Privy Council

The Privy Council is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign, historically comprising senior politicians, judges, bishops, and other distinguished figures appointed by the Crown. By the nineteenth century, its political importance as a body had greatly diminished, with effective executive authority exercised through the Cabinet, but membership remained an important distinction and carried the title Right Honourable. The Council continued to perform formal constitutional functions, including approving certain Orders in Council, royal charters, and appointments.