Autocracy is as old as political history. Human history is replete with the stories of autocratic rulers, kings and emperors since very ancient times. Even absolutism is not a new political phenomenon. The Roman Emperors, several modem European kings and rulers like Philip II of Spain, William of Orange, Cromwell, Napoleon, and several Asian kings today, like the Shahinshah of Iran, or the Mikado of Japan, have been and are absolutist rulers. But all of them depend on old customs, laws and traditions of their countries for absolute authority, though none of them tests its cxercise by reference to popular vote or plebiscite. Modem dictator captures supreme power against law and constitution and secures popular support by a strong government and plebiscite. Hence this new kind of autocracy is sometimes described as “popular autocracy.” A modem dictator is usually a successful military man or a strong party leader.
Modern dictatorships can be classified into three distinct types
They are communist, nationalist and fascist dictatorships. Many English and American writers and political scientists usually bracket them into a single category for reasons of the propaganda technique of simplification. But there are great differences of structure, doctrine and ideals between each of the three kinds of dictatorships. We shall, however, deal with the organisation of their government and State in this chapter and shall take up their doctrines and philosophies in subsequent chapters. This dictatorship arose during the First World War (1914-18). First of all arose the Communist Dictatorship in Russia in 1917, then in 1921 Kemal Ataturk established a nationalist dictatorship in Turkey. Soon after, in 1922, Benito Mussolini established his Fascist dictatorship in Italy.
Then several monarchical, nationalistic and fascist dictatorships were set up in several European countries, like Spain, Portugal, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Rumania, Greece, etc. In 1933, arose the most ferocious of all the fascist dictatorships, the Hitlerite dictatorship of Germany, usually called Nazi Dictatorship. Soon after the Asian brand of Fascist dictatorship was established in Japan. The three Fascist Dictatorships of Italy, Germany and Japan entered into a military alliance for aggression and conquest. They feverishly prepared for a world war which they started in 1939, called the World War II, which ended in 1945 with the utter destruction of the three Fascist powers. Mussolini was hanged by angry Italians; Herr Hitler died in an air-raid shelter in Berlin, but the Japanese war-lords escaped without much thrashing, because they hurriedly and skilfully surrendered to the Americans who nurtured them into their brand of democracy.
Fascist dictatorship existed in Franco’s Spain, till his death and in Pinochle’s Chile till recently. The nationalist dictatorship of Turkey has now become a democracy. Only Communist Dictatorship of Russia still goes strong, rather modified by the perestroika and glasnost policies of President Gorbochev in recent years but mainly because of her progress in industry, science and technology. In post-World War II years we have witnessed the rise of several communist dictatorships, as in China and several East European countries where they have overthrown the former Fascist dictatorships after the defeat and destruction of Nazi Germany, Later on several nationalist dictatorships rose to power, as in ‘Egypt, Iraq, Indonesia, South Korea, Thailand and military dictatorships, e.g., in Burma, Pakistan, Bangladesh.