Absolute monarchy

Government systems
Republics
Full presidencyPresidentialism with Government linked to ParliamentSemipresidencialismParliamentaryism Unipartidism
Monarchies
Parliamentary monarchies in which the monarch has no effective powerConstitutional monarchies in which the monarch personally exercises executive power in conjunction with other institutions Absolute monarchies in which authority is concentrated in the monarch
Other
Suspension of constitutional guarantees (e.g. military dictatorships)Countries that do not fit any of the above systems, for example the Theocracy Note: several States constitutionally declare themselves as multi-party republics, while externally they are considered authoritarian States. This map represents the political system of iure and not its degree of democratic maturity de facto.
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Constitutional or parliamentary monarchy. Monarchy of the Commonwealth of Nations (Commonwealth) Semi-constitutional Monarchy Absolute Monarchy Monarchical entity at sub-state level

An absolute monarchy is a form of government in which the monarch has absolute power. In it there is no division of powers (executive, legislative and judicial power). Although the administration of justice may have relative autonomy in relation to the king, or there are parliamentary institutions, the absolute monarch can change the decisions or opinions of the courts in the last instance or reform the laws at his discretion. will (The king's word is law). He appoints and removes his assistants in government at his will. The unity of all powers is usually considered justified by considering that the source of power is God and that monarchs exercise sovereignty by divine right of kings. There are no mechanisms by which the sovereign (who does not recognize superiors) responds for his acts, if he is not before God himself.

The absolute monarchy developed historically in Western Europe from the authoritarian monarchies that emerged at the end of the Middle Ages with the crisis of the feudal monarchies and the predominance acquired by the king in relation to all estates.

Concept

As its name suggests, the absolute monarchy is a type of government or political organization in which the person who has power concentrates everything in his person, in an absolute way, denying space for other independent institutions or for the division of powers, basic characteristics of democracy. The absolute monarchy is a way of ensuring that power will not be divided among various states, spheres or powers and thus ensuring that the person in charge of power will be solely responsible for making decisions. Although various forms of this type of government have always existed even up to the present day, the period of greatest development of this form of government in the West was from the second half of the century XVII and the entire XVIII century especially in France under Louis XIV and his successors.

The reception of Roman Law in universities from the XVI century to the XVIII strengthened the position of the kings as soon as they could get rid of the theoretical precedence of emperor and pope. The theory that the king is emperor in his realm and therefore has all the powers that could be attributed to ancient emperors (the princeps legibus solutus) was supported by the lawyers, of low noble or even non-privileged social origin, who could only aspire to ascend socially by serving the interests of a strong king.

The monarchies of Western Europe between the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of the Modern Age can be described as authoritarian monarchies, such as that of Louis XI in France, Maximilian I in Austria, the Catholic Monarchs in Spain, Henry VIII in England or Mary I in Scotland. Valois, Tudor, Habsburg and Stuart were the dynasties that, in a game of confrontations and alliances between them, dominated the international scene; Within their territories they established their power in a permanent army, a bureaucracy and an increasingly developed Treasury, which made them unattainable for the nobility, which began to be attracted to their service as court nobility.

During the 16th century, the theory arose that the sovereign was only responsible for his acts before God and, therefore, was his representative on earth. This was intended to legitimize the decisions and the position of the king before his subjects (Divine Right theory), except in Spain, where, since the century XVI, the School of Salamanca had developed an opposite theory: according to Luis de Molina, a nation is analogous to a commercial society in which the rulers would be the administrators, but where power resides in the group of those administered considered individually, which does not mean that a couple of centuries later the generalized idea was adopted.

With the illustration, the concept of enlightened despotism arose, whereby the function of the monarch was to bring progress and social and economic well-being to his people through reforms and the advice of his officials, breaking with the traditionalism of this and coming into conflict with the interests of the nobility.

With the advent of the French and North American revolutions, together with the independence of Latin America, came the crisis of absolute monarchies as forms of government, which led to the installation of constitutional monarchies or republics as forms of government.

A well-known absolutist country was France, which with its king Louis XIV, the Sun King, reached the maximum exponent of this form of government. In the Gallic State, absolutism was maintained continuously during the reign of three kings (Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI; approx. 1661 - 1789).

History

The Kingdom of England was an absolute monarchy from its founding in the year 927 until 1215, when John I of England accepted the magna carta due to the harassment of social problems and serious difficulties in foreign policy, passing to to be a semi-constitutional and constitutional monarchy in 1689, with the declaration of rights after the Glorious Revolution.

After the fall of the Kamakura Shogunate in 1333, Emperor Go-Daigo attempted to reestablish Imperial control in Japan, restoring civilian rule after a century and a half of dictatorship. This was called Kenmu Restoration. However, it failed and the Ashikaga Shogunate (1336-1575) replaced it. The Meiji Restoration in 1868 led to the fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate, the creation of the Japanese Empire, the beginning of the Meiji era, and the return of absolute power to Japan. Emperor Meiji Emperor. Although he became a constitutional monarchy with the constitution in 1889, it named him as a "sacred" monarch and "superior to the government".

One of the clearest examples is the French King Louis XIV of France who ruled France and Navarre from 1643 to 1715. His phrase «L'État, c'est moi» («The State is I ») who said it on April 13, 1655 when he was sixteen years old, although that phrase could be a twist on the quote "The good of the State is the Glory of the King". However, before he died in 1715 he pronounced the phrase "Je m'en vais, mais l'État demeurera toujours" ("I leave, but the State will always remain"). The monarch of France possessed executive, legislative and judicial powers. The Kingdom of Denmark and Norway was an elective monarchy from its inception in 1524 until 1660, when Frederick III of Denmark declared a state of emergency to pressure the first estate that was against the second and third estate's proposal to change the monarchy. The document Haandfæstning was also annulled and in 1665 a law was written supporting the absol utism called Royal Law (Kongeloven), this granted the king unlimited powers; in it he was considered king as "the greatest and highest head on Earth, superior to all human laws".

The Swedish Empire has been a constitutional monarchy since its founding. Since 1634, the king had to take advice from the Privy Council of Sweden. During the Scanian War, there were internal conflicts in the council and the king ruled more or less without listening to them. At a meeting in 1680 he asked the estates if he was still on the council, to which they replied that he "depended on no one but himself", which led to absolute monarchy. The Riksdag ploclaimed him as the only ruler of the country. He continued with his children Carlos XII of Sweden and Ulrica Eleanor of Sweden, the latter had to abolish absolutism in 1718.

In the Russian Empire the tsar was the absolute king until 1905 when it became a constitutional monarchy in the revolution of that year until in the February Revolution the position was abolished and a provisional government was declared. by divine right.

Nepal was an absolute monarchy until 1990 but due to protests, it was reverted to a constitutional monarchy with the king giving several of his powers to Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai. The monarchy was abolished on 28 May 2008 and was became a republic.

Current absolute monarchies

Country	Monarch
Saudi Arabia	Salman bin Abdulaziz
Brunéi	Hassanal Bolkiah
Qatar	Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani
Vatican City	Francisco
Oman	Haitham bin Tariq Al Said
Swaziland	Mswati III

Saudi Arabia

According to the basic law passed by royal order in 1992, the king must obey sharia and the Koran. The latter and the Sunnah are the country's constitution, without any modification, and it is the only Arab state that has not had national elections since its founding. Political parties and national elections are prohibited and according to the 2010 Democracy Index published in the British magazine The Economist, the Saudi government is the most authoritarian regime among the 167 ranked countries.

Brunei

Like Oman, the country is ruled by a sultan and holds the post of prime minister, defense minister and finance minister. It has a constitution written in 1959.

Qatar

Qatar is a continental law jurisdiction; however, Sharia applies to things like family, inheritance, and criminal acts. Legally women can drive in Qatar, and there is some emphasis on equality and human rights brought in by the Qatar National Human Rights Committee.

The country is undergoing a period of modernization during the reign of the current emir Hamad Al-Thani, in power since 1995. Qatar's laws allow alcohol up to a certain amount. However, public bars and nightclubs only operate in the expensive hotels and clubs. Expatriate residents of Qatar are eligible to receive "permits" for alcohol, thus allowing them to pay for alcohol for personal use through the 'Qatar Distribution Company', the exclusive importer and seller of alcohol in Qatar.

Vatican City

The pope, leader of the Catholic Church, is ex officio head of state of that city, by virtue of which he is officially called the sovereign of Vatican City. The State of Vatican City, in Rome, is the only absolute and theocratic monarchy in Europe, as well as an elective one. The College of Cardinals, meeting in conclave, is the one who elects him, and, if he accepts the appointment, the pope holds office until his death or resignation.

Oman

The sultan is the country's highest authority although he has given some powers to parliament. He holds de facto the posts of prime minister, minister of foreign affairs and minister of defence. Another person holds the title of deputy prime minister of the council of ministers.

Swaziland

The king rules alongside the country's spiritual leader, Indovuzaki according to the 2005 constitution (also making it a constitutional monarchy). Appoints the prime minister, can dissolve parliament, declare a referendum or state of emergency, etc It is the only absolute monarchy in Africa.