Autocracy

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An autocracy is a system of government in which supreme political power to direct all the activities of the state is concentrated in the hands of one person, whose decisions are subject to neither external legal restraints nor regularized mechanisms of popular control (except perhaps for the implicit threat of coup d'état or mass insurrection).

Comparison with other forms of government

Autocracy and totalitarianism are forms of government in which one person is the supreme power within the state.[1] It is derived from the Greek αὐτοκρατία: αὐτός ("self") and κρατείν ("rule"), and may be translated as "one who rules by himself". It is distinct from oligarchy ("rule by the few") and democracy ("rule by the people"). Like "despot", "tyrant", "strongman" and "dictator", "autocrat" is a loaded word with a negative value judgment.[2]

Autocracy differs from military dictatorship, as these often take the form of "collective presidencies" such as the South American juntas.

The term monarchy also differs in that it emphasizes the hereditary characteristic, though some Slavic monarchs, specifically Russian Emperors, included the title "autocrat" as part of their official styles.^{[citation needed]} This usage originated in the Byzantine Empire, where the term autokratōr was traditionally employed in Greek to translate the Latin imperator, and was used along with Basileus to mean "emperor".^{[citation needed]} This use remains current in the modern Greek language, where the term is used for any emperor, regardless of the actual power of the monarch. Historically, many monarchs ruled autocratically but eventually their power was diminished and dissolved with the introduction of constitutions giving the people the power to make decisions for themselves through elected bodies of the government.

The autocrat needs some kind of power structure to rule. Most historical autocrats depended on their nobles, the military, the priesthood or other elite groups. As such, it can be difficult to draw a clear line between historical autocracies and oligarchies.

See also

• Authoritarianism
• Byzantine Empire
• Nazi Germany
• Roman Empire
• The Third Wave
• Theocracy
• Totalitarianism
• Tsarist autocracy