The political system of any country is characterized, first of all, by its form of government. There are two main forms of government: republican and monarchical.
Republican forms of government are widespread: 4/5 of all independent countries in the world are republics. Republic is a form of government in which the highest legislature belongs to the elected representative body - parliament, and the executive - to the government. The birthplace of the republican system is Europe.
In turn, republics are divided into presidential and parliamentary. In presidential republics (USA, Argentina, Brazil, Iran, Pakistan, etc.), the president, endowed with very large powers, himself heads the government. In parliamentary republics (Germany, Italy, Israel, India, etc.), the main figure is not the president, but the head of government. Often, however, an officially parliamentary republic is actually a presidential republic. These are, for example, France, Egypt, as well as Russia and most other CIS countries. A special group is provided by the socialist republics: China, Vietnam, North Korea, Cuba.
The monarchical form of government is less widespread: there are only 30 monarchies in the world. Monarchy is a form of government in which supreme power, belonging to the sole ruler, is inherited. All monarchies are divided into absolute and constitutional. In constitutional monarchies, the real legislative power belongs to parliament, and the executive power belongs to the government. In absolute monarchies, on the contrary, the power of the monarch is almost unlimited. These countries are mainly concentrated in the area Persian Gulf.
The absolute ones include: 1 theocratic monarchy (Vatican), 4 emirates (Qatar, Kuwait, United United Arab Emirates, Bahrain), 2 sultanates (Oman, Brunei), 1 kingdom (Saudi Arabia).
Constitutional: 1 empire (Japan), 1 sultanate (Malaysia), 1 grand duchy (Luxembourg), 3 principalities (Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco), kingdoms:
Foreign Europe: Belgium, Great Britain, Denmark, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden.
Foreign Asia: Bhutan, Jordan, Cambodia, Nepal, Thailand.
Africa: Lesotho, Morocco, Swaziland
Ocean: Tonga
The political system of any country is also characterized by the form of its administrative-territorial structure. In this regard, all countries of the world are divided into unitary and federal.
A unitary state has a form of administrative-territorial structure in which there is a single legislative and executive power in the country.
A federal state has a form of administrative-territorial structure in which, along with unified (federal) laws and authorities, there are separate self-governing territorial units (republics, provinces, lands, states, etc.) that have their own legislative, executive and judicial bodies authorities. Most countries are unitary. Only 24 countries have a federal structure:
CIS: Russia, Belarus
Europe: Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Austria, Serbia, Montenegro
Asia: Malaysia, Myanmar, India, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates
Africa: Nigeria, Ethiopia, South Africa
America: USA, Canada, Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil
>>Geography: We consider the political system of the countries of the world
3 . We get to know the government
structure of the countries of the world
1.
Two main forms of government: republican and monarchical.
Political system Any country is characterized primarily by its form of government. There are two main forms of government. The republican form of government is widespread: 4/5 of all independent countries in the world are republics. Public
a form of government in which the highest legislative power belongs to the elected representative body parliament (see Figure 2), and executive government. The birthplace of the republican system Europe. . After gaining independence, the majority of liberated countries adopted a republican form of government. Thousand-year-old monarchies such as Egypt, Ethiopia, and Iran were also proclaimed republics.
In turn, republics are divided into presidential and parliamentary. In presidential republics ( USA, Argentina, Brazil, Iran, Pakistan, etc.) the president, endowed with very great rights, himself heads the government.
In parliamentary republics (Germany, Italy, Israel, India, etc.), the main figure is not the president, but the head of government. But in real life Many parliamentary republics, with governments headed by prime ministers, give their presidents so much power that in fact they are not much different from presidential republics. These are, for example, France, Egypt, as well as Russia and most other CIS countries.
It can be added that China, Vietnam, North Korea, Cuba, despite the collapse of the world socialist system, and now, according to the form of government, they should be classified as socialist republics.
Monarchical form of government
has a smaller distribution: there are only 29 monarchies in the world (see Table 2 in the “Appendices”). Monarchy a form of government in which the head of state is considered to be an emperor, king, duke, prince, sultan, etc. This supreme power is inherited.
Among them, constitutional monarchies predominate, where the real legislative power belongs to the parliament, and the executive to the government, while the monarch himself, one might say, “reigns, but does not rule.”
The monarchical system is preserved in them as a unique, sometimes thousand-year-old tradition, reminiscent of former greatness"crowns".
Example 1.
Great Britain is the world's oldest constitutional monarchy. The King (now Queen Elizabeth 11) is considered the head of state, judicial system, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, the secular head of the state Church of England, and the British-led Commonwealth, whose members are more than 50 countries that were formerly part of British Empire. . The king signs laws passed by parliament. Since the Norman conquests, royal sanction has been given in the traditional formulation: “This is how the king (Queen) wants it!” .
Example 2.
Japan is a constitutional monarchy in which the emperor traditionally serves as a symbol of the state and the unity of the nation, although all legislative power is in the hands of the parliament and the executive power is in the Cabinet. .
In absolute monarchies, on the contrary, the power of the monarch is almost unlimited. But such countries in modern times political map there is little peace left, mainly in the Persian Gulf region.
Example. Saudi Arabia an absolute monarchy, where the head of state (the king) exercises legislative and executive powers, while also being the prime minister, commander-in-chief of the armed forces and supreme judge, as well as the spiritual ruler. The government is formed mainly from members royal family. .
One of the rarer varieties of absolute monarchy can be considered theocratic monarchy
1
. Examples of theocratic monarchies: the Vatican City State in Rome, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Sultanate of Brunei in South-East Asia.
Total number monarchies in the world remain relatively stable. Typically, former monarchies become republics.
But for last quarter century, there were still two cases of proclamation of new monarchies.
1 In theocratic monarchies (from the Greek theos 6og), the monarch is both a secular sovereign and the head of the church.
In 1975, after the death of General Franco, who ruled Spain for a long time, this country became a monarchy led by King Juan Carlos 1 of the Bourbon dynasty. In 1993, after 23 years of republican rule, the monarchical form of government was restored in Cambodia.
2. The main forms of administrative-territorial structure: unitary and federal.
The political system of any country is also characterized by the form of administrative-territorial structure (division). In this regard, all countries are divided into unitary 1 and federal 2
; There is an overwhelming majority of states with a unitary system in the world. Only 24 countries have a federal structure. In some of them (Russia, Switzerland, India, Nigeria) it is associated with the national-ethnic principle, in others (Germany, Austria, USA) with historical and geographical features.
Nowadays, the problem of administrative-territorial structure in many countries is becoming a very important one. political problem. First of all, this applies to federal states such as Russia, India, South Africa, and Canada. (Task 4.)
Example. Belgium until recently was classified as a unitary state. However, the aggravation of national contradictions between the Walloons and Flemings inhabiting it led to the fact that in 1993 the parliament, by a special law, introduced a federal administrative-territorial structure in this country.
1 A unitary state (from the Latin upitas unity) has this form of administrative-territorial structure. in which the country has a unified legislative and executive power.
2 A federal state (from the Latin federation union, association) has a form of administrative-territorial structure in which, along with unified (federal) laws and authorities, there are separate self-governing territorial units (republics, provinces, lands, states, etc. ), having their own legislative, executive and judicial powers.
Maksakovsky V.P., Geography. Economic and social geography of the world 10th grade. : textbook for general education institutions
Studying the political map of the world, we naturally cannot help but touch upon the question of the forms of government of countries, which is most directly related to it. In turn, this question includes three components - about the forms of political regimes, about the forms of government and about the forms of administrative-territorial structure. Let's look at them in this order.
You are well aware that, according to the characteristics of the political regime, all countries of the world can be divided into democratic and anti-democratic. In the West, there are non-governmental organizations that determine the “democratic index” of countries, based mainly on the nature of elections of legislative bodies. The results of such calculations are not difficult to predict: the highest rating (10 points) is usually received by Western countries, and the lowest - by Muslim states of South-West Asia and North Africa. But nevertheless, the total number of states that consistently support the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the UN back in 1948 is constantly increasing. According to authoritative Western sources, in the mid-70s. XX century Less than 1/3 of all states in the world were democratic, and in beginning of XXI V. - 88 (with a population of 2.8 billion people) were included in the gradation of free and another 55 countries (with a population of 1.3 billion people) were partly free.
But there are still a lot of countries with unfree political regimes on the world map - 50. It can be argued that among these regimes there are also two varieties. When they talk about an authoritarian regime, they mean the complete or partial absence democratic freedoms, restrictions on the activities of political parties and public organizations, persecution of the opposition, lack of a clear separation of legislative, executive and judicial powers. In modern world authoritarian regimes most common in Asia, Africa, the Near and Middle East, Latin America, where they have the character of military dictatorships. An example of this kind can be called Libya, which is officially called the Jamahiriya, i.e., a state masses, led by the Revolutionary leadership headed by M. Gaddafi, while the government, parliament, political parties abolished. The emergence of such political regimes is explained, on the one hand, by internal reasons- the legacy of feudalism and colonialism, extreme socio-economic backwardness, low cultural level, tribalism (from the Latin tribus - tribe), i.e. manifestations of inter-tribal hostility. On the other hand, it is necessary to take into account external reasons, and first of all, the confrontation between two world systems that existed until the early 90s.
When they talk about a totalitarian regime, they mean a special form of authoritarianism, in which the state establishes comprehensive control over the life of society as a whole and each individual individually, and actually eliminates
constitutional rights and freedoms, carries out harsh repressions against the opposition and dissidents. Political scientists distinguish two types of totalitarianism - right and left. Examples of the first of them - fascist regimes in Germany, Italy, in Spain under General Franco, based on the ideology of National Socialism. The second type, based on the ideology of Marxism-Leninism, took place in the Soviet Union under Stalin, in China under Mao Zedong, in North Korea under Kim Il Sung. In the second half of the 70s. XX century totalitarian regime, leading to genocide, i.e. extermination own people, established the Khmer Rouge led by Pol Pot in Cambodia. And the regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, which existed until 2003, was also certainly totalitarian.
Let us now turn to the characteristics of the forms of government of the state: states, which, in principle, have only two main varieties - republican and monarchical.
As we have already noted, the republican form of government arose in ancient times, but became most widespread already in the New and Modern times. It is important to note that in the process of the collapse of the colonial system, the vast majority of liberated countries adopted a republican form of government. Thousand-year-old monarchies such as Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, as well as Afghanistan, Tunisia, Libya, etc. were also proclaimed republics. As a result, in 1990 there were already 127 republics in the world, and after the collapse of the USSR, SFRY and Czechoslovakia, their total number approached 150. This means that 4/5 of all people have a republican form of government independent states modern world.
Under a republican system, legislative power usually belongs to parliament, elected by the entire population of the country, and executive power to the government. At the same time, a distinction is made between presidential and parliamentary (parliamentary) republics.
In a presidential republic, the president, who is the head of state and often the head of government, is vested with particularly great powers. There are more than 100 such republics in the world. They are especially widespread in Africa, where there are 45 of them (for example, Algeria, Egypt, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, South Africa) and in Latin America, where there are 22 of them (for example, Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina). In foreign Asia, there are noticeably fewer presidential republics (for example, Syria,
Iran, Pakistan, Indonesia, Philippines), and in foreign Europe - even less (for example1, France, Croatia). Most a shining example A typical presidential republic can be considered the United States, where the president, as you know, is the head of the administration. Let us also note that presidential republics exist in all CIS countries. Moreover, some of them, including Russia, are sometimes called super-presidential, since their constitutions provide the president with especially great rights.
A parliamentary republic is based on the formal principle of the supremacy of parliament, to which the executive branch (government) is also accountable. The role of the president in such republics is much smaller, and the main political figure is the prime minister. Parliamentary republics are most typical for foreign Europe (for example, Germany, Italy, Austria, Finland, Bulgaria), but they also exist in foreign Asia (for example, China, India, Israel). It can be added that China, Vietnam, North Korea and Cuba, despite the collapse of the world socialist system, would still be most correct to be classified as socialist republics. On the modern political map they remain a kind of fragments of this system.
The monarchical form of government arose, as we have already said, back in the era Ancient world, but became most widespread in the Middle Ages and in modern times. We can say that this is also a kind of relic of feudalism on the modern political map of the world. The number of monarchies remains fairly stable, there are only 30 (Table 6).
Facts of the formation of new monarchies in modern times are very rare, at least for last decades there were only two of them. Firstly, in Spain, where the monarchy, overthrown in 1931, was restored in 1975 after the death of the head of the Spanish state (caudillo) Franco. Secondly, in Cambodia, where after a 23-year break in 1993, Norodom Sihanouk again became king. Typically, the monarch's power is hereditary, but in Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates the monarch is elected every five years from among local sultans and sheikhs.
When you look at Table 6, you can pay attention, firstly, to the fact that the most monarchies are in Asia (14)
Table 6
Countries of the world with a monarchical form of government
| Countries | Form of government | Countries | Form board |
| Foreign Europe |
|||
| Andorra | Principality | Liechtenstein | Principality |
| Belgium | Kingdom | Luxembourg | Great duchy |
| Vatican | Theocratic monarchy | Monaco | Principality |
| Great Britain | Kingdom | Netherlands | Kingdom |
| Denmark | Kingdom | Norway | Kingdom |
| Spain | Kingdom | Sweden | Kingdom |
| Foreign Asia |
|||
| Bahrain | Emirate | Oman | Sultanate |
| Brunei | Sultanate | United Arab />Emirates | Emirate |
| Butane | Kingdom | Saudi Arabia | Kingdom |
| Jordan | Kingdom | Thailand | Kingdom |
| Cambodia | Kingdom | Japan | Empire |
| Qatar | Emirate | Nepal | Kingdom |
| Kuwait | Emirate | Malaysia | Sultanate |
| Africa | Oceania |
||
| Lesotho | Kingdom | Tonga | Kingdom |
| Morocco | Kingdom |
||
| Swaziland | Kingdom |
||
and in Europe (12); in Africa there are only 3, in Oceania - 1, and in America - none. Secondly, the fact that among monarchies there are empires, kingdoms, duchies, principalities, sultanates, and emirates. But more often they are divided into constitutional, or limited, and absolute monarchies.
The overwhelming majority of currently existing monarchies are constitutional (limited) monarchies, where real legislative power belongs to parliament, and executive power belongs to the government, while the monarch, in the words of I.A. Witwera, “reigns, but does not rule.” The monarchical system is preserved in them as a unique, sometimes thousand-year-old tradition, often reminiscent of the former greatness of the “crown”. All monarchies in Europe and Africa and most monarchies in Asia are constitutional. But most often, as a classic example, this limited monarchy bring Great Britain.
Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain has “reigned, but not ruled” since 1952. Citizens of this country encounter monarchical symbols, as they say, at every turn. The country is ruled by “Her Majesty’s Government”, laws are declared “in the name of the Queen”, money is printed by the Royal Mint, letters are delivered by Royal Mail, etc. At dinner parties the first toast is usually made to the Queen, the English anthem begins with the words “God Save the Queen” ", for any postage stamp her silhouette must be included. Nominally, the British Queen has considerable political power. She convenes and dissolves parliament, appoints and dismisses the prime minister, approves laws adopted by parliament, grants awards and titles, and declares pardons. However, in all these cases it is guided by the advice and decisions of parliament and government. It can be added that Queen Elizabeth II is one of the richest people in her country.
Maybe some of you remember that at the beginning of her career, Alla Pugacheva became famous for her performance of the song “Kings cannot marry for love.” In principle, this is true, since dynastic marriages in Europe are usually concluded not by love, but by mutual agreement. But there are also exceptions. For example, King Edward VIII, who ascended the British throne in 1936 after the death of George V, married a twice-divorced American woman for love that same year. But after this, as a result of the palace crisis, he had to abdicate the throne in favor of his younger brother. So George VI, the father of Elizabeth II, became King of Great Britain. It turns out that if this incident had not happened, she would not have become queen, and all post-war history England could be different.
Another example of how in a constitutional monarchy the monarch “reigns but does not rule” is Japan, where, according to the constitution, the monarch (emperor) is a symbol of the state and the unity of the nation, the guarantor of the freedoms of the people. But he is not directly involved in political life country, and its role is mainly limited to performing protocol functions.
It is also curious that Japan has adopted several chronology systems, one of which is based on the reign of the next emperor. Thus, a special calendar was established for the reign of Emperor Hirohito, which lasted from 1926 to 1989, and from 1989 the reign of his son Emperor Akihito began. This era was called “Heisei,” which can be translated as “the establishment of universal peace on Earth and in the heavens.”
Continuing this topic, I would like to add that in the literature you can find a comparison of constitutional monarchies, for example, in Great Britain, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Spain, Japan, with the presidential republics of Latin America and especially Africa in terms of their level of democracy. It turns out that in constitutional monarchies this level is often much higher. Therefore, to consider that the republican form of government is always more progressive than the monarchical one would be clearly erroneous.
However, along with the majority of democratic constitutional monarchies, several absolute monarchies remain on the political map of the world, political regimes which cannot be called democratic. All these monarchies (Saudi Arabia, Oman, UAE, Qatar) are located on the Arabian Peninsula. In Saudi Arabia, the head of state (the king) exercises both legislative and executive powers, being the prime minister, commander-in-chief of the armed forces and chief judge. The authorities are formed mainly from members of the royal family, of whom there are several thousand in total. In Oman, full legislative and executive power also belongs to the Sultan, as the head of state. The Sultan is the Prime Minister, Minister of Defense, Foreign Affairs, Finance, and Supreme Commander-in-Chief. There is no constitution in this country. The United Arab Emirates consists of seven emirates, each of which is an absolute monarchy. In Qatar, too, all power belongs to the local emir.
A kind of absolute monarchy - theocratic monarchy(from Greek theos - god and kratos - strength). In such a monarchy, the head of state is also its religious head. Theocratic monarchies usually include the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Sultanate of Brunei, and in Iran, despite the presence of the post of president, the head of state is considered spiritual leader- Ayatollah. But, of course, the classic example of such a monarchy is the Vatican City State, in which the supreme legislative, executive and judicial powers are in the hands of the Pope, elected by the College of Cardinals for life. In 1978-2005 this post was occupied by the 264th Pope John Paul II, and after his death the pontiff, i.e. the head Roman Catholic Pope Boniface XVI became the church.
To complete the description of forms of government, let us once again mention the Commonwealth, led by Great Britain. Most of its members have one of two traditional forms of government - either republics or monarchies. In addition, 16 Commonwealth countries (e.g. Canada, Australia, New Zealand, many small island states) are neither one nor the other, but simply recognize Queen Elizabeth II as their head. />Let us now turn to the consideration of the forms of administrative and territorial structure of the countries of the world. Such a device, which finds expression primarily in the grids of administrative-territorial division (ATD), can be formed under the influence of several factors or approaches, the main ones being historical and ethnocultural. The historical approach can be demonstrated using examples from countries Western Europe, where the basis of the ATD is often those historical regions and provinces that in the Middle Ages, and even in modern times, were independent states - for example, Saxony, Thuringia, Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg in Germany or Lombardy, Tuscany, Piedmont in Italy. The ethnocultural approach is more common in multinational countries. For example, in India, when determining state boundaries, ethnic boundaries were primarily taken into account. This principle was widely used in the formation of ATD former USSR. In practice, historical and ethnocultural approaches often coincide, combining in turn with natural boundaries (river, mountain, etc.). And it also happened that administrative boundaries were drawn mainly along parallels and meridians. An example of this kind is the United States (Fig. 30).
Rice. 30. Borders of the states of the continental USA (according to V. A. Kolosov).
State boundaries: 1 - along rivers; - By mountain ranges; - along meridians and parallels
Countries around the world also vary greatly in the degree of fragmentation of their ATD. For example, France (100 departments, including 4 overseas) and Russia (86 federal subjects) have very fractional ATD. Countries with an average level of fragmentation of ATD include the USA (50 states), Spain (50 provinces), Japan (47 prefectures), India (28 states and 7 union territories). But in Germany, even after the unification of the country, there are only 16 states, in Austria - 8, in Australia - 6 states and 2 territories. Some countries in Lately began to pursue a policy of unbundling their ATD (for example, India), and some, on the contrary, of consolidation (for example, Russia).
There are two main forms of administrative-territorial structure of the countries of the world - unitary and federal.
A unitary state (from the Latin unitas - unity) is a form of administrative-territorial structure in which the country has one constitution, there are single bodies of legislative, executive and judicial power, and its constituent administrative units do not enjoy any significant self-government . There is an overwhelming majority of unitary states in the world. This applies to foreign Europe, where examples of such states include Great Britain,
France, Italy, Sweden, Poland. In foreign Asia, out of 38 independent states, 33 have a unitary administrative-territorial structure. In Africa and Latin America unitary states also prevail.
A federal state (from the Latin foederatio - union, association) is a form of administrative-territorial structure in which, along with unified federal authorities and laws, there are more or less self-governing administrative units - republics, states, provinces, lands, cantons , territories, federal districts having their own bodies of legislative and executive power, albeit of a “second order” compared to the federal ones. Thus, in the USA, each state has its own legislative ( legislature) and executive (governor) bodies, the structure and competence of which are determined by the constitution of that particular state. Laws can also vary quite widely from state to state. In most federal states, parliaments consist of two chambers, one of which provides representation of republics, states, provinces, etc. For example, in the USA it is the Senate, in Germany the Bundesrat, in India - the Council of States, in Russia - the Federation Council.
The total number of federal states on the modern political map of the world is not very large - there are only 24 of them (Table 7). Moreover, this number is relatively stable. However, examples of the emergence of new federal states can also be cited: Belgium became a federation in 1993, Ethiopia in 1998.
Table 7 shows how federal states are distributed across major regions of the world. Please also note that federal structure is also reflected in official names many of them.
Some representatives of the domestic political geography are developing the question of the typology of federal states. For example, V.A. Kolosov proposed to distinguish Western European, North American, Latin American, Afro-Asian, Nigerian and island types of federations. But we will not consider them in detail. Let us confine ourselves to stating that the federal form of ATD is characteristic primarily of multinational or at least binational states. Examples of this kind could be
Countries of the world with federal administrative-territorial
device
Table 7
| Region | A country |
| CIS | Russian Federation |
| Foreign Europe | Republic of Austria Kingdom of Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina federal Republic Germany Swiss Confederation |
| Foreign Asia | Republic of India Malaysia Union of Myanmar United Arab Emirates Islamic Republic Pakistan |
| Africa | Federal Islamic Republic of Comoros Federal Republic of Nigeria Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia South Africa |
| North America | Canada USA |
| Latin America | Argentine Republic Federative Republic of Brazil Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela United Mexican States Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis |
| Australia and Oceania | Commonwealth of Australia Federated States of Micronesia |
serve Russia, Switzerland, Belgium, India, Nigeria, Canada. And yet, most of the currently existing federations are countries with a more or less homogeneous national (ethnic) composition of the population. Consequently, the emergence of these federations reflects not so much national-ethnic, but rather historical and geographical features of their development.^
Let us also add that a type of federation is actually a confederation, the members of which retain formal sovereignty and the right to withdraw from such a voluntary association. Several similar confederations existed in the world in New and Contemporary times. But at the beginning of the 21st century. Only Switzerland retained the status of a confederation. By the way, the first three cantons of this country united into a confederation back in 1291.
It should also be noted that in federal states with a complex national ethnic composition conflicts are more common domestic political situations, reflected on the political map of the world. But we will consider this issue in the next lecture.
Control questions What political regimes exist in the modern world and what are they? character traits? What is the republican form of government and how is it represented on the modern political map of the world? What is a monarchical form of government and how is it represented on the modern political map of the world? Explain the difference between unitary and federal forms of administrative-territorial structure of countries and how they are represented on the modern political map of the world.
The political system of each country is characterized by the form of government and state-territorial structure. There are two main forms of government: republic and monarchy.
The republican form of government is especially widespread, since 75% of the world is republic. Republic- this is such a form government, in which the highest legislative power belongs to parliament, which is an elected body. In a republic, executive power belongs to the government. Among the republics, a distinction is made between socialist () and bourgeois (). Chapter republican state elected by the population or by a special electoral college.
The monarchical form of government is less common. Monarchy- a form of government in which supreme state power belongs to the monarch. They can be a king, an emperor, a prince, a sultan, an emir, or a shah. IN monarchical states power is inherited.
Among monarchies, a distinction is made between states with an absolute monarchy and states with constitutional monarchy. By absolute we mean this type of monarchy when the power of the autocrat is almost unlimited. But there are very few such countries left today. As a rule, in countries of absolute monarchy, the head of state exercises legislative and executive powers, at the same time being the prime minister, chief judge, commander-in-chief of the country's armed forces and spiritual ruler. The government is formed mainly from members of the royal family. The following countries are absolute monarchies: and some others.
By constitutional we mean this type of monarchy when the supreme state power of the ruler is limited by the constitution. The real legislative power belongs to the parliament, and the executive power belongs to the government. Therefore, the monarch actually “reigns, but does not rule.” In countries with a similar government system, the monarchical system is preserved as a tradition that recalls the former greatness of the “crown”.
Japan is practically the only empire in the world. The emperor of the country is a symbol of the state and the unity of the nation, although all legislative and executive power belongs to the parliament and the cabinet of ministers. Japan, until the adoption of the 1947 constitution, was an absolute monarchy, the laws of which gave the emperor unlimited power and attributed to him divine origin. In 1947, the absolute monarchy was abolished here.
Another type of monarchy is theocratic, when the monarch is the head of the church. An example of a theocratic monarchy is.
The main forms of state-territorial structure (division) are unitary and federal. A unitary (from Latin unitas - unity) state is a form of government in which its territory does not contain self-governing entities. In such a state there is a single constitution, one system organs state power. The administrative units available here have executive branch, but not legislative. Most states in the modern world are unitary. These include, for example, France, Japan,
The form of government is the main feature of the country's government. The main forms of government in the countries of the world: republic and monarchy.
A republic is a form of government in which the highest legislative power belongs to the parliament, and the executive power belongs to the government. The republican form of government arose in ancient times (Athens democratic republic, Spartan aristocratic republic), but became most widespread during the periods of New and Contemporary history.
Distinguish presidential republic, where the president heads the government and is vested with very large powers (USA, Russia, a number of Latin American countries). And a parliamentary republic, where the role of the president is smaller, and the government is headed by Prime Minister(Germany, Italy, India).
Special shape government - socialist republic, which arose in a number of countries as a result socialist revolutions. Its varieties: Soviet republic and the People's Democratic Republic (China, North Korea, Cuba).
The monarchical form of government arose under conditions of the slave system. Under feudalism it became the main form of government. There are three types of monarchies.
The vast majority of currently existing monarchies are constitutional, where legislative power belongs to parliament and executive power to the government, while the monarch “reigns” but does not rule (Great Britain, Norway, Sweden). However, the political influence of the monarch is noticeable.
Absolute monarchy this is a form of government in which the government or other authorities are responsible only to the monarch as head of state (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Brunei).
Another one of monarchical forms government is a theocratic monarchy, where the head of state is also the religious head (Vatican).
The states that make up the Commonwealth, headed by Great Britain, form a special form of government. The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of sovereign states, each of which pursues its own policies. By cooperating with other members for the purpose of "promoting the welfare of peoples." The Commonwealth includes the former British dominions - Canada, Australia, New Zealand, etc.
FORM OF GOVERNMENT (ADMINISTRATIVE-TERRITORIAL DIVISION)
Table 7. Main forms of government
| Unitary | Federation | Confederation | Others |
| - one whole public education, consisting of administrative-territorial units that do not possess signs of state sovereignty. | Administrative-territorial units within the federation have a certain political and economic independence. | Members of the confederation, while maintaining their formal independence, have their own government bodies, but also create joint bodies to coordinate the military and foreign policy actions of the confederation. | The Commonwealth is a more amorphous union of states than a confederation. Members of the Commonwealth are completely sovereign states. Community of States - created on the basis of an interstate agreement, strengthens interstate ties between countries. |
| Most countries of the world: China, Czech Republic, Sweden, Egypt, etc. | cm. table "Countries with federal administrative-territorial device" | Switzerland | CIS |
Table 8. Countries of the world with a federal administrative-territorial structure
| Russian Federation | Africa: | Australia and Oceania: |
| Overseas Europe: | Federal Islamic Republic of Comoros | Commonwealth of Australia |
| Moldova | Federal Republic of Nigeria | Federated States of Micronesia |
| Republic of Austria | South Africa | America: |
| Kingdom of Belgium | Overseas Asia: | Federative Republic of Brazil |
| Germany | Georgia | Republic of Venezuela |
| Swiss Confederation | Republic of India | Canada |
| Federal Republic Yugoslavia | Malaysia | Mexican United States |
| Spain | Union of Myanmar | USA |
| UAE | ||
| Federal Republic of Pakistan | ||
Federal states, of which there are about 20 in the world, were created mainly on the basis of ethnic or national differences (Russian Federation, Switzerland, India, Pakistan, Myanmar, Nigeria) or taking into account historical features formation of statehood (USA, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela, Germany, Australia, Federation of Micronesia).
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