Everything about Dictator totally explained
A
dictator is an authoritarian ruler (for example
absolutist or
autocratic) who assumes sole power over his or her state, though the term is normally not applied to those who acquire such position by regular constitutional means, such as a hereditary
absolute monarch, except to denote personal abuse of power. A government that calls its
head of state a dictator is called a
dictatorship. The word originated as the title of a
magistrate in
ancient Rome appointed by the
Senate to rule the republic in times of emergency (see
Roman dictator and
justitium). Like the term
tyrant, originally a respectable Ancient Greek title, and to a lesser degree autocrat, it came to be used almost exclusively as a non-titular term for oppressive, even abusive rule, yet had rare modern titular uses.
In modern usage, the term "dictator" is generally used to describe a leader who holds and/or abuses an extraordinary amount of personal power, especially the power to make
laws without effective restraint by a
legislative assembly. Dictatorships are often characterized by some of the following traits: suspension of
elections and of
civil liberties; proclamation of a
state of emergency;
rule by decree;
repression of political opponents without abiding by
rule of law procedures;
single-party state,
cult of personality, etc.
The term "dictator" is comparable to (but not synonymous with) the ancient concept of a tyrant, although initially "tyrant", like "dictator", didn't carry negative connotations. A wide variety of leaders coming to power in a number of different kinds of regimes, such as
military juntas,
single-party states and civilian governments under personal rule, have been described as dictators.
Classical era
Roman dictators te|Senate]] in times of crisis, as sole chief instead of the regular two
Consuls. Uniquely for the Roman Republic (in contrast, for example, to the two
consuls), their office wasn't collegial, although they did have a deputy, the
Master of the Horse. They were invested with sweeping authority over the citizens, but their term was usually limited to six months, or the duration of the crisis, and they lacked power over public finances.
Lucius Cornelius Sulla and
Julius Caesar, however, exceeded these limitations and governed without these constraints. The Romans abandoned the political office after Caesar's murder, although his political heir
Augustus developed the
Principate, constitutionally a lesser status of 'first citizen', into a
de facto dictatorship using different constitutional powers, evolving into the
Dominate with the trappings of a monarchy in all but name.
The term "dictator" didn't originally possess the odious connotations that it later acquired (compare the change of meaning of the
ancient Greek concept of the
tyrant, or that of the Roman military title of
Imperator).
Furthermore, a nominal dictator was at certain times appointed to perform certain religious formalities, requiring the highest representation of the state, illustrating the high, positively appreciated prestige of the office.
Modern era
Modern dictators have usually come to power in times of emergency. Frequently dictators have seized power by
coup d'état as
Benito Mussolini did in
Italy at the culmination of his
March on Rome. But some dictators, most notably
Adolf Hitler in
Germany, achieved office as
head of government by legal means. However, once he was
elected in office, Hitler gained additional extraordinary powers.
Mainly
Latin American,
Asian, and
African nations, especially developing nations, have known many dictatorships, usually by military leaders at the head of a
junta, either claiming to constitute a
revolution or to reestablish order and stability.
In popular usage in western nations, "dictatorship" is often associated with brutality and oppression. As a result, it's often also used as a term of abuse for political opponents, for example,
Henry Clay's dominance in
Congress—first as
Speaker of the House and later as a member of the
Senate—led to his nickname, "the Dictator." The term has also come to be associated with
megalomania. Many dictators create a
cult of personality and have come to favor increasingly grandiloquent titles and honours for themselves. E.g.,
Idi Amin Dada, who had been a
British army
lieutenant prior to
Uganda's independence from Britain in October
1962, subsequently styled himself as "His Excellency
President for Life Field Marshal Al Hadji Dr. Idi Amin,
VC,
DSO,
MC, Lord of All the Beasts of the Earth and Fishes of the Sea and Conqueror of the
British Empire in Africa in General and Uganda in Particular". In "
The Great Dictator" (1940),
Charlie Chaplin satirized not only Hitler but the institution of dictatorship itself. Leaders and their regimes very rarely call themselves "dictator(ship)", and usually don't consider themselves to be oppressive, or simply don't admit it.
The association between the dictator and the
military is a common one; many dictators take great pains to emphasize their connections with the military and often wear military uniforms. In some cases, this is perfectly
legitimate;
Francisco Franco was a lieutenant general in the
Spanish Army before he became
Chief of State of Spain;
Manuel Noriega was officially commander of the
Panamanian Defense Forces. In other cases, the association is mere pretense.
In
Marxist ideology the
dictatorship of the proletariat refers to an intermediate stage between
capitalism and pure
communism, where the
proletariat and/or its representatives must exercise dictatorial power. The term, at least in theory, doesn't refer to power vested in a single individual.
Modern use in formal titles
Dictator (plain)
- Cameroon
Paul Biya, the current President of the Republic of Cameroon was listed by historian David Wallechinsky, in his book Tyrants, the World's 20 Worst Living Dictators, along with three others in sub-Saharan Africa: Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea and King Mswati of Swaziland. In 2007, Parade magazine ranked Biya the 19th worst dictator in the world.
- Italy
In the former doge-state Venice, while a republic resisting annexation by either the kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia or the Austrian empire, a former Chief Executive (president, 23 March - 5 July 1848), Daniele Manin (b. 1804 - d. 1857), was styled Dictator 11-13 August 1848 before joining the 13 August 1848 - 7 March 1849 Triumvirate.
- Peru
General Simón Bolívar, the 17 February 1824 - 28 January 1827 Head of state, was acting Dictator until 10 February 1825 when his title changed to Libertador ('Liberator'), and on 9 December 1826 again to President-for-Life.
- Philippines
Emilio Aguinaldo, the last President of the Supreme Government Council 23 March 1897 - 16 December 1897 and chairman of the Revolutionary Government from 23 June to 1 November 1897, was dictator from 12 June 1898 - 23 January.
- Poland
- Russia during the Civil War
Compound and derived titles
Dictator President, twice in modern Colombia:
cf. supra (Poland) 19 March 1863 - 20 March 1863 Executive Dictatorial Commission of three members *
In Paraguay, in a procession of generally short-lived juntas, the last of the Consuls of the Republic in power, two Consuls alternating in power every 4 months, 12 June 1814 - 3 October 1814 José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia y Velasco (2nd time), succeeded himself as the only ever Supreme Dictator 3 October 1814 - 20 September 1840 - from 6 June 1816 he was styled Perpetual Supreme Dictator
Prodittatore (plural: Prodittatori) was the title of the governors appointed in Sicily after Garibaldi's conquest of the island (11 May 1860) till shortly before the 12 December 1860 annexation to the Savoy dynasty's Kingdom of Sardinia:
- 23 July - September 17, 1860 Agostino Depretis (b. 1813 - d. 1887)
- 17 - end September 1860 Antonio Mordini (b. 1819 - d. 1902)
"The benevolent dictator"
The benevolent dictator is a more modern version of the classical “enlightened despot”, being an absolute ruler who exercises his or her political power for the benefit of the people rather than exclusively for his or her own benefit. Like many political classifications, this term suffers from its inherent subjectivity. Such leaders as Napoleon Bonaparte, Anwar Sadat, Kenneth Kaunda, Józef Piłsudski, Miklós Horthy, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, and Omar Torrijos have been characterized by their supporters as benevolent dictators.
In Spanish, the word dictablanda is sometimes used for a dictatorship conserving some of the liberties and mechanisms of democracy. (The pun is that, in Spanish, dictadura is “dictatorship”, dura is “hard” and blanda is “soft”). Some examples includes Yugoslavia under Tito or Spain under Francisco Franco. This contrasts with democradura (literally “hard democracy”), characterized by full formal democracy alongside limitations on constitutional freedoms and human rights abuses, frequently within the context of a civil conflict or the existence of an insurgency. Governments in Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela have at various times been considered régimes by different critics and opposition groups, not necessarily with an academic or political consensus about the application of the term emerging.
Dictators in game theory
In social choice theory, the notion of a dictator is formally defined as a person that can achieve any feasible social outcome he/she wishes. The formal definition yields an interesting distinction between two different types of dictators.
The strong dictator has, for any social goal he/she has in mind (for example raise taxes, having someone killed, etc.), a definite way of achieving that goal. This can be seen as having explicit absolute power, like Pinochet in Chile.
The weak dictator has, for any social goal he/she has in mind, and for any political scenario, a course of action that would bring about the desired goal. For the weak dictator, it's usually not enough to "give their orders", rather he/she has to manipulate the political scene appropriately. This means that the weak dictator might actually be lurking in the shadows, working within a political setup that seems to be non-dictatorial. An example of such a figure is Lorenzo the Magnificent, who controlled Renaissance Florence.
Note that these definitions disregard some alleged dictators, for example Benito Mussolini, who are not interested in the actual achieving of social goals, as much as in propaganda and controlling public opinion. Monarchs and military dictators are also excluded from these definitions, because their rule relies on the consent of other political powers (the barons or the army).
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