Tyrant

A tyrant (from ancient Greek τύραννος, tyrannos), is a ruler who possesses absolute power and is not restricted by law, or one who has usurped the sovereignty of a legitimate ruler. Often portrayed as cruel, tyrants can defend their positions by resorting to repressive means. The original Greek term meant an absolute ruler who came to power without constitutional right, however the word had a neutral connotation during the Archaic and Roman periods. Early Classic. However, the Greek philosopher Plato viewed the word tyrannos asas a negative word, and due to the decisive influence of philosophy on politics, its negative connotations only increased, continuing into the Hellenistic period.

The philosophers Plato and Aristotle defined a tyrant as a person who rules without law, using extreme and cruel methods against both his own people and others. The Encyclopédie defined the term as a usurper of sovereign power who converts "his subjects into victims of their passions and unjust desires, which it substitutes for laws". At the end of the 5th and 4th century BC. C., a new type of tyrant arose, who had the support of the military, specifically in Sicily.

Accusations of tyranny can be applied to a variety of types of government:

• to government by an individual (in an autocracy)
• to rule by a minority (in an oligarchy, minority tyranny)
• majority rule (in a democracy, tyranny of the majority)

Definition

"The word tyranny is used in many meanings, not only by the Greeks but throughout the great book tradition." The Oxford English Dictionary offers alternative definitions: a ruler, an illegitimate ruler (a usurper), a ruler absolute (despot) or an oppressive, unjust, or cruel ruler. The term is generally applied to vicious autocrats who rule their subjects with brutal methods. Oppression, injustice and cruelty have no standardized measurements or thresholds.

The Greeks defined both usurpers and those who inherited the rule of the usurpers as tyrants. Polybius (~150 BC) indicated that eventually, any form of one-man rule (monarchy/executive) would become corrupt and corrupt. would become a tyranny.

Ancient words are defined by their historical usage. Biblical citations do not use the word tyrant, but express views very similar to those of the Greek philosophers, citing the wickedness, cruelty, and injustice of the rulers.

• " Like a roaring lion or a charging bear, he is the wicked ruler over a poor people. A ruler without understanding is a cruel oppressor, but he who hates unjust gain will enjoy long life." Proverbs 28:15–16
• " For justice, a king gives stability to the land, but whoever makes great extractions ruins it." Proverbs 29:4

Greek philosophers emphasized the quality of government more than legitimacy or absolutism. "Both Plato and Aristotle speak of the king as a good monarch and of the tyrant as a bad one. Both say that monarchy, or the rule of one man, is real when it is for the welfare of the governed and tyrannical when it only serves the interest of the governed. of the ruler. Both make anarchy, whether it be a violation of existing laws or rule by personal mandate without established laws, a mark of tyranny.

Enlightenment philosophers seemed to define tyranny by its associated characteristics.

• "The sovereign is called a tyrant who knows no laws other than his whim." Voltaire in a philosophical dictionary
• "Where the law ends, tyranny begins." Locke in two government treatises

Some authors consider that poor results are relative and cite some tyrants as examples of authoritarian governments that could be beneficial (for example, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk of Turkey) or of limited and lasting damage to the country (such as Francisco Franco of Spain), however there is a very subjective assessment. [13] Those who list or classify tyrants may provide definitions and comparison criteria or acknowledge subjectivity. Comparative criteria may include checklists or body counts. Taking into account deaths in war is problematic: war can build empires or defend the population, it also keeps winning tyrants in power.

" Qin Shi-Huang Di is the first emperor of China. He united seven separate kingdoms into one nation. He built the Great Wall and was buried with the terracotta soldiers. The Chinese have mixed feelings about him. They are proud of the nation he created, but he was a maniacal tyrant." -Gene Luen Yang

Oppressive leaders have held states together (Alexander the Great, Josip Broz Titus).

A modern tyrant could be objectively defined by a proven violation of international criminal law, such as crimes against humanity.

Edward Sexby's 1657 pamphlet, "Killing, No Murder", [1] described 14 key traits of a tyrant, as the pamphlet was written to inspire murder. by Oliver Cromwell, and show under what circumstances a murder might be considered honorable. The entire document reflects on and references points on the subject from early pre-Christian history, to the 17th century, when the pamphlet was written. Of the most prevalent features of tyranny described, "Killing, No Murder" emphasizes:

1. Previous Military Leadership Service: Tyrants are often former captains or generals, allowing them to assume a degree of honor, loyalty, and reputation in matters of state.
2. Fraud Over Force: Most tyrants are likely to manipulate their way to supreme power rather than force it militarily.
3. Defamation and/or dissolution of previously respectable persons, intellectuals or institutions, and the discouragement of refined thought or public participation in state affairs.
4. Absence or minimization of collective contributions, negotiation or debate (assemblies, conferences, etc.)
5. Amplification of military activity for the purpose of distracting the public, raising new taxes, or opening future trade avenues.
6. An eye-for-an-eye symbiosis in domestic relations: for example, finding religious ideas permissible insofar as they are useful and flattering to the tyrant; find aristocrats or nobility laudable and honorable insofar as they carry out the will of the tyrant or are in the service of the tyrant, etc.
7. He claims to be inspired by God
8. Simulate the love of God and religion.
9. Increase or maintain public impoverishment as a way to remove the effectiveness of the will of the people

[Original text from 1657: https://archive.org/details/killingnomurderb00sexbuoft/page/n3/mode/2up]

In Scotland, Samuel Rutherford's Lex Rex and Alexander Shields' A Hind Let Loose were influential theological works written in opposition to tyranny.

Methods of gaining and keeping power

The road to tyranny could seem easy and pleasant for all but the aristocracy. A 20th century historian said:Hence the path to power in the commercial cities of Greece was simple: attack the aristocracy, defend the poor, and come to terms with the middle classes. Upon coming to power, the dictator abolished debts or confiscated large estates, taxed the wealthy to finance public works, or otherwise redistributed excessively concentrated wealth; and while he attracted the masses to himself through such measures, he secured the support of the business community by promoting trade with state currencies and commercial treaties, and raising the social prestige of the bourgeoisie. Forced to rely on popularity rather than hereditary power, dictatorships for the most part stayed out of war, supported religion, kept order, promoted morality, they favored the superior status of women, fostered the arts, and lavished revenue on the beautification of their cities. And they did all these things, in many cases, preserving the forms of popular government, so that even under despotism the people learned the ways of freedom. When the dictatorship [of the tyrant] had served to destroy the aristocracy, the people destroyed the dictatorship; and only a few changes were needed to make the democracy of free men a reality as well as a form. When the dictatorship [of the tyrant] had served to destroy the aristocracy, the people destroyed the dictatorship; and only a few changes were needed to make the democracy of free men a reality as well as a form. When the dictatorship [of the tyrant] had served to destroy the aristocracy, the people destroyed the dictatorship; and only a few changes were needed to make the democracy of free men a reality as well as a form.

Ancient Greek philosophers (who were aristocrats) were much more critical in reporting the methods of tyrants. The justification for overthrowing a tyrant was absent from the historian's description, but it was central to the philosophers.

Obtaining

In the Republic, Plato stated: "The people always have some paladin whom they set over them and nurture to greatness. [...] This and no other is the root from which a tyrant springs; when he first appears He's a protector."

Tyrants inherit the position of a previous ruler, rise in the army/party, or take power as businessmen. Early texts called only businessmen tyrants, distinguishing them from "bad kings". Such tyrants may act as tenants, rather than owners, of the state.

Political methods of gaining power were occasionally supplemented by theater or force. Peisistratus of Athens blamed self-inflicted wounds on enemies to seize power. Later he appeared with a woman dressed as a goddess to suggest divine sanction for his rule.The third time he used mercenaries to seize and retain power.

Retention

Aristotle (in Politics, for example) and Niccolò Machiavelli (in The Prince) made extensive recommendations of methods to tyrants. These are, in general, force and fraud. They include hiring bodyguards, provoking wars to quell dissent, purges, assassinations, and unwarranted searches and seizures. Aristotle suggested an alternative means of retaining power: to rule justly.

Tyrants' methods of retaining power include placating world opinion by organizing rigged elections, using or threatening to use violence, and seeking popular support by appealing to patriotism and claiming that conditions have improved.