Forms of Government
Storyboard Text
- Feudalism
- Kind lady peasant, may I offer you some land in exchange for your loyalty and services to me?
- Of course, gracious King!
- Aristocracy
- My queen, we are of very high status and only we get to rule because we are the aristocrats!
- Yes, my king!!
- Republic
- Thomas, John, is the Declaration of independence made yet so we can sign it?
- It is done, Mr. President!!
- Feudalism was where a king or noble would offer land to their knights or subjects. In exchange for this, the king would give the people loyalty and service and kill people if the king wanted them to. If vassals wanted to serve the king, they would provide protection for the king. In exchange for protecting the king, the king would make the vassal a knight. A country that has feudalism is England. King William conquered England, so he gave land to barons and lords in exchange for an army. 
- Dictatorship
- We must invade Ukraine!
- Yes, sir!
- An aristocracy is a government of the highest upper-class people. In an aristocracy, there is a small group of people who get to have power over people with less status or lower-class people. Aristocrats were chosen based on many qualifications, such as nobility, family, wealth, education, and knowledge. In governmental aristocracies, aristocrats are chosen based on their leadership skills and abilities.  A country with aristocracy is France. 
- Absolute Monarchy
- I am the king and I have complete power over everything!
- A republic is a state where the supreme power is held by the citizens and the representatives that the people vote for. A republic has an elected president instead of a monarch. In a republic, the citizens have the power because they are the ones who get to elect and decide who rules the United States. A country that has a republic is the United States. The United States has the Continental Congress which controls all the laws and rules of the United States. 
- Direct Democracy
- Hello, I just moved into Russia and I don't know how anything works. Can you explain what we are doing here?
- A dictatorship is a form of government led by a single leader or group of leaders that have power that is promised to the people. Dictators use force to gain their political power, and they do this through intimidation. Dictators are either elected through a ruling party or are elected through their deceased relative. A country with a dictatorship is Russia. Russia has one leader (Putin) who is now trying to forcefully capture Ukraine so they can make it part of Russia. 
- Absolute Monarchy is a type of monarchy where the monarch has the right to rule. Sometimes, the king is limited by a constitution so he does not have all the power. In other times, he is not limited so this means he has all the power and these are called hereditary monarchies.  An example of a country with an absolute monarchy is Swaziland. King Mswati III, the king of Swaziland, has authority over the government such as the cabinet, legislature, and judiciary. 
- Direct Democracy is a form of democracy where the people who vote in an election vote on policies and laws instead of electing politicians to do it for them. The citizens are the rulers and there is no single leader. A country with direct democracy is Switzerland. In Switzerland, all citizens over 18 are allowed to vote on how the country is run. 
- Hello! In Russia, all citizens over 18 get to vote on how the country is run. 
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