"Republic" is a term raised on the banners of the French Revolution, often equated with democracy. In order to get an idea of the true content of this concept, it is worth looking into the depths of the centuries and understand what was meant by this word in different eras.
Instructions
Step 1
Republic means a form of government in which power belongs to elected state institutions. It is opposed to a monarchy, which implies the transfer of power by inheritance. This concept, translated from Latin as "the work of the people" (res publicae), stems from Ancient Rome, where it was formed in the corresponding period. History knew even before that forms of government in which sovereignty belonged to all adult free men (for example, the so-called Athenian democracy). However, the ancient republics have little in common with modern interpretations of this concept.
Step 2
In the future, the principles of the republic: "freedom, equality and fraternity" became the ideals of the Great French Revolution. Republicanism implies the priority of law in society. This is its key difference from democracy as a political regime: in a democracy, the majority can impose their will on the minority, while republicanism presupposes that every citizen has inviolable rights and freedoms. At the same time, equality as the right to participate in the political life of the country (to elect and be elected, to create associations and parties) is one of the key points of a democratic regime as well.
Step 3
In Soviet encyclopedias, the term "republic" was interpreted in two ways: the existence of socialist republics in the world, in which all members of society equally participate in the life of the country, and bourgeois, where a minority exploited the prevailing working class, were assumed.
Step 4
In modern political theory, there are two main types of republican government: presidential and parliamentary republics. Both institutions of power are present in both types of establishment. They differ in the volume and nature of the powers. Also in the modern world such types of republics are known as Islamic, Soviet, people's, federal.
