Types of modern and historical governments

(1) Every government answers one basic question: who holds the power to make and enforce the rules? Over thousands of years, people have answered that question in very different ways. Political scientists often sort governments by how many people hold power and by where the rulers' authority comes from.

(2) In a monarchy, a king, queen, or emperor rules, and power usually passes down through a royal family. In an absolute monarchy, the monarch's word is law, and no constitution or legislature limits it. France under King Louis XIV in the late 1600s is a well-known example. In a constitutional monarchy, such as the United Kingdom today, the monarch remains as a symbol of the nation, but elected lawmakers make the laws.

(3) In an oligarchy, a small group holds power. The group might be wealthy families, military officers, or the leaders of a single political party. Ordinary citizens have little or no say in who rules or how.

(4) A dictatorship is rule by one person who usually takes power by force or keeps it through fear rather than through free elections. Dictatorships are a type of authoritarian government: the rulers demand obedience, do not allow real opposition, and are not accountable to the people. Some authoritarian rulers, however, leave parts of daily life, such as religion, business, or family matters, mostly alone, as long as people do not challenge the government.

(5) A totalitarian government goes further. It tries to control nearly every part of public and private life, including the economy, schools, newspapers, art, and even what people believe. Totalitarian states usually rely on a single official party, secret police, and constant propaganda. Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin are the examples historians cite most often.

(6) In a theocracy, religious leaders rule, or the government claims that its authority comes from God, and religious law serves as the law of the state. Iran's government since 1979, headed by a supreme religious leader, is a modern example.

(7) Finally, in a democracy the people hold the power. In a direct democracy, citizens vote on laws themselves, as the adult male citizens of ancient Athens did in their Assembly. In a representative democracy, or republic, citizens elect officials to make laws for them. The United States is a representative democracy, although states and towns sometimes use direct democracy too, such as when voters decide a ballot question or a New England town meeting votes on a budget.

(1) Every government answers one basic question: who holds the power to make and enforce the rules? Over thousands of years, people have answered that question in very different ways. Political scientists often sort governments by how many people hold power and by where the rulers' authority comes from.

(2) In a monarchy, a king, queen, or emperor rules, and power usually passes down through a royal family. In an absolute monarchy, the monarch's word is law, and no constitution or legislature limits it. France under King Louis XIV in the late 1600s is a well-known example. In a constitutional monarchy, such as the United Kingdom today, the monarch remains as a symbol of the nation, but elected lawmakers make the laws.

(3) In an oligarchy, a small group holds power. The group might be wealthy families, military officers, or the leaders of a single political party. Ordinary citizens have little or no say in who rules or how.

(4) A dictatorship is rule by one person who usually takes power by force or keeps it through fear rather than through free elections. Dictatorships are a type of authoritarian government: the rulers demand obedience, do not allow real opposition, and are not accountable to the people. Some authoritarian rulers, however, leave parts of daily life, such as religion, business, or family matters, mostly alone, as long as people do not challenge the government.

(5) A totalitarian government goes further. It tries to control nearly every part of public and private life, including the economy, schools, newspapers, art, and even what people believe. Totalitarian states usually rely on a single official party, secret police, and constant propaganda. Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin are the examples historians cite most often.

(6) In a theocracy, religious leaders rule, or the government claims that its authority comes from God, and religious law serves as the law of the state. Iran's government since 1979, headed by a supreme religious leader, is a modern example.

(7) Finally, in a democracy the people hold the power. In a direct democracy, citizens vote on laws themselves, as the adult male citizens of ancient Athens did in their Assembly. In a representative democracy, or republic, citizens elect officials to make laws for them. The United States is a representative democracy, although states and towns sometimes use direct democracy too, such as when voters decide a ballot question or a New England town meeting votes on a budget.

James Madison wrote this essay in 1787 to persuade New Yorkers to ratify the new Constitution.

(1) "By a faction, I understand a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or a minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community."

(2) "From this view of the subject it may be concluded that a pure democracy, by which I mean a society consisting of a small number of citizens, who assemble and administer the government in person, can admit of no cure for the mischiefs of faction."

(3) "A republic, by which I mean a government in which the scheme of representation takes place, opens a different prospect, and promises the cure for which we are seeking."

(4) "The two great points of difference between a democracy and a republic are: first, the delegation of the government, in the latter, to a small number of citizens elected by the rest; secondly, the greater number of citizens, and greater sphere of country, over which the latter may be extended."

(5) "The effect of the first difference is, on the one hand, to refine and enlarge the public views, by passing them through the medium of a chosen body of citizens, whose wisdom may best discern the true interest of their country…"

Word help: actuated = moved to act; adverse to = against; mischiefs = harms; the latter = the second one named (here, a republic); sphere = area.

The countries below are fictional. They were created to show how political scientists classify governments.

James Madison wrote these essays, signed "Publius," to persuade New Yorkers to ratify the Constitution.

Excerpt 1: The Federalist No. 14 (1787)

(1) "The true distinction between these forms was also adverted to on a former occasion. It is, that in a democracy, the people meet and exercise the government in person; in a republic, they assemble and administer it by their representatives and agents. A democracy, consequently, will be confined to a small spot. A republic may be extended over a large region."

Excerpt 2: The Federalist No. 39 (1788)

(2) "…we may define a republic to be, or at least may bestow that name on, a government which derives all its powers directly or indirectly from the great body of the people, and is administered by persons holding their offices during pleasure, for a limited period, or during good behavior."

(3) "It is ESSENTIAL to such a government that it be derived from the great body of the society, not from an inconsiderable proportion, or a favored class of it…"

Word help: adverted to = pointed out; administer = run, manage; bestow = give; during pleasure = for as long as those who appointed them wish; inconsiderable proportion = small, unimportant share; favored class = privileged group.

Meridia is a fictional continent with 20 countries. A research group classified the government of each country in 1960, 1990, and 2020.

(1) Labels such as monarchy or democracy tell us who rules. A second question is where power sits: how is it divided between the national government and regional governments such as states or provinces?

(2) In a unitary system, the central government holds the main power. It creates regional and local governments, decides what they may do, and can change or even abolish them. France and Japan are unitary states. Their regions run schools and roads, but only because the national government allows it.

(3) In a federal system, a constitution divides power between the national government and state governments. Each level has powers of its own, and neither can abolish the other. The United States, Canada, and Germany are federal systems.

(4) In a confederal system, or confederation, independent states join a loose alliance. The central government is weak and has only the powers the member states lend it. Under the Articles of Confederation (1781–1789), the U.S. Congress could not collect taxes directly; it could only ask the states for money. There was no national executive to enforce the laws and no national court system.

(5) These labels combine with the others. The United States is a federal representative democracy. Japan is a unitary constitutional monarchy.

(1) Every government answers one basic question: who holds the power to make and enforce the rules? Over thousands of years, people have answered that question in very different ways. Political scientists often sort governments by how many people hold power and by where the rulers' authority comes from.

(2) In a monarchy, a king, queen, or emperor rules, and power usually passes down through a royal family. In an absolute monarchy, the monarch's word is law, and no constitution or legislature limits it. France under King Louis XIV in the late 1600s is a well-known example. In a constitutional monarchy, such as the United Kingdom today, the monarch remains as a symbol of the nation, but elected lawmakers make the laws.

(3) In an oligarchy, a small group holds power. The group might be wealthy families, military officers, or the leaders of a single political party. Ordinary citizens have little or no say in who rules or how.

(4) A dictatorship is rule by one person who usually takes power by force or keeps it through fear rather than through free elections. Dictatorships are a type of authoritarian government: the rulers demand obedience, do not allow real opposition, and are not accountable to the people. Some authoritarian rulers, however, leave parts of daily life, such as religion, business, or family matters, mostly alone, as long as people do not challenge the government.

(5) A totalitarian government goes further. It tries to control nearly every part of public and private life, including the economy, schools, newspapers, art, and even what people believe. Totalitarian states usually rely on a single official party, secret police, and constant propaganda. Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin are the examples historians cite most often.

(6) In a theocracy, religious leaders rule, or the government claims that its authority comes from God, and religious law serves as the law of the state. Iran's government since 1979, headed by a supreme religious leader, is a modern example.

(7) Finally, in a democracy the people hold the power. In a direct democracy, citizens vote on laws themselves, as the adult male citizens of ancient Athens did in their Assembly. In a representative democracy, or republic, citizens elect officials to make laws for them. The United States is a representative democracy, although states and towns sometimes use direct democracy too, such as when voters decide a ballot question or a New England town meeting votes on a budget.

James Madison wrote this essay in 1787 to persuade New Yorkers to ratify the new Constitution.

(1) "By a faction, I understand a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or a minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community."

(2) "From this view of the subject it may be concluded that a pure democracy, by which I mean a society consisting of a small number of citizens, who assemble and administer the government in person, can admit of no cure for the mischiefs of faction."

(3) "A republic, by which I mean a government in which the scheme of representation takes place, opens a different prospect, and promises the cure for which we are seeking."

(4) "The two great points of difference between a democracy and a republic are: first, the delegation of the government, in the latter, to a small number of citizens elected by the rest; secondly, the greater number of citizens, and greater sphere of country, over which the latter may be extended."

(5) "The effect of the first difference is, on the one hand, to refine and enlarge the public views, by passing them through the medium of a chosen body of citizens, whose wisdom may best discern the true interest of their country…"

Word help: actuated = moved to act; adverse to = against; mischiefs = harms; the latter = the second one named (here, a republic); sphere = area.

Most modern democracies organize their national government in one of two ways. The head of state is the official who represents the whole nation at ceremonies and in dealings with other countries. The head of government runs the day-to-day work of governing and directs the executive departments.

The countries below are fictional. They were created to show how political scientists classify governments.

(1) According to Roman tradition, in 509 BCE the people of Rome drove out their last king. In place of a monarchy they created a res publica, a "public thing," which gives us the word republic.

(2) Instead of one king, Rome had two consuls, the highest officials. Assemblies of male citizens elected them for a term of only one year. Each consul could block the actions of the other.

(3) The Senate, a body of several hundred men, advised the consuls and controlled public money and relations with other states. Senators were mostly former officials from wealthy, long-established families, and they usually served for life. Voting in the citizen assemblies was arranged in groups that gave the votes of the wealthy more weight than the votes of the poor.

(4) Ordinary citizens, called plebeians, struggled for a greater voice. Over time they won the right to elect tribunes, officials who could veto actions that harmed plebeians. Around 450 BCE, Rome's laws were written down on the Twelve Tables so that everyone could know them.

(5) In a military emergency, Rome could appoint a dictator with nearly unlimited power, but only for up to six months.

(6) In the first century BCE, ambitious generals with loyal armies fought civil wars. Julius Caesar was named dictator for life in 44 BCE and was murdered that same year. In 27 BCE his adopted heir, Octavian, took the title Augustus and became Rome's first emperor. The Senate still met, but real power now rested with one man for life.

The countries below are fictional. They were created to show how political scientists classify governments.

The countries in this news-style article are fictional.

(1) Prime Minister Elena Varga of Ostland lost a vote of no confidence in Parliament on Tuesday, 214 to 186. Varga will stay on as a caretaker until a new government is formed.

(2) Varga's government was a coalition of two parties. When the smaller Green Farmers Party quit the coalition over a new fuel tax, Varga no longer had the support of a majority of Parliament's 400 members.

(3) Under Ostland's constitution, the parties in Parliament now have 14 days to form a new majority and choose a prime minister. If they cannot, President Anton Bauer will dissolve Parliament and call new elections. The president, who is chosen by Parliament for a seven-year term, is head of state; his duties are mostly ceremonial.

(4) Neighboring Brannick works differently. Last year the opposition won a majority in Brannick's legislature, and lawmakers rejected most of President Tomas Ferro's proposals. Ferro, elected directly by voters, nevertheless remains in office until his fixed five-year term ends in 2028.

James Madison wrote these essays, signed "Publius," to persuade New Yorkers to ratify the Constitution.

Excerpt 1: The Federalist No. 14 (1787)

(1) "The true distinction between these forms was also adverted to on a former occasion. It is, that in a democracy, the people meet and exercise the government in person; in a republic, they assemble and administer it by their representatives and agents. A democracy, consequently, will be confined to a small spot. A republic may be extended over a large region."

Excerpt 2: The Federalist No. 39 (1788)

(2) "…we may define a republic to be, or at least may bestow that name on, a government which derives all its powers directly or indirectly from the great body of the people, and is administered by persons holding their offices during pleasure, for a limited period, or during good behavior."

(3) "It is ESSENTIAL to such a government that it be derived from the great body of the society, not from an inconsiderable proportion, or a favored class of it…"

Word help: adverted to = pointed out; administer = run, manage; bestow = give; during pleasure = for as long as those who appointed them wish; inconsiderable proportion = small, unimportant share; favored class = privileged group.

(1) According to Roman tradition, in 509 BCE the people of Rome drove out their last king. In place of a monarchy they created a res publica, a "public thing," which gives us the word republic.

(2) Instead of one king, Rome had two consuls, the highest officials. Assemblies of male citizens elected them for a term of only one year. Each consul could block the actions of the other.

(3) The Senate, a body of several hundred men, advised the consuls and controlled public money and relations with other states. Senators were mostly former officials from wealthy, long-established families, and they usually served for life. Voting in the citizen assemblies was arranged in groups that gave the votes of the wealthy more weight than the votes of the poor.

(4) Ordinary citizens, called plebeians, struggled for a greater voice. Over time they won the right to elect tribunes, officials who could veto actions that harmed plebeians. Around 450 BCE, Rome's laws were written down on the Twelve Tables so that everyone could know them.

(5) In a military emergency, Rome could appoint a dictator with nearly unlimited power, but only for up to six months.

(6) In the first century BCE, ambitious generals with loyal armies fought civil wars. Julius Caesar was named dictator for life in 44 BCE and was murdered that same year. In 27 BCE his adopted heir, Octavian, took the title Augustus and became Rome's first emperor. The Senate still met, but real power now rested with one man for life.

(1) Around 508 BCE, the city-state of Athens in ancient Greece began an experiment that gave us the word democracy, from the Greek demos ("the people") and kratos ("power" or "rule").

(2) The center of Athenian democracy was the Assembly. About forty times a year, thousands of citizens gathered on a hillside called the Pnyx. Any citizen could stand up and speak. Then the crowd voted, usually by a show of hands, on laws, taxes, and even whether to go to war. No representatives stood between the citizens and the decision.

(3) Athenians also chose many officials by lottery rather than by election. A Council of 500, which prepared the Assembly's agenda, was filled by drawing names. Jurors were chosen the same way. Athenians believed that any ordinary citizen was capable of serving. Military generals were an exception: because the job required skill, ten generals were elected each year.

(4) Citizenship, however, was narrow. By the mid-400s BCE, only free adult men whose parents were both Athenian could take part. Women, enslaved people, and foreign-born residents, who together made up most of the people living in Athens, had no vote.

(5) The system could also act in haste. In 406 BCE, after an Athenian naval victory near the Arginusae Islands, a storm kept the commanders from rescuing sailors from damaged ships. Angry citizens in the Assembly voted to try the generals together in a single vote, which broke Athens' own legal customs, and the six generals who had returned to Athens were executed. Soon afterward, according to the ancient historian Xenophon, many Athenians regretted the decision.

The countries below are fictional. They were created to show how political scientists classify governments.

(1) According to Roman tradition, in 509 BCE the people of Rome drove out their last king. In place of a monarchy they created a res publica, a "public thing," which gives us the word republic.

(2) Instead of one king, Rome had two consuls, the highest officials. Assemblies of male citizens elected them for a term of only one year. Each consul could block the actions of the other.

(3) The Senate, a body of several hundred men, advised the consuls and controlled public money and relations with other states. Senators were mostly former officials from wealthy, long-established families, and they usually served for life. Voting in the citizen assemblies was arranged in groups that gave the votes of the wealthy more weight than the votes of the poor.

(4) Ordinary citizens, called plebeians, struggled for a greater voice. Over time they won the right to elect tribunes, officials who could veto actions that harmed plebeians. Around 450 BCE, Rome's laws were written down on the Twelve Tables so that everyone could know them.

(5) In a military emergency, Rome could appoint a dictator with nearly unlimited power, but only for up to six months.

(6) In the first century BCE, ambitious generals with loyal armies fought civil wars. Julius Caesar was named dictator for life in 44 BCE and was murdered that same year. In 27 BCE his adopted heir, Octavian, took the title Augustus and became Rome's first emperor. The Senate still met, but real power now rested with one man for life.

James Madison wrote these essays, signed "Publius," to persuade New Yorkers to ratify the Constitution.

Excerpt 1: The Federalist No. 14 (1787)

(1) "The true distinction between these forms was also adverted to on a former occasion. It is, that in a democracy, the people meet and exercise the government in person; in a republic, they assemble and administer it by their representatives and agents. A democracy, consequently, will be confined to a small spot. A republic may be extended over a large region."

Excerpt 2: The Federalist No. 39 (1788)

(2) "…we may define a republic to be, or at least may bestow that name on, a government which derives all its powers directly or indirectly from the great body of the people, and is administered by persons holding their offices during pleasure, for a limited period, or during good behavior."

(3) "It is ESSENTIAL to such a government that it be derived from the great body of the society, not from an inconsiderable proportion, or a favored class of it…"

Word help: adverted to = pointed out; administer = run, manage; bestow = give; during pleasure = for as long as those who appointed them wish; inconsiderable proportion = small, unimportant share; favored class = privileged group.

Meridia is a fictional continent with 20 countries. A research group classified the government of each country in 1960, 1990, and 2020.

(1) Labels such as monarchy or democracy tell us who rules. A second question is where power sits: how is it divided between the national government and regional governments such as states or provinces?

(2) In a unitary system, the central government holds the main power. It creates regional and local governments, decides what they may do, and can change or even abolish them. France and Japan are unitary states. Their regions run schools and roads, but only because the national government allows it.

(3) In a federal system, a constitution divides power between the national government and state governments. Each level has powers of its own, and neither can abolish the other. The United States, Canada, and Germany are federal systems.

(4) In a confederal system, or confederation, independent states join a loose alliance. The central government is weak and has only the powers the member states lend it. Under the Articles of Confederation (1781–1789), the U.S. Congress could not collect taxes directly; it could only ask the states for money. There was no national executive to enforce the laws and no national court system.

(5) These labels combine with the others. The United States is a federal representative democracy. Japan is a unitary constitutional monarchy.

(1) According to Roman tradition, in 509 BCE the people of Rome drove out their last king. In place of a monarchy they created a res publica, a "public thing," which gives us the word republic.

(2) Instead of one king, Rome had two consuls, the highest officials. Assemblies of male citizens elected them for a term of only one year. Each consul could block the actions of the other.

(3) The Senate, a body of several hundred men, advised the consuls and controlled public money and relations with other states. Senators were mostly former officials from wealthy, long-established families, and they usually served for life. Voting in the citizen assemblies was arranged in groups that gave the votes of the wealthy more weight than the votes of the poor.

(4) Ordinary citizens, called plebeians, struggled for a greater voice. Over time they won the right to elect tribunes, officials who could veto actions that harmed plebeians. Around 450 BCE, Rome's laws were written down on the Twelve Tables so that everyone could know them.

(5) In a military emergency, Rome could appoint a dictator with nearly unlimited power, but only for up to six months.

(6) In the first century BCE, ambitious generals with loyal armies fought civil wars. Julius Caesar was named dictator for life in 44 BCE and was murdered that same year. In 27 BCE his adopted heir, Octavian, took the title Augustus and became Rome's first emperor. The Senate still met, but real power now rested with one man for life.

(1) According to Roman tradition, in 509 BCE the people of Rome drove out their last king. In place of a monarchy they created a res publica, a "public thing," which gives us the word republic.

(2) Instead of one king, Rome had two consuls, the highest officials. Assemblies of male citizens elected them for a term of only one year. Each consul could block the actions of the other.

(3) The Senate, a body of several hundred men, advised the consuls and controlled public money and relations with other states. Senators were mostly former officials from wealthy, long-established families, and they usually served for life. Voting in the citizen assemblies was arranged in groups that gave the votes of the wealthy more weight than the votes of the poor.

(4) Ordinary citizens, called plebeians, struggled for a greater voice. Over time they won the right to elect tribunes, officials who could veto actions that harmed plebeians. Around 450 BCE, Rome's laws were written down on the Twelve Tables so that everyone could know them.

(5) In a military emergency, Rome could appoint a dictator with nearly unlimited power, but only for up to six months.

(6) In the first century BCE, ambitious generals with loyal armies fought civil wars. Julius Caesar was named dictator for life in 44 BCE and was murdered that same year. In 27 BCE his adopted heir, Octavian, took the title Augustus and became Rome's first emperor. The Senate still met, but real power now rested with one man for life.