Ancient Greek Government

mandate, to power. Typically it a tyrant was an aristocrat who took over, often with the support of the

In Greece, monarchies were found when the Mycenaeans ruled Greece during the period 2000 to 1100 BC. Monarchy is defined as a system of government where a single ruler has supreme power. The word “monarchy” comes from the Greek words “monos” meaning “single” and “archo” meaning “rule”. This single ruler, known as a king, ruled for life and passed the rule on to his heir when he died. The most famous monarchy was that of King Alexandra of Macedonia who ruled all of Greece from 336 BC.

Throughout the centuries, countries had always been ruled by a monarch, or something that was similar. The civilizations that attempted democracy or republicanism would

Tyranny isn’t just one king taking all the power, it’s them and the nation becoming cruel and not listening to what other people have to say. There were a lot of people who were tyrant back then and it was cruel. Tyranny is a rule by leader were the leader who is ruling ceases too much power. Now we have guarded against that in many ways.

China, India, and Rome all shared the idea of monarchy. Although Rome went through a phase of having a republic, all three empires accepted the rule of one supreme leader. The governmental system of monarchy showed up in most ancient civilizations all the way back to Mesopotamia and Egypt. Something about a single leader appealed to these people and to all people all the way up into the 1700s. Not to say that monarchies don’t exist anymore, they do. China held onto monarchy from the Tang Dynasty, past the Han dynasty. Han China worked similarly to the dynasty before it: the Qin. In India, both the Mauryan Empire as well as the later Gupta Empire, both functioned under the rule of an emperor. Although both Indian empires had different ideas and laws, the basic governmental structure

Han China and Imperial Rome both started out with a monarch. This monarch was normally a king who decided what to do with the land he ruled over. He made decisions for war, land, trade, etc. Monarchs are very much like dictators, but the

It is when the power changes to another by force instead of inheritance. It wasn’t really uncommon in many places in Greece to have tyrants who were even praised and loved by their own people, because not tyrants were bad as we imagine them today. According to Mark Cartwright “Pesisistratos in Athens (from c. 560 BCE) - a typical benevolent tyrant who actually paved the way for democracy” were not a typical form of tyranny which we come to think of today. Come to think of it, it there is a ruler in a city who has made things worse for its subjugates and an able ruler throws him off and takes care of its city and population would be

A form of government very similar to monarchy, Tyrannies usually grew out of oligarchies. The word tyranny comes from the Greek word tyrannos (usurper with supreme power). Many states, particularly in the 6th century BC, were ruled by a tyrant. It first appeared in Argos or Corinth, then Sicyon, Megara, Mytilene and Miletus. However, A tyrant usually doesn't pass power to his son, and despite common stereotypes, not all tyrants were bad leaders. Oligarchy An oligarchy is a form of government in which the ruling power is in the hands of a few leaders. The word oligarchy comes from the Greek terms oligos (few) and arkhein (rule). These "few" are rich, powerful or both, and are usually nobles, aristocrats, military groups or any distinguished group that rules tyrannically with their own interests at heart. Thus it did not benefit the mass population. It is highly championed by the Spartan government. In Sparta the Spartan who rose through the ranks and eventually serve as Ephor and Gerousia or is a direct descendant of the royal family Agiads and the Eurypontids get together to

Monarchies have lasted in a society, because of the king taking order of the people. There is a lack of trust between a

monarchy government. A monarchy government is a government ruled by a King or Queen in a

In the ancient Greek city-states and over many centuries, the government (political power) took many forms: held by a single individual: (monarchies and tyrants), or by a select few (oligarchies and aristocracies), or by every male citizen (democracy). A monarchy is a type of governance of the people by a single individual, with the power retained by blood lines. In the pre-Classical period, ancient Greece was composed of small geographic units ruled by a local king. People in these small geographic units, paid taxes to the king, obeyed his laws, and depended on him for their defense.

was based heavily on the honor system. The king had overall power, then the lord, then the

Government falls into two categories; monarchy or a republic. A monarchy is a form of government that is always headed by a

Monarchical Government - this is a government by one person or monarch. However, it degenerates into tyranny which is a bad type of government.

A monarchy is a form of government where a monarch is ruling and usually, they are referred to as a king or queen. Also, a monarchy is hereditary. In history, the ancient Egyptians saw their monarchs as gods. Beginning in 1500, many European monarchs claimed that their power came from gods; also known as the divine right of kings. The World War I ended many important monarchies; however, there are still 26 monarchies around the world some of which are the United Kingdom, Spain, Sweden, The Netherlands, Morocco, Jordan, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and Swaziland.