Name:____________________________________________________ Period:_____
Democracy, Monarchy, and Dictatorships!
There are nearly 200 politically independent nations in the world today, independent in that they govern
themselves. Each of these nations is led by some sort of governing body, either an individual or group
that holds power in the name of that country. Take a look at some of these different types of
governments:
Democracy (Canada), Parliamentary Democracy (Japan), Military (Haiti, Syria), Communist (China,
North Korea, Cuba), Parliamentary (Bangladesh), Socialist Military Dictatorship (Libya), Sultanate
(Brunei), Republic (Mexico, Israel), Constitutional Republic (Armenia), Islamic Republic (Iran),
Parliamentary Republic (Ireland) Absolute Monarchy (Oman), Monarchy (Saudi Arabia), Constitutional
Monarchy (UK, Spain), just to name a few!
Quite often there is one individual who exercises his or her authority as leader of a nation. The three
most common titles of leaders of different nations are president, king, and dictator.
With the decline in the last 200 years of absolute monarchies based on royal bloodlines, dictatorships
and constitutional democracies or republics (democracies and republics being quite similar in nature)
have become the two most common forms of government in existence in the world today. Let's examine
their differences.
A president is typically the leader of a democracy or republic, although some dictators call themselves
presidents. A true president comes into power by a fair national election. That means that they are chosen
by the people. Their power is limited; that means there are things that they cannot do! They try to work
with the opposing political party rather than exclude them from participating in the governing process.
Often their term of office is limited as well. Each nation has their own set of rules concerning how long
an individual may be president. In the Unites States, a president serves a 4-year term and is limited to
serving two 4-year terms, meaning they can only be elected to the office twice. Our presidential elections
are held on the first Tuesday of November every four years. In Kenya, it is the president who sets the
election. One president held the office for 24 years! He had also fired his vice president, something else a
United States president cannot do.
Monarchy is defined as a government having a hereditary leader who is the chief of state until he or
she dies or otherwise removes him or herself from the throne. The leader is the king or queen who rules
the nation. There are no elections. The throne passes to the eldest child of the king. In a shocking move,
King Edward VIII abdicated the British throne (gave up his position) in December of 1936. This form of
monarchy is called absolute monarchy. When the king or Queen makes all governmental decisions.
In a constitutional monarchy a king may have advisers to help him handle the work, but he has the
power to fire and replace them at any time. The royal family may make ceremonial appearances, while
the day-to-day business of governing the country is in the hands of a parliament - a group of citizens that
deal with legislative issues. In the distant past, kings had almost as much power as a dictatorship, but that
is not the case now.
In Europe a monarchy has survived in Britain, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, and the
Netherlands. By 1849 none of these were absolute monarchies. It seems that the Scandinavian monarchies
were noted for their ethical constitutionalism and their democratic unpretentiousness. Great Britain set the
pattern for limited rule that all the other monarchies followed.
Dictatorship is a form of government in which one person or a small group possesses absolute power
without effective constitutional limitations or laws. Dictators usually resort to force or fraud to take over a
country. In some countries, elected presidents and prime ministers captured personal power by
establishing one-party rule and beating the opposition, while in others the army seized power and
established military dictatorships. They maintain their power through the use of intimidation, terror, and
the suppression of basic civil rights and liberties (right to vote, basic choices in their daily lives). They
may also use mass propaganda in order to sustain their public support. There are usually no elections, but
occasionally a dictator will "run for office" as the only candidate, thereby assuring his win and "proving"
to other nations that he is popular and fair. During Iraq's October 2002 presidential election, nearly 12
million people, the entire population over the age of 18, were required to vote. Saddam Hussein's name
was the only one on the ballot. The people voted "yes" or "no." To vote against Hussein was to invite
torture and death. He may have called himself president, but we knew by his actions that he was a
dictator. He was removed from power and captured by US forces in 2003. A new president was elected in
2005. In December 2006, Hussein was executed for his crimes against humanity.
The Russian Revolution of 1917 brought the Communist Party into power, from whence we gain a
clear view of the evils of dictatorships. The new government replaced elected officials with its own
leaders, and anyone suspected of opposing the revolution was "eliminated" without trial. Land, banks,
insurance companies, and large factories were taken over by the new government. Free speech - the right
to voice opinions - was denied. The poor were forced to work on collective farms. Many suspected
political opponents and poor people who resisted being told what to do were either executed or sent to
forced-labor camps. Joseph Stalin, a well-known, brutal dictator, ruled the USSR (Soviet Union) from
1928 until his death in 1953. No longer ruled by communism, Russia's current government is a federation
led by an elected president and a prime minister who was nominated by the president.
Questions:
What are the three most common forms of government?
What is the most common leader in a democracy? In the US how long is their term and how many
times can the hold office?
What is the difference between and constitutional monarchy and an absolute monarchy?
What is a dictatorship?
What are some tactics that dictators use to maintain their power?
How would a dictator like Saddam Hussein hold an election and call it fair?
List at least 5 examples of how the communist government during the Russian revolution took away power from
the real government and how they took power away from its own people?
Copyright © 2013 edHelper
Name _____________________________
Date ___________________
Presidents, Kings, Dictators
1. Which form of leadership is derived by
election?
Dictator
King
President
2. Which form of leadership is derived by
force or fraud?
President
Dictator
King
3. Which form of leadership passes from
father to son?
President
Dictator
King
4. If you had to choose the form of
government for your nation, which
would you choose?
Monarchy
Constitutional Republic
5. Which of these countries is/are led by
presidents?
Kenya
Iraq
Russia
All of the above
None of the above
6. Which of these countries was run by a
dictator until he was deposed in 2003?
Kenya
Iraq
Russia
All of the above
None of the above