A prorogation is the period between two sessions of a legislative body. When a legislature or parliament is prorogued, it is still constituted (that is, all members remain as members and a general election is not necessary), but all orders of the body (bills, motions, etc.) are expunged. (In the British parliament, this has now changed somewhat in that Public Bills can be carried over from one session to another.) A parliamentary session is a period of time where the legislature in a parliamentary government is sitting. ... A legislature is a type of representative deliberative assembly with the power to adopt laws. ... States currently utilizing parliamentary systems are denoted in orange and red—the former being constitutional monarchies where authority is vested in a parliament, and the latter being parliamentary republics whose parliaments are effectively supreme over a separate head of state. ... A general election is an election in which all members of a given political body are up for election. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... A motion is a formal step to introduce a matter for consideration by a group. ...

In the British and Canadian parliamentary systems, this is usually due to the completion of the agenda set forth in the Speech from the Throne. Legislatures and parliaments, once prorogued, remain in recess until summoned again by the Queen, Governor General, or Lieutenant Governor, and a new session is begun with the State Opening of Parliament and the Speech from the Throne. Queen Elizabeth II reads Canadas Speech from the Throne in 1977 The Speech from the Throne (or Throne Speech) is an event in certain monarchies in which the monarch (or a representative) reads a prepared speech to a complete session of parliament, outlining the governments agenda for the... This article describes the British monarchy from the perspective of the United Kingdom. ... A Governor-General (in Canada, Governor General) is most generally a governor of high rank, or a principal governor ranking above ordinary governors [1]. The most common contemporary usage of the term is to refer to the royally-appointed territorial governor of a region, or royal representative in a country... A Lieutenant Governor is a government official who is the subordinate or deputy of a Governor or Governor-General. ... In the United Kingdom, the State Opening of Parliament is an annual event held usually in October or November that marks the commencement of a session of Parliament. ... Queen Elizabeth II reads Canadas Speech from the Throne in 1977 The Speech from the Throne (or Throne Speech) is an event in certain monarchies in which the monarch (or a representative) reads a prepared speech to a complete session of parliament, outlining the governments agenda for the...

In the parliament of the United Kingdom, prorogation is immediately preceded by the prorogation speech. Prior to the speech, The Commons are summoned by the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod to the House of Lords. The speech is approved by The Queen but is rarely delivered by the sovereign in person, instead it it is presented by the Lords Commissioners and read by the Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain. This speech looks back at the legislative session, noting major bills passed and other actions of the government. [1] The Lord Chancellor wears a tricorn hat for the occasion and the Lords commisioners wear bicorn hats. British House of Commons Canadian House of Commons The House of Commons is the elected lower house of the bicameral parliament in the United Kingdom and Canada. ... The Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod, generally shortened to just Black Rod, is an official of a figure in the parliaments of a number of Commonwealth countries. ... This article is about the British House of Lords. ... Elizabeth II in an official portrait as Queen of Canada (on the occasion of her Golden Jubilee in 2002, wearing the Sovereigns badges of the Order of Canada and the Order of Military Merit) Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary) (born 21 April 1926), styled HM The... The Lords Commissioners are Privy Counsellors appointed by the Monarch of the United Kingdom to exercise, on his or her behalf, certain functions relating to Parliament, including the opening and closing of Parliament, the confirmation of a newly elected Speaker of the House of Commons and the granting of Royal... This article or section needs a complete rewrite for the reasons listed on the talk page. ...

When King Charles I dissolved Parliament after the Petition of Right, he gave a prorogation speech which effectively cancelled all future meetings of Parliament, at least until he needed money again.