-at-arms, viz., Garter, Clarencieux, and Norroy. The latter (literally north roy or north king) officiates north of the Trent. King auk (Zo["o]l.), the little auk or sea dove. King bird of paradise. (Zo["o]l.), See Bird of paradise. King card, in whist, the best unplayed card of each suit; thus, if the ace and king of a suit have been played, the queen is the king card of the suit. King Cole, a legendary king of Britain, who is said to have reigned in the third century. King conch (Zo["o]l.), a large and handsome univalve shell ( Cassis cameo), found in the West Indies. It is used for making cameos. See Helmet shell, under Helmet. King Cotton, a popular personification of the great staple production of the southern United States. King crab. (Zo["o]l.)

   1. The limulus or horseshoe crab. See Limulus.

   2. The large European spider crab or thornback ( Maia squinado).

   3. A large crab of the northern Pacific ( Paralithodes camtshatica), especially abundant on the coasts of Alaska and Japan, and popular as a food; called also Alaskan king crab. King crow. (Zo["o]l.)

      1. A black drongo shrike ( Buchanga atra) of India; -- so called because, while breeding, they attack and drive away hawks, crows, and other large birds.

      2. The Dicrurus macrocercus of India, a crested bird with a long, forked tail. Its color is black, with green and blue reflections. Called also devil bird.

         King duck (Zo["o]l.), a large and handsome eider duck ( Somateria spectabilis), inhabiting the arctic regions of both continents.

         King eagle (Zo["o]l.), an eagle ( Aquila heliaca) found in Asia and Southeastern Europe. It is about as large as the golden eagle. Some writers believe it to be the imperial eagle of Rome.

         King hake (Zo["o]l.), an American hake ( Phycis regius), found in deep water along the Atlantic coast.

         King monkey (Zo["o]l.), an African monkey ( Colobus polycomus), inhabiting Sierra Leone.

         King mullet (Zo["o]l.), a West Indian red mullet ( Upeneus maculatus); -- so called on account of its great beauty. Called also goldfish.

         King of terrors, death.

         King parrakeet (Zo["o]l.), a handsome Australian parrakeet ( Platycercys scapulatus), often kept in a cage. Its prevailing color is bright red, with the back and wings bright green, the rump blue, and tail black.

         King penguin (Zo["o]l.), any large species of penguin of the genus Aptenodytes; esp., Aptenodytes longirostris, of the Falkland Islands and Kerguelen Land, and Aptenodytes Patagonica, of Patagonia.

         King rail (Zo["o]l.), a small American rail ( Rallus elegans), living in fresh-water marshes. The upper parts are fulvous brown, striped with black; the breast is deep cinnamon color.

         King salmon (Zo["o]l.), the quinnat. See Quinnat.

         King's counsel, or Queen's counsel (Eng. Law), barristers learned in the law, who have been called within the bar, and selected to be the king's or queen's counsel. They answer in some measure to the advocates of the revenue (advocati fisci) among the Romans. They can not be employed against the crown without special license.
         --Wharton's Law Dict.

         King's cushion, a temporary seat made by two persons crossing their hands. [Prov. Eng.]
         --Halliwell.

         The king's English, correct or current language of good speakers; pure English.
         --Shak.

         King's evidence or Queen's evidence, testimony in favor of the Crown by a witness who confesses his guilt as an accomplice. See under Evidence. [Eng.]

         King's evil, scrofula; -- so called because formerly supposed to be healed by the touch of a king.

         King snake (Zo["o]l.), a large, nearly black, harmless snake ( Ophiobolus getulus) of the Southern United States; -- so called because it kills and eats other kinds of snakes, including even the rattlesnake.

         King's spear (Bot.), the white asphodel ( Asphodelus albus).

         King's yellow, a yellow pigment, consisting essentially of sulphide and oxide of arsenic; -- called also yellow orpiment.

         King tody (Zo["o]l.), a small fly-catching bird ( Eurylaimus serilophus) of tropical America. The head is adorned with a large, spreading, fan-shaped crest, which is bright red, edged with black.

         King vulture (Zo["o]l.), a large species of vulture ( Sarcorhamphus papa), ranging from Mexico to Paraguay, The general color is white. The wings and tail are black, and the naked carunculated head and the neck are briliantly colored with scarlet, yellow, orange, and blue. So called because it drives away other vultures while feeding.

         King wood, a wood from Brazil, called also violet wood, beautifully streaked in violet tints, used in turning and small cabinetwork. The tree is probably a species of Dalbergia. See Jacaranda.

Apostolic \Ap`os*tol"ic\, Apostolical \Ap`os*tol"ic*al\, a. [L. apostolicus, Gr. ?: cf. F. apostolique.]

1. Pertaining to an apostle, or to the apostles, their times, or their peculiar spirit; as, an apostolical mission; the apostolic age.

2. According to the doctrines of the apostles; delivered or taught by the apostles; as, apostolic faith or practice.

3. Of or pertaining to the pope or the papacy; papal.

   Apostolical brief. See under Brief.

   Apostolic canons, a collection of rules and precepts relating to the duty of Christians, and particularly to the ceremonies and discipline of the church in the second and third centuries.

   Apostolic church, the Christian church; -- so called on account of its apostolic foundation, doctrine, and order. The churches of Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem were called apostolic churches.

   Apostolic constitutions, directions of a nature similar to the apostolic canons, and perhaps compiled by the same authors or author.

   Apostolic fathers, early Christian writers, who were born in the first century, and thus touched on the age of the apostles. They were Polycarp, Clement, Ignatius, and Hermas; to these Barnabas has sometimes been added.

   Apostolic king (or majesty), a title granted by the pope to the kings of Hungary on account of the extensive propagation of Christianity by St. Stephen, the founder of the royal line. It is now a title of the emperor of Austria in right of the throne of Hungary.

   Apostolic see, a see founded and governed by an apostle; specifically, the Church of Rome; -- so called because, in the Roman Catholic belief, the pope is the successor of St. Peter, the prince of the apostles, and the only apostle who has successors in the apostolic office.

   Apostolical succession, the regular and uninterrupted transmission of ministerial authority by a succession of bishops from the apostles to any subsequent period.
   --Hook.

Apostolic King was a hereditary title borne by the King of Hungary.

The Habsburg dynasty saw themselves as the heir of Saint Stephen (ca. 997–1038), and argued that Pope Sylvester II had bestowed this title on Saint Stephen. The king's efforts to Christianize his people led to his comparison to one of the apostles. It was first used by the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I (1657–1705) as King of Hungary. The title was last used in the reign of Charles IV (1916–18).

The title is comparable to Spain's Catholic, Portugal's Most Faithful Majesty and France's Most Christian Majesty.

The Pope Confers the Royal Title. A Letter of Pope Sylvester II to Stephen of Hungary, 1000.

Migne, 139, cols. 274 ff.

Previous to this time, it was considered the emperor’s right to confer the royal title and to elevate a person to the rank of king. Here, for the first time in the history of the papacy, a pope confers the royal title, thereby encroaching on the imperial prerogative. Otto III, who was then emperor, did not resist this papal infringement of his rights. Later popes were not slow to see the value of this act as a precedent (see nos. 69, 72, 128), and exercised the right to confer titles and dignities as they pleased. This act of Sylvester II is, therefore, an important milestone in the history of the development of the papal prerogatives.

The Pope Confers the Royal Title: