Absolute Monarchy

Absolute Monarchy

By Lily

What is an Absolute Monarchy and what are some characteristics of it?

An Absolute Monarchy (or Absolutism) is when a state or country is under complete control of a monarch. The power of the monarch could apply to any or all of the following things: administration, taxes, justice, and foreign policy. Often, the monarch controls the religious authorities, and in past examples of Absolute Monarchy, armies were used to consolidate the kingdom's borders or expand the territory under the monarch's control.

Some Past and Present Absolute Monarchies

Present

Past

How does it compare to Canadian government?

How does an Absolute Monarchy work?

• Brunei
• Oman
• Quatar
• Saudi Arabia
• Swaziland
• United Arab Emirates

• Ancient Egypt
• Ancient Messopotamia
• Ancient and Medieval India
• The Khmer Empire
• The Inca Empire
• Ancient China
• Pre-Revolutionary France

There are not many similarities between Canadian Democracy and an Absoute Monarchy. In the Canadian government, citizens have the ability to make a choice about who leads them, which is not available when the leadership of an Absolute Monarchy is hereditary. A monarch is generally able to pass any laws or orders he or she wants, considering he or she chooses and controls the cabinet. Whereas in Canada, bills can be easily overpassed by the opposition. Also in Canada there is a re-election at least every five years, but often in an Absolute Monarchy the monarch is in power for the duration of his or her life.

Monarchs can be chosen either by an election or hereditarily, meaning that the leadership is passed down through families. Often, the leader is in power for the duration of his or her life. The Monarch is generally allowed to pass any laws, choose his or her cabinet of advisors, and decide on alliances with any other country or state.

What are some of the allies and adversaries of Oman?

What are some advantages and disadvantages to an Absolute Monarchy?

Advantages

Disadvantages

• The monarch might not be exactly what the people want for the country or state because they are not selected by the citizens
• If a monarch is a bad leader, they can not be taken out of power easily

I chose Oman's Absolute Monarchy to look at more closely. It doesn't have any declared allies or adversaries, but it is part of the Gulf Cooperation Council, which is a Council of Monarchies, Absolute and not. The countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council, such as Qatar, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia, are bound together to improve each other. They have similar laws in areas such as religion, finance, trade, customs, tourism, legislation, and administration. They share scientific and technical innovations in industry, mining, agriculture, water and animal resources, and have joint scientific research centres and military.

• If the monarchy is hereditary, the next leader is taught about leading the country or state from a young age
• Monarchs don't have to focus on winning an election so they can focus on long term goals for the country or state
• Monarchs have to take full responibility for mistakes, and can't point fingers

Sources

http://www.ranker.com/list/countries-ruled-by-absolute-monarchy/reference

http://study.com/academy/lesson/absolute-monarchy-definition-characteristics-examples.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_monarchy

www.p12.nysed.gov/ciai/socst/ghgonline/units/4/.../AbsoluteMonarchyHandout.doc

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_Cooperation_Council

http://apecsec.org/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-monarchy/