History of the Riksdag that the number of seats from 1977 were to be reduced to 349. In 1974 a new Instrument of Government was established as a vital part of the Constitution and for the system of government. The monarchy was retained, whereas the monarch lost all formal political influence and became only a symbolic head of state. Several of the traditional head-of-state functions have instead been transferred to the Speaker of the Riksdag. History of the Riksdag The Riksdag is the national legislature of Sweden. However, when it was founded in 1866 Sweden did not have a parliamentary system of government. The
State Opening of Parliament in the Riksdag but in the presence of the monarch and his family. It is still the King who officially opens the parliament. After the opening of parliament the King gives a speech followed by the Prime Minister's declaration of government. In Israel, a semi-annual ceremony, attended by the President, opens the winter and summer sessions of the Knesset. Though in the past he was a guest sitting in the Knesset's upper deck, the President now attends the ceremony from the speaker's podium and gives his own written address regarding the upcoming session. In the first session of each legislative