Nations and Sates
A centralized political organization that governs a population within clearly defined geographical borders
A state
The total number of people living in a country, city, or other area.
Population
Theory that the king had absolute power because he had his right to rule given to him straight from God
Divine Right (of Kings)
What changed in Europe during the Enlightenment?
Rejection of traditional social, religious, and political ideas and an emphasis on rationalism, Placing high value on logic, science, and human reason instead of blind faith, tradition, and absolute monarchy
The president is the head of, and only a member of which branch?
Executive
Representative Democracy
A democratic system where eligible citizens vote for representatives who represent their interests in the government (such as Congress) but do not vote directly on laws
Representative Democracy
United States
President
Intense pride or patriotism for your nation
Nationalism
Legitimate rule by a dominant power, political party, or person
Sovereignty
How many public services and programs are paid for
Tax Dollars
Beginning in Ancient China, dynasties rose and fell when the heavens gave or took away the ________________ using plagues, floods, and more to send signs to mortals on Earth
Mandate of Heaven
Believed the social contract protected people's natural rights and that people are born a blank slate
John Locke
In a parliamentary system, the Prime Minister is a member of which 2 branches?
Legislative and Executive
Absolute Monarchy
A monarch (King or Queen) rules with absolute power and no limits from other parts of the government
Absolute Monarchy
Saudi Arabia, Pre-Revolution France
A Representative Democracy can also be called a...
Republic
A geographical area that is under the jurisdiction (control) of a governmental authority, or a political subdivision of a country
Territory
When a government or gov’t leader is seen as the rightful ruler of a state
Legitimacy
A measure of an area's population, done every 10 years in the US`
Census
During what time period did the Divine Right of Kings dominate Europe's Monarchies?
16th-18th Centuries (1500s - 1700s)
English thinker who believed a strong and powerful monarch was the best version of the social contract because people were naturally evil and selfish, needing to be saved from their own nature
Thomas Hobbes
How does power flow in a Unitary System? + An example
A central national government holds supreme authority, and any regional or local governments are subordinate and created by the central power. The central government can establish, modify, or even abolish local governing bodies, with power centralized for uniform policies and administration
United Kingdom (UK), France
Constitutional Monarchy
A monarch rules with Constitutional limits placed on their power, usually with a parliament to balance power
Constitutional Monarchy
Modern UK, Japan, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Netherlands
The first direct democracy was in
Ancient Athens
The rights all people are born with
A community or group of people based on a common identity
Nation
A government's authority and ability to get things done
Power
In nations like Japan or Ancient Egypt, how did rulers maintain legitimacy?
Swiss thinker who published The Social Contract in the 1760s and believed power resides solely with the people
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
How is power shared in a typical Federal System? + Example
Power is divided between a central (national) government and regional governments with legal protections like in a constitution
USA, Germany, Mexico, India, Russia
Theocracy
Religious leaders are the nation’s leaders and Religious texts are the basis for the laws of a nation
Theocracy
Modern Iran and Vatican City, Historically: Byzantine Empire and Islamic Caliphates
What is Self-Government?
Government by the people, for the people, like a democracy following the social contract
Used by enlightenment era thinkers to prove why the social contract is necessary, it is the basic state where there is no government or social structure
State of Nature
A sovereign (legitimate) state whose citizens share things like culture, religion, language, and/or common descent
Nation-State
Talking with other nations to resolve conflict without going to war or other hostilities
Diplomacy
What is the Force Theory?
Says government origins are rooted in conflict, where one person or a group used force to assert control over a territory and its people, establishing a state through coercion
This French thinker's writings on the topic of Separation of Powers inspired the founding fathers and the US Constitution
What was Dual Federalism, that the US had from 1789 to the 1930s
Each level of government has powers the others do not with no overlap or collaboration
Oligarchy
A small group of wealthy elites (like businessmen) who use their money, power, and influence to control the government’s decision making
Oligarchy
Modern Russia
Before the Constitution, we had what governing document starting in 1777?
Articles of Confederation
If a government violates their end of the social contract, the people are empowered to...
Overthrow their government
Dislike of or prejudice against people from other countries/immigrants
Xenophobia
These graphs can be used to predict population growth or decline
What is the Evolution Theory of government?
Suggests that the state evolved gradually from early, simple family units, which expanded into clans and then larger, organized tribes that eventually settled and formed states
Inspired by Aristotle, this 13th century thinker wrote that Legitimate governments do not violate natural law
St. Thomas Aquinas
What is Cooperative Federalism, that the US has had since the 1930s due to the Great Depression
The National government started working with states using federal programs and money to help Americans
Small number of people with inherited titles influence and help run the government, typically seen in monarchies
Aristocracy
British Nobility, France (Pre-Revolution 1789), Boyars of Russian Empire (Pre 1917)
Devolution
The central (national) government granting some powers to its local governments
How does power flow in a Confederal system? + Example
A weak central government gets its authority from the independent states
Soviet Union (USSR), Confederate States of America (CSA), US under Articles of Confederation (Before Constitution)
Junta
A high ranking military officer or group of officers overthrow the government of a nation by force by a coup d’etat or violent takeover
Junta
Modern: Myanmar (2021)
Historic: Pinochet’s takeover of Chile (1973)
*Essay Question on test* Explain the relationship between the people and government in the Social Contract
The implicit agreement where people give up some of their individual freedom and power to a government and develop a mutually beneficial relationship