When power is held by an individual – Autocracy, Dictatorship, Monarchy
Dictatorship
A dictatorship refers to states ruled by an individual (who did not inherit the position) as occurred in some Greek states, including Athens for a few years. Ancient Republican Rome had a tradition of accepting a dictator for limited periods of time in emergencies (usually during wars). Cincinnatus, Sulla and Julius Caesar were dictators. Julius Caesar became dictator for life – a new Roman concept that marked the end of the Republic and paved the way to the office becoming Emperor. Modern dictators include Mussolini, Hitler, and Franco. Sometimes rulers are referred to by other people as dictators, but do not see themselves as dictators. Gadaffi (Qadafi) who once ruled Libya, is an example, as he saw himself as a overseer of people’s councils who supposedly made up a Jamahiriya or “state of the masses”. Saddam Hussein, who was President of the Republic of Iraq, and Robert Mugabe, President of Zimbabwe (who has been in office since 1980) are another examples.
Monarchy
In the case of a monarch (usually termed emperor, king or queen), succession usually is inherited. This was probably the most common form of rule once a society changed from a nomadic hunter-gatherer to a agriculturalist or pastoralist economy. The first evidence of kings appears in archaeological sites in the Middle East, the Mediterranean, Egypt and China and date to about 11,000 years ago. Monarchies are now generally archaic, although some countries do still have traditional monarchies (e.g. Swaziland, Saudi Arabia), and North Korea has a monarchy in all but name. Some modern democracies have a monarch as a figurehead or official head of state representing a Constitutional Monarchy. They usually have limited real power, consisting mainly of influence and considerable wealth, and their influential role as a figurehead (e.g. UK, Netherlands, Sweden, Spain). The opposite of this is a society governed by many people, who share power and need to reach consensus in order to govern.
Autocracy
An autocrat is a more generic term, referring to either of the above. Next (When power is held by an elite)