Lesson 3

Lesson 3, Part 1


The type of government a nation has can be classified as one of three main types:
◦ Democracy
 Direct Democracy
 Representative Democracy/Republic
◦ Monarchy
 Constitutional Monarchy
◦ Dictatorship


A type of government where government authority is based on people’s consent
◦ Direct Democracy: When the people vote on
ALL issues directly.
◦ Representative Democracy: People elect /
vote for representatives to make government decisions for them.
 Not ALL decisions are made by the representatives.
 Many issues are voted on by the people.


Athens: The First Democracy
◦ Arose in ancient Athens(Greece) in the 5 th century B.C.
◦ The word democracy is Greek for “people-
power.”
◦ Citizens of Athens assembled to make important decisions facing their city-state.
◦ They voted on issues directly
 Direct democracy


The Romans developed the first
representative democracy.
◦ Different social groups elected their own representatives
 Met in assemblies like the Senate.
◦ These representatives elected Consuls to act as executives.
 Ran the government and enforced the laws.


Later in history, various countries developed their own national
assemblies of elected representatives.
◦ In England, landowners elected representatives to the House of Commons, one of two houses in the English Parliament.
◦ When the English set up colonies in N.A. each colony had its own colonial legislature.
 After the United States became independent, it created an elected national assembly known as
Congress.


In a democracy, people also enjoy certain basic individual rights, like free speech.
◦ This gives then the confidence to criticize the government freely.


A form of government where the ruler inherits power to control the government (hereditary rule) and he decides what decisions are to be made.
◦ Constitutional Monarchy: A government w/ a
monarch as head of state and a parliament or other legislature that makes the laws. (modern)
◦ Absolute Monarchy: the monarch exercises
ultimate governing authority as head of state and head of government; his or her powers are
NOT LIMITED by a constitution or by the law.
(traditional)




Oldest of the 3 forms of government.
The pharaoh of Egypt was a powerful monarch.
Main characteristic: ruler inherits power.
◦ When the ruler dies, power automatically passes to one of the monarch’s children or close relatives.


In older forms, the king or queen claimed
absolute power over his or her subjects.
◦ Rulers claimed to hold their power by “divine
right”- or the will of
God.
◦ Ordinary people had no rights or freedoms, except those the
monarch allowed.
Charles I, being crowned by a hand from a cloud, possibly by God


In England, in 1215, King John signed the
Magna Carta .
◦ A document that limited the king’s power in
England.
◦ Gave citizen’s freedom from prison and protection of their property, except after a trial by a jury or according to the laws of the land.
◦ Limited the king’s right to raise new taxes.


In more recent times, many monarchs have shared power with an elected legislature
◦ Subjects of the monarch enjoy many traditional, protected rights.
 This is the constitutional monarchy.
 Example: Great Britain
 Today, Britain has a hereditary monarch and an elected
Parliament.
 The monarch serves as a symbolic head of state, while
elected officials in Parliament govern the country.

Lesson 3, Part 2


A system of government in which a single person or small group of people has the power and
tells everyone else what to do.
◦ NOT power inherited and usually gained by seizing power violently by force.




Dictators seize control by force, or is
placed into a position of authority by others.
Free to do as they please, while other
citizens in a dictatorship have few
rights.
Ordinary citizens in a dictatorship have very little influence over government policies.



Main advantage: Decisions can be made
quickly.
In ancient times, the Romans appointed a dictator when they were at war and in needed strong leadership.
◦ When the war was over, the dictator was supposed to give up his power.
Rome’s Julius Caesar was a dictator.

th

In the 20 th century, modern dictators like
Adolf Hitler in Germany, Joseph Stalin in the Soviet Union (modern day Russia), and Saddam Hussein in Iraq seized power.

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
Each of these brutal dictators used modern technology to impose their will on fellow citizens
◦ Radio and television, magazines and movies were controlled by the dictator and
repeated the dictators views.
 Other views were suppressed.

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

Individuals had no rights and very little influence over the government.
◦ Those who spoke out against the dictator were sent to concentration camps or gulags, where they were severely punished or killed.
The dictator was NOT limited by the rule of the law or any other restraints.


Democracy
◦ People participate in govt. decision-making by
voting and running for office.
◦ They also enjoy many basic individual rights.


Monarchy
◦ A FEW people participate by advising the monarch.
Dictatorship
◦ People have NO right to criticize or oppose government actions; however,
◦ They can participate in activities organized by the
GOVERNMENT.


Theocracy
◦ A government ruled by religious leaders.
◦ Islamic
Fundamentalism: A movement that seeks to convert the world to the strict codes of behavior and laws of
Islam.
 It dates back several hundred years.


The idea that government ideas are based, or follow the beliefs of ideas of a certain
religion.
◦ Example: An Islamic state is a state that has adopted Islam, specifically Sharia, as its foundations for political institutions, or laws, exclusively, and has implemented the Islamic ruling system.


Can the United States be considered a
Theocracy?
◦ Why?