Limited and Unlimited Government Types

Follow the Directions Below Get out a blank sheet of paper and put your name, date and period number at the top. Create a Cornell Notes page. The Essential Question is- Explain the similarities and differences of the government types. With your table group you will describe in detail on your notes each government type. (Example- how it works, who has power, if its limited or unlimited…) You may use the station cards, textbooks, electronic devices and tablets.

Republic A republic is a government without a king or queen. Often people in a republic choose representatives to make decisions. The United States, for example, is a republic. A republic might also be group of hereditary nobles such as the Republics of Venice and Genoa once were. Additionally, before Ancient Rome became an Empire they were once a republic where people made decisions as citizens.

Democracy In a democracy, government authority is based on the will of the people. People either vote directly on issues (direct democracy) or they elect representatives who make government decisions for them. In a democracy, people also enjoy certain basic rights. This allows them to openly question or criticize the government. Today many nations such as Mexico, United States, and India have democratic governments. The United States is a unique government because not only is the government limited in how much power they have but there are 3 separate branches of government- Legislative (makes the laws); Judicial (rules on the laws); Executive (enforces the laws). In addition to having a balance of power the founding fathers who wrote set up the US democracy wanted to make sure that the government wasn’t so powerful that people lost their rights. So they created the Bill of Rights which guarantees rights for all US citizens. A few of these rights include freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, the right to trial by jury, protection from being tried for the same crime more than once. These rights are protected by the Constitution in our nation. *The very first democracy arose in Ancient Greece in the 5th Century B.C. In fact the word DEMOCRACY in Greek means- “people power”. Ancient Greece had a direct democracy where people voted directly on the decisions.

Constitutional Monarchy In a constitutional monarchy the king/queen shares their power with an elected legislature. Great Britain is an example of a constitutional monarchy. Britain used to have a hereditary monarch where the king or queen made all of the decisions, however, now the monarchy serves as a symbol of power while the people who really have the power are the elected members of Parliament (legislature).

Theocracy A theocracy is a government run by religious leaders. This type of government is an extremely old form of government. In a theocracy the government claims to be directed by God, or divinely blessed. There is no legal separation between church and state, and citizens of other faiths/beliefs are often expelled or persecuted. Ancient Egypt is an example of a theocracy in which the Pharaohs claimed to be gods. A modern example of a theocracy can be found in Iran in which the Supreme Leader is an Islamic cleric who is appointed for life.

Totalitarian/Dictator A dictatorship is a system of government where a single person exercises complete power over the citizens. Usually, the dictator or leader seizes power by force or is placed into authority by others. This type of government is an Authoritarian government. Dictators are free to do as they please, while other citizens have very little rights or influence over government decisions. Totalitarian dictators such as Joseph Stalin, Adolf Hitler, Saddam Hussein, or Kim Jong-Un use their power to control every aspect of individuals lives. Kim Jong-Un in North Korea tightly controls all aspects of the country. For example, the government controls who can enter and exit the country, it controls all radio and television stations and controls food rations.

Oligarchy In an oligarchy a small group of people has all the power. Oligarchy is the Greek word that means ‘rule by few’. Sometimes this means that only a certain groups of people has political rights and power. For example, from 1962-2011 Myanmar was ruled by a military junta. A junta is a small group of people-usually military officers- who rule a country after taking it over by force. In the 1900’s South Africa was a nation that was controlled by a small elite group of people. This was known as Apartheid which is another example of an oligarch. Today, China is ruled by an oligarchy through the Communist Party.

Monarchy Monarchy is probably one of the oldest forms of government. The ruler in a monarchy inherits their power. When the ruler dies, power is automatically passed to one of the ruler’s children or close relatives. A few examples of monarch titles include king, queen, emperor, or sultan. The monarch rules with complete authority. In older forms of monarchy the king or queen often claimed ‘divine right’ or that they were ruling over the people because it was ‘God’s will’. Ordinary people have no rights or freedoms in a monarchy.