Aristocracy
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For the social class, see Aristocracy (class).
For other uses, see Aristocrat (disambiguation).
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Aristocracy (from Greek ἄριστος aristos "excellent," and κράτος kratos "power"), is a form of government in which a few of the most prominent citizens rule. The term was derived from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best".1 See Aristocracy (class) for the historical roots of the term. The concept evolved in Ancient Greece, whereby a council of prominent citizens was commonly used and contrasted with monarchy, in which an individual king held the power.2 Later, aristocracies primarily consisted of an elite aristocratic class, privileged by birth and wealth. Since the French Revolution, aristocracy has generally been contrasted with democracy, in which all citizens hold some form of political power.
See also
Notes
- ^ The Oxford Companion to British History, John Cannon (Editor), Oxford University Press, 1962, ISBN 9780198661764
- ^ "Craic". Oxford English Dictionary. December 1989. http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50011987?single=1&query_type=word&queryword=aristocracy&first=1&max_to_show=10. Retrieved December 22, 2009.
References
- History, John Cannon (Editor), Oxford University Press, 1997, ISBN 9780198661764