Absolute monarchs. Countries with an absolute monarchy

They are ruled by a king who makes decisions on internal and foreign policy, economic development and other issues. There are not many states headed by “Majesties”.

Form of government: absolute monarchy of the country

Brunei with its capital Bandar Seri Begawan: “Islamic Disneyland”

Tiny state in South-East Asia has an area of ​​5,765 km². Thanks to rich oil reserves and natural resources the country is considered one of the wealthiest in the world (GDP per capita exceeds $50,000).

The country is governed by the “analogue of a king” - the sultan. He heads the government and is considered the religious leader of all Muslims living in the country.

By the way, the government of Brunei consists exclusively of relatives of Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.

Oman with its capital Muscat: this difficult path of diversification

Oman “blooms and smells”. But mainly due to oil production. The country is ruled by Sultan Qaboos ( full name- Qaboos bin Said Al Bu Said). All the reins of government of the state are concentrated in his hands. He is not only a monarch. The Sultan “took” into his hands the honorary positions of Prime Minister, Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Finance, Minister of Foreign Relations and Chairman of the Central Bank. In fact, all decisions are made by him alone.

The result will be this: after the death of the Sultan, none of the heirs and successors will be able to rule the state. Because the current Sultan does not allow anyone to come to power.

What gives absolute monarchy? Country examples show that it is strictly necessary to judge: “This is good, but this is very bad!” it is forbidden. Unlimited monarchy and dictatorship grow primarily in countries with a patriarchal structure. And here the sage is right who said: “ Every people deserves its own government."

Saudi Arabia with its capital Riyadh

A country that lives according to laws adopted back in 1992. According to them, the government of the state is carried out by the sons and grandsons of Abdel Aziz. The power of the head of state here (as in many patriarchal Islamic countries) is limited only by the provisions of Sharia law.

Throughout the history of monarchical power, there have been several types and variations. Everything depended on how strong the ruler’s power was in each of them. Standing apart from this list is the absolute monarchy, which originated in the 16th century and had both positive sides(for example, the unification of lands into a centralized state), and negative ones are the unlimited power of the autocrat.

The concept and essence of monarchy

The first beginnings of the monarchy date back to the period of the emergence of states Ancient East– in Mesopotamia, Egypt, India and China. The ruler's dominion was unlimited; all power was concentrated in his hands. The chief judge in the state was the ruler, he was also the commander-in-chief of the troops and, most importantly, was declared the son of some god, most often the Sun. This form of government is called despotism. An absolute monarchy has a number of characteristics that coincide with it.

In the Middle Ages, with the emergence and development of feudal relations, the power of landowners increased, and the power of the ruler, on the contrary, was to some extent infringed. This situation in Europe remained until the 17th century. An absolutely representative monarchy limited the actions of the ruler.

Prerequisites for the emergence of autocracy

The absolute monarchy did not appear out of nowhere, and there were reasons for this. In the developed Middle Ages in Europe there were no states with a strong power of a single ruler. At that time - in the XIV-XV centuries, there was the dominance of feudal lords and the church. In the cradle of French absolutism, less than half of the state's lands were in the power of the king, and they were called in one word - domain. In some cases, feudal lords could even force the monarch to sign this or that law. As for the power of the church, it was limitless, and the king would not dare to come into conflict with it.

However, it must be said that the developed Middle Ages are the time of the emergence of the bourgeoisie, for the successful activity of which order and strong power of the center were simply necessary.

As a result, an order of things was established in which the old aristocracy wanted to leave everything as before, without losing its power and without giving dominance to the king. The new layers of the bourgeoisie would feel much more confident under the absolute power of the monarch. The church was also on the side of the latter, since it assumed that it and the state apparatus would be intertwined into a single whole, which would further strengthen the position of the first person in society. The absolute monarchy in France represented just such a symbiosis.

The emergence of an absolute monarchy

Before the era of absolutism, there was an estate-representative monarchy. Government bodies with this type of power: in France - the States General, in England - Parliament, in Spain - the Cortes, etc.

The cradle of the absolute monarchy was the Kingdom of France. It was there that in the 16th century the king became a limitless ruler. All lands became state-owned, and the power of Paris became unquestionable. Kings began to be crowned on the throne by the Pope, which meant that the monarch was chosen by God. And in the Middle Ages, religion was an integral part of the life of any citizen. Thus, the subjects considered the king to be God's anointed one.

During the period of absolute monarchy in France, the church and the state merged. From now on, only representatives of the clergy could receive high government positions. And large feudal lords and other wealthy sections of the population sent their children to study primarily in spiritual educational establishments, because they understood that it was through the church that they would be able to build a career for themselves. The most famous clergyman and at the same time statesman era of absolutism was Richelieu, who held more than 30 posts in the French kingdom at the same time, and was not inferior in influence to the king.

Distinctive features of an absolute monarchy

Absolutism arose first in France. This happened during a change of eras: the new industrial bourgeoisie increased its position in society and the state, thus pushing aside the old landowning aristocracy. The king at this time was not at a loss and, in the wake of the confrontation between the two dominant classes, increased his influence. From that moment on, the legislative, fiscal and judicial branches of government were in the hands of one person - the monarch. To maintain his status, the king needed force - a regular army was created, entirely subordinate directly to the king.

If earlier the monarchy was a noble one, that is, the support was the landowning aristocracy, then with the emergence of absolutism the king “stands on two legs”: the feudal lords are joined by the bourgeois class, which includes figures in trade and industry. The established status quo was adopted by the absolute monarchy, whose century began in the 17th century and was called the era of “classical absolutism.”

According to the Leviathan principle, absolutism was characterized by the following words: power in the interests of any class is delegated to the hands of the state (in the person of the monarch), and all subjects are left to obey.

State administration apparatus

The absolute monarchy became the point from which the expansion of the administrative apparatus began - the bureaucratization of the state. Before the era of absolutism, most lands were distributed to feudal lords, and were managed by the landowners themselves. The king could only collect taxes.

When all power was concentrated in the hands of the monarch, the need arose for a clear organization of governance throughout the country. That is why bureaus began to appear with a huge amount new positions. Secretaries of all ranks began to play a major role. Cities lost self-government. The positions of mayors, which were previously elected, became appointed. The king, at his discretion, bestowed the title of city ruler on any rich person, since most often the choice of the monarch depended on the substantial sum offered to him by the candidate for the position of mayor. Only the village was granted self-government, which also did not last long.

The emergence of autocracy in Russia

Russia followed a slightly different path of development political system, but this did not prevent her from switching to absolutism at about the same time as in Europe. In the 16th century, Ivan IV, who was given the nickname “The Terrible,” was in power in Moscow. It was he who became the founder of an absolute monarchy in Rus' and the first Russian Tsar. The power of Ivan IV was unlimited. In his activities, he relied only on himself and people devoted to him. Under him, the state strengthened, borders expanded, and the development of the economy and financial system began.

The continuator of the work of strengthening the sole power of the tsar was Peter I. The absolute monarchy in Russia during the reign of Peter acquired its final, formed form, and it was destined to exist practically unchanged for 200 years, until the fall of the autocracy in 1917.

Features of absolutism in Russia

During the reign of Tsar Ivan IV, an elected Rada was created. It included representatives of all classes close to the king. After this, the Zemsky Sobor is created. The purpose of these actions was to weaken the role of the old aristocracy, which was an obstacle to the development of absolutism. New laws were created, a Streltsy army was created, and a taxation system was introduced.

If in the West absolutism arose as a result of contradictions between the old and new orders, then in Russia the reason was the need for unification to protect against external threats. Therefore, the power was despotic, putting the kings on the same level as the rulers of the first civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia.

Absolute monarchies in the modern world

At the beginning of 2016, the absolute monarchies in the world are: the Vatican in Europe; Swaziland - in Africa; Qatar, Oman, Brunei, Saudi Arabia- in Asia. These countries are led by rulers with different titles, but they are all united by unlimited power.

Thus, absolute monarchy, which originated in the 16th century as a necessity to ensure economic progress or protection from external factors, has come a long way of development and today takes place in 6 countries of the world.

Absolute monarchy is a form of government in which all executive, legislative, judicial and military power is concentrated in the hands of the monarch. In this case, the presence of parliament is possible, as well as holding elections to parliament by the residents of the country, but it is only an advisory body to the monarch and cannot go against him in any way.

In the world, in the strict sense, there are only six countries with an absolute monarchy. If we consider it more openly, then a dualistic monarchy can also be equated to an absolute one, and these are six more countries. Thus, there are twelve countries in the world in which power is somehow concentrated in one hand.

Surprisingly, in Europe (so loving to protect human rights and irritated by any dictators) there are already two such countries! But at the same time, it is necessary to distinguish between an absolute and a constitutional monarchy, since there are a lot of kingdoms and principalities in Europe, but most of them are a constitutional monarchy, in which the head of state is the chairman of parliament.

And so, here are these twelve countries with an absolute monarchy:

1. . A small state in the Middle East on the shores of the Persian Gulf. Dualistic monarchy, King Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa since 2002.

2. (or Brunei for short). State in Southeast Asia on the island of Kalimantan. Absolute monarchy, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah since 1967.

3. . The city-state is located entirely in Rome. A theocratic monarchy, the country has been ruled by Pope Francis since 2013.

4. (full name: Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan). Located in the Middle East. A dualist monarchy, the country has been ruled by King Abdullah II bin Hussein al-Hashimi since 1999.

5., a state in the Middle East, an absolute monarchy, the country has been ruled by Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani since 2013.

6. . State in the Middle East. A dualist monarchy, the country has been ruled by Emir Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jaber al-Sabah since 2006.

7. (full name: Grand Duchy of Luxembourg). The state is located in the center of Europe. Luxembourg is a dual monarchy and has been ruled by Grand Duke HRH Henri (Henry) since 2000.

8. (full name: Kingdom of Morocco) is a state located in the northwestern part of Africa. A dualist monarchy, the country has been ruled by King Mohammed VI bin al Hassan since 1999.

9. . A state in the Middle East, on the shores of the Persian Gulf. An absolute monarchy, the country has been ruled by President Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan since 2004.

10. (full name: Sultanate of Oman). State on the Arabian Peninsula. An absolute monarchy, the country has been ruled by Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said since 1970.

eleven. . State in the Middle East. An absolute theocratic monarchy, the country has been ruled by King Salman bin Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman al Saud since 2015.

12. . The state is located in southern Africa. A dual monarchy, the country has been ruled by King Mswati III since 1986.

Throughout the 19th century, parliamentary power actively developed in the world. Lands that have been ruled for centuries royal families, changed their system of government: citizens had the opportunity to choose their ruler and parliament.

However, some countries have retained the monarchical structure. Where the absolute monarchy has been preserved today - we will consider examples of countries with this method of governance below.

The list is quite extensive - contains 41 states. These are mainly countries of Asia, Europe, Polynesia, and Africa. Today there are only 12 absolute monarchies in the world. The largest number of them are located in the Middle East.

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Basic provisions of the control system

An absolute or unlimited monarchy is a form of government in which all power is in the hands of one person, which manages the legislative activities, cultural and economic life of the country. If there is any council or parliament in the state, then it is completely controlled by the monarch, or the body consists of direct relatives of the head of state.

Dualistic monarchy is a type of absolutism, in which the activities of the ruler are formally regulated by parliament. However, the monarch retains the power to dissolve parliament and the right of veto, so in fact he runs the state himself.

History of absolutism

For the first time, states with an absolute monarchy appeared in the modern era.

Absolute monarchy in Europe originated in the 16th-17th centuries, when the power of the feudal lords weakened and class assemblies ceased to function.

Unlimited monarchy flourished by the 18th and 19th centuries, the end of absolute rule occurred at the beginning of the 20th century.

The modern world and absolute monarchy

Today, only 7 states have survived, ruled by an absolute monarch. Largest number absolute monarchies located in the Middle East.

Oman

• ruler: Sultan Qaboos bin Said;
• religion: Islam;

A state in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula. In Oman, the relatives of the ruler do not take much part in state affairs, which is not typical for Middle Eastern absolutism.

The country has a Consultative Assembly, whose members are appointed by the monarch. The Assembly studies draft legislation and makes recommendations for their improvement.

Population: 4 million people(according to 2014 data), while 1 million are foreigners employed in the oil industry.

United Arab Emirates

• ruler: Emir Khalifa al-Nahinyan;
• religion: Islam;
• basis of the economy: oil production, tourism.

United United Arab Emirates have federal structure, which includes 7 emirates - states with an unlimited monarchy. The head of the UAE is the emir of the largest emirate, Abu Dhabi (the same city is the capital).

Every year the Supreme Council of the Union meets in Abu Dhabi, which is attended by the emirs of all seven republics. They are about define the external and domestic policy states.

In total, the country is home to 9.3 million people, of which 85% are labor migrants.

Qatar

• Ruler: Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani;
• religion: Islam;
• basis of the economy: oil production.

Qatar is located in the Middle East, neighbors Saudi Arabia, and is an emirate. He lives according to the principles of Sharia, but this the most open of the Arab communities.

Qatar is one of the richest countries in the world.

Saudi Arabia

• ruler: King Salman bin Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud;
• religion: Islam;
• basis of the economy: oil production.

The largest state on the Arabian Peninsula. His population – 31.5 million people(according to 2015 data).

All ministers are appointed by the king, and positions are distributed among his relatives. The monarch also appoints members of parliament and judges.

Saudi Arabia lives according to Sharia law.

Since criminal law is based on these laws, the country officially low level crime (discussing crimes is prohibited), at the same time little respect for human rights, human trafficking is rampant.

Saudi Arabia is a key oil producer in the world; on its territory there are 24% of the planet's oil reserves.

Important! Saudi Arabia is one of three countries in the world named after the ruling dynasty.

Brunei

• ruler: Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah;
• religion: Islam;
• basis of the economy: oil production.

The official name of Brunei is the State of Brunei Darussalam.

Population – 401,890 people(according to 2011 data). One third of Bruneians live in the capital, with most residents concentrated in the oil fields.

Oil production has turned Brunei into richest country in Asia. The country actively trades with Japan, Indonesia, South Korea and Australia.

Since 2014, Brunei has been living under Sharia law.

Kingdom of Swaziland

• ruler: King Mswati III;
• religion: Christianity;
• basis of the economy: agriculture.

On the world map, Swaziland can be found in Southern Africa.

According to 2009 estimates, the country's total 1.2 million people live. Mostly residents of the state are engaged in agriculture: Sugar cane, corn, cotton, tobacco, rice, citrus fruits and pineapples are grown.

Vatican

• ruler: Pope Francis I;
• religion: Catholicism;
• basis of the economy: church donations, tourism.

Absolute monarchy in Europe is represented by the Vatican. Vatican City - City State with a theocratic monocracy. The Pope is the Ruler, he is elected by the cardinals for life.

Story

The concept of absolute monarchy as a form of organization of power dates back to Crimean law. Thus, the formula of a lawyer of the 2nd century AD is known. e. Ulpiana: lat.princeps legibus solutus est (“The sovereign is not bound by laws”). The development of absolutism as a theory in the 15th–17th centuries is associated with the formation of the concept of the state. By this time, a syncretic model based on the teachings of Aristotle dominated Western European political thought - it did not have a clear distinction between the levels of organization of society (legal, religious, political, ethical, social, spiritual). Based on the teachings of Aristotle, the concept of “separate sovereignty” ( Philippa de Commines, Claude Seyssel, etc.) assumed the priority of strong royal power, opposed to tyranny, and combined the qualities of monarchy, aristocracy and democracy. In the 15th-16th centuries, the concept of the state also developed, denoting not the “position” of the king, but an abstract entity - the embodiment of public power. A great contribution to the formation of this concept was made by Niccolo Machiavelli (treatise "Sovereign", 1532).

In 1576, the French philosopher Jean Bodin, in his work “Six Books on the Republic,” presented the theory of the indivisibility of sovereignty: the highest state power belongs entirely to the monarch, but an absolute monarchy could not encroach on the rights and freedoms of its subjects, their property (as opposed to eastern despotism, where the monarch could arbitrarily dispose life and property of subjects). At the same time, the theory of “state interest” was formed (it was followed, in particular, by an adherent of absolute monarchy, Cardinal Richelieu), according to which the monarch can violate the rights of his subjects in the most extreme cases in the name of saving the state. At the same time, in addition to rationalistic theories, the idea of ​​​​the divine origin of the institution of state power played a large role in the ideological aspect of absolutism. This idea fit into the characteristic way of thinking of the era: the king and the elite formed continuum, human will is limited by the framework of the divinely established order. Magnificent and sophisticated palace etiquette served to exalt the person of the sovereign. Louis XIV wonderfully formulated the meaning of absolute monarchy in his aphoristic phrase “ The state is me ».

Absolute monarchies in some countries were inherited from previous form of monarchy representative bodies: Cortes in Spain, states general in France, parliament in England, Zemsky Sobor in Russia, etc.). Thanks to the system of estate representation, the monarchy could receive the support of the nobility, the church of the cities in those issues that it could not resolve on its own (in accordance with the principle of the estate-representative monarchy “everything that concerns everyone must be approved by everyone”). The strengthening of royal power occurred at the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th centuries, this was especially evident in France, England and Spain. European absolutism was practically formed as a system of emergency management, which was associated with wars that required increased taxes. However, even where, during the transition to an absolute monarchy, representative bodies were eliminated (Zemstvo Councils in Russia), the sovereigns had to one way or another take into account the opinions of their subjects, often expressed through the recommendations of advisers, popular uprisings, the threat of palace coups and regicides. Even in modern times, political theories opposing absolutism also arose. According to the religious opposition (mainly Protestant), respect for property rights and loyalty to true religion form a social contract, the violation of which by the monarch gives his subjects the right to revolt. There were also consistent opponents to the idea of ​​the divine origin of power. For example, according to Cardinal Bellarmine, the king receives power not from God, but from the people led by wise shepherds. TO XVII century there was an idea that public order primary to fidelity to religion. This idea was reflected in the work of the English philosopher Thomas Hobbes “Leviathan”. Hobbes developed the idea of ​​absolute individuals who are in a state of “war of all against all” (“ Man is a wolf to man") and, on pain of death, transfer absolute power to the state. Thus, Hobbes gave absolutism a radical justification, but at the same time destroyed the image of the universe as an ideal entity - the intellectual basis of absolutism (using the works of Hobbes, at the end of the 17th century, John Locke formulated the foundations constitutional order) .

With the development and strengthening of capitalism in European countries the principles of the existence of an absolute monarchy began to come into conflict with the needs of a changed society. The strict framework of protectionism and mercantilism limited the economic freedom of entrepreneurs, who were forced to produce only goods beneficial to the royal treasury. Dramatic changes occur within the classes. From the depths of the third estate grows an economically powerful, educated, enterprising class of capitalists, which has its own idea of ​​the role and tasks of state power. In the Netherlands, England and France, these contradictions were resolved in a revolutionary way, in other countries there was a gradual transformation of an absolute monarchy into a limited, constitutional one. However, this process was uneven; for example, in Russia and Turkey, the absolute monarchy lasted until the 20th century.

General features of an absolute monarchy

Under an absolute monarchy, the state reaches highest degree centralization. From a formal legal point of view, in an absolute monarchy, the fullness of legislative and executive power is concentrated in the hands of the head of state - the monarch; he independently sets taxes and manages public finances. The following are being created: an extensive bureaucratic apparatus with strictly regulated functions, a standing army and police. Centralization and unification of local government is achieved. The state actively intervenes in the economy, using the principles of mercantilism to protect national producers. Many absolute monarchies are characterized by the presence of an ideological doctrine in which the state is assigned a special role in the life of society, and the authority of state power is indisputable . The rise of absolute monarchy in countries Western Europe falls on the XVII-XVIII centuries. In Russia, an absolute monarchy existed until the beginning of the 20th century.

The social support of different absolute monarchies is not the same. Absolute monarchies in modern Europe were states of the nobility that maintained a “society of privileges” . In Soviet historiography, the emergence of absolutism was usually associated with class struggle- nobility and bourgeoisie (S. D. Skazkin) or peasantry and nobility (B. F. Porshnev). Currently, there is a widespread point of view according to which a number of economic, social and cultural processes contributed to the strengthening of absolutism. Thus, the strengthening of state power is associated with frequent wars (there was a need for increased taxation), the development of trade (there was a need for protectionist policies), the growth of cities and social changes in them (the collapse of the social unity of the urban community, the rapprochement of the nobility with the monarchy) .

Features of absolute monarchies in various countries

The features of the absolute monarchy in each individual state were determined by the balance of power between the nobility and the bourgeoisie. In France and, especially, in England, the influence of the bourgeois on politics was much greater than in Germany, Austria and Russia. To one degree or another, the features of an absolute monarchy, or the desire for it, appeared in all European states, but they found their most complete embodiment in France, where absolutism appeared already at the beginning of the 16th century, and experienced its heyday during the reign of kings Louis XIII and Louis XIV Bourbons (1610-1715). Parliament was completely subordinate to the king's authority; the state subsidized the construction of factories, and trade wars were fought.

In England, the peak of absolutism occurred during the reign of Elizabeth I Tudor (1558–1603), but in the British Isles it never reached its classical form. Parliament was not entirely subject to the king; the monarch could gain full power only in cooperation with parliament, and parliamentary control over taxes was maintained. Due to the lack of a powerful bureaucratic apparatus on the ground significant role local government played. A powerful army was not created .

Strong royal power was established in Spain and Portugal (the strengthening of absolutism occurred in the second half of the 16th century; in Spain, the strictest regime was established under King Philip II). The emission, financial nature of the local economy, living off the silver and gold mines in America, did not allow the formation of a class of large entrepreneurs, and Spanish absolutism, which relied exclusively on the aristocracy, degenerated into despotism. At the same time, the system fueros provided a certain limitation on the power of the king, but only at the local level.

In Germany and Italy, where national states were formed only in the 19th century, absolute monarchies emerged relatively late (from the 17th century) and not on a national scale, but within individual kingdoms, duchies, counties and principalities (“regional” or “princely” absolutism). In the 17th century there was an increase Brandenburg-Prussian Monarchy with the militaristic nature of the economy and social order; a policy of mercantilism was pursued, there were strict regulations on military service for nobles and the peasant population. In the state of the Austro-Hungarian