● Monarchy: A monarchy is a system of government where one person has all the power.

The people do not choose a leader but inherit the power from their family. Kings or
queens usually rule for their whole lives unless they decide to step down. Monarchies
can either be absolute or constitutional. Absolute monarchies have been very popular in
the past. One person has absolute power, and nothing can stop them from doing what
they want. They control taxes, militaries, education, and pretty much everything else. If it
is ‘by the king's order,’ everyone must follow. Think of King Louis XIV of France, Ivan the
Terrible of Russia, or King Henry VIII of England. A great example of an absolute
monarchy of present times is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ruled by King Salman bin
Abdulaziz. A more popular form of monarchy in recent times is constitutional monarchy.
The role of the monarch is just ceremonial, without any real power. Their power is limited
by the country’s constitution, a rule book everyone must follow. Think of the United
Kingdom, for example. While King Charles III is the ruling monarch, real decision-making
power lies with the British parliament.

● Dictatorship: Dictatorship is another type of government where one person makes all the
decisions. The only real difference is that dictators normally take power by force,
deception, or corruption rather than inherit it like monarchs. You might have heard of
Adolf Hitler, one of the most famous dictators in history. With little to no limit on the
dictator’s power, they’re free to rule as they please. Under a dictatorship, the freedom of
citizens is limited by intimidation and violence, making it a very unpopular form of
government. But that wasn’t always the case. The ancient Roman Republic often
appointed dictators in times of crisis when decisions needed to be made swiftly. One
exception to that rule was Julius Caesar, a military general who appointed himself
dictator for life. The Romans were obviously unhappy, and dictatorship ultimately did not
end well for Caesar.

● Communism: Communism advocates for a classless society. In a communist society, all

resources are owned collectively by the community, aka the government. The concept of
private ownership is nonexistent, and all members of the community work together to
make a system of social and economic equality. This means that wealth is distributed
based on people’s needs, and everyone has access to basic necessities like food,
healthcare, housing, and education regardless of their social status. Even though the
idea of communism is appealing it doesn’t mean communism is perfect. In the past,
communist regimes like the Soviet Union have succeeded in improving the basic
standards of the people but they have also faced immense criticism. Much like
dictatorships, many communist regimes have been known for restricting the freedom of
the common folk. Communist regimes often become victims of inefficiency and eventual
descent into corruption. And while the ideology of communism is meant to empower the
common folk oftentimes it’s a small group of people who end up controlling most of the
country’s power.
● Direct Democracy: Most countries in the modern world are run by a democratic system.
In a democracy, every member has a say in making decisions. Take a family going out to
the movies, for example. Among the several choices they have, the family decides to
take a vote. They only decide to watch the one with the most votes; the majority is
authority. The earliest example of democracy can be found in ancient Athens. All adult
males had a duty to participate in the matters of the state. Even though slaves and
women were left out, the Athenian democracy was still pretty progressive for its time.
What Athens had was a direct democracy where everyone took an active part in the
government. This type of democracy is known as a direct democracy. It might be a great
system for small groups of people, like in a town or a small city, but the system needs to
be more efficient among larger groups. Imagine your country took a vote from every
citizen each time a decision had to be made. With thousands of votes taken daily, the
system would simply collapse due to inefficiency. This takes us to a representative
democracy or a republic.

● Representative Democracy: Commonly known as a Republic, representative democracy

is a governing system where people vote to elect representatives. These elected officials
then form the government and make key decisions that are in the general public's best
interest. If the public is unsatisfied with a representative, they can select a different
representative in the next term. In a republic, the powers of the government are limited
by a rule book known as a Constitution. All decisions they make have to be by the
Constitution. Imagine a man trying to escape a mob for stealing some lemons.
Eventually, he is caught, and the majority decides he has to be executed. Without a rule
book, the majority decision will be accepted. But in the presence of a constitution, the
majority's powers are limited to protect the citizens by law.

● Theocracy: Theocracy is another form of government we find in some countries in the

modern age. Normally, theocratic governments are formed in states where religion is
integral to society. In a theocratic government, the ruling authority is a divine deity and
religious teachings. But hang on, how does God make policy decisions and implement
them? The answer is simple: a class of people, like a clergy, are formally appointed to
enact the will of God and are entrusted with the complex task of running a government.
These officials are expected to uphold religious values, and all decisions must be made
in the people's best interests and adhere to religious law simultaneously. Because of
shared religious values, theocracies can remain successful and highly popular. Take the
City of Vatican, for example. With the Pope at the heart of the government, the Vatican is
a great example of a well-functioning theocracy of the modern era. However, there are
some things that could be improved in this form of government. Since power is
distributed in a small group, it makes it easier for them to manipulate people and abuse
their trust.

● Anarchy: Finally, we have anarchy. Advocates of anarchy champion freedom for all
individuals and voluntary affiliation. In its essence, anarchy is a stateless structure with
no government to regulate the people. While freedom for all is a great thing in theory,
anarchies cause disorder and chaos, for example, in the case of Somalia, which fell into
anarchy in 1991. With no strong government to maintain law and order, powerful clans
began to clash with one another to protect their interests. Due to the lawless system and
Clan-based alliances looking to seize power for themselves, the people faced prolonged
suffering and a decline in the country’s economy. But the case of Somalia is a unique
one. Generally, anarchy is a short-lived transition phase between the fall of one
government structure and the formation of a new one.