How to read the 12-icon strip: each icon is an axis and shows the pole the country or regime leans toward. The stronger the icon, the more intense the position. Hover to see the values.
- Structure
- Representation
- Power
- Immigration
- Diplomacy
- Intervention
- Economy
- Control
- Trade
- Religion
- Morality
- Technology
Modern countries
Today's states and autonomous regions, each with its political regime and profile across the twelve axes.
Afghanistan
An Islamic emirate ruled by the Taliban since 2021, Afghanistan is governed by a clerical supreme leader who imposes a strict interpretation of sharia, bars women from education and work, and faces economic crisis and isolation.
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Alaska (United States)
The largest US state and one of the least densely populated, Alaska lives off oil, pays every resident an annual dividend from its Permanent Fund, levies no state income tax, and has a strong gun culture, Native corporations and distrust of the federal government.
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Albania
A Muslim-majority parliamentary republic in the Balkans, Albania is a secular state with strong interfaith coexistence, a market economy after the end of Enver Hoxha's communist regime, NATO membership, and candidacy for the European Union.
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Algeria
Born from the war of independence against France, Algeria is an army-dominated republic with Islam as the state religion, a state-run economy dependent on oil and gas, a non-aligned foreign policy and repression of the Hirak movement.
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Angola
A presidential republic ruled by the MPLA since independence from Portugal in 1975, Angola emerged from civil war in 2002, lives on oil and diamonds, concentrates power in President Lourenco and faces inequality and cost-of-living protests.
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Argentina
A presidential federal republic, Argentina under Javier Milei since 2023 pursues fiscal restraint, deregulation and privatization while retaining public services and aligning with the United States and Israel, breaking with Peronism.
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Armenia
A semi-presidential republic in the Caucasus, Armenia combines Christian national identity and historical rivalry with Azerbaijan and Turkey, seeking balance between Russia, the West, and Iran.
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Australia
A federal parliamentary monarchy, Australia unites stable democracy, multiculturalism, and a market economy rich in natural resources, with strong alignment with the West and rigorous, selective migration policies.
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Austria
A parliamentary federal republic in Central Europe, Austria combines military neutrality, a robust welfare state, a social market economy, a moderate Catholic-secular culture, and deep integration into the European Union.
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Azerbaijan
An authoritarian presidential republic of the Aliyev family in the Caucasus, Azerbaijan is Shia-majority but a secular state, lives on oil and gas and retook Nagorno-Karabakh in 2023, allied with Turkey and balanced between Russia and Israel.
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Bahrain
A Persian Gulf monarchy ruled by the Sunni Al Khalifa dynasty over a Shia majority, Bahrain combines a liberalized financial hub, a parliament with limited powers, repression of the opposition since 2011, and alignment with Saudi Arabia and the US.
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Bali (Indonesia)
An island province of Indonesia, Bali is the only Hindu-majority one in a Muslim-majority country, with a religious culture that organizes life, temples and the calendar, a tourism economy and tension between tradition, migration and overdevelopment.
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Bangladesh
A Muslim-majority parliamentary republic with a secular constitution, Bangladesh is marked by rivalry between parties and the army, ousted Prime Minister Hasina in 2024 and exports mainly textiles, with large remittances.
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Basque Country (Spain)
An autonomous Spanish community comprising Araba, Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa, with its own parliament, co-official Basque language and distinctive fiscal autonomy. Basque nationalism and historic provincial institutions shape regional politics.
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Bavaria (Germany)
Germany's largest federal state, Bavaria combines strong regional identity and Catholicism, historic dominance by the CSU, cutting-edge industry (BMW, Siemens), and active defense of its fiscal and cultural autonomy from Berlin.
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Belarus
A post-Soviet presidential republic, Belarus is ruled by an authoritarian, personalist regime, with strong state control of the economy, repression of the opposition, and a close political alliance with Russia.
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Belgium
Federal parliamentary monarchy made up of three regions and three linguistic communities, with competitive elections, broad social protection, and an open economy integrated into the European Union. National politics combines multiparty coalitions, regional autonomy, and guarantees of religious freedom.
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Bhutan
A small Himalayan kingdom, Bhutan combines a Buddhist constitutional monarchy, strong protection of traditional culture and nature, and Gross National Happiness as its compass of government, with cautious openness to the outside world.
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Bolivia
An Andean presidential republic, Bolivia is marked by indigenous leadership, the defense of natural resources, and a plurinational state project that unites economic nationalism and broad popular participation.
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
A post-Dayton state split between the Croat-Bosniak Federation and the Serb Republika Srpska, Bosnia has a tripartite ethnic presidency, an international high representative, politics stalled by ethnic vetoes and a European Union candidacy.
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Brazil
The largest country in Latin America, Brazil is a democratic presidential federal republic with a mixed economy, broad social policies, and strong regional, cultural, and political diversity that shapes its electoral disputes.
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Brunei
An oil- and gas-rich absolute sultanate, Brunei is ruled by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah as head of state and government, with a sharia penal code since 2014, tax-free welfare and the official ideology of the Malay Islamic Monarchy.
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Bulgaria
A parliamentary republic with an Orthodox majority, Bulgaria belongs to the EU and NATO, with a low flat tax, chronic political instability, oligarchs and corruption, historic ties to Russia, a nuclear plant, a Roma minority and conservative laws on gender.
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Burkina Faso
Sahel country ruled by a military junta led by Ibrahim Traoré, which dissolved political parties in 2026, postponed elections, nationalized gold mines, left ECOWAS and formed the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), with a sovereigntist, Pan-Africanist rhetoric inherited from Sankara.
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California (United States)
The most populous US state, California is a global hub of technology and culture, with strongly progressive, environmentalist, and technocratic politics and a gigantic, innovative market economy.
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Cambodia
A constitutional monarchy in name, Cambodia has been dominated for four decades by Hun Sen and now by his son Hun Manet, with a banned opposition, controlled press, a garment and tourism economy and strong Chinese influence.
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Cameroon
A bilingual presidential republic, Cameroon has been ruled by Paul Biya since 1982, with centralized power, a separatist war in the Anglophone regions, a Boko Haram threat in the north and an oil and cocoa economy.
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Canada
A federal parliamentary monarchy, Canada combines stable democracy, multiculturalism, a broad welfare state, and a market economy rich in natural resources, with a strong commitment to rights and diversity.
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Cape Verde
A Portuguese-speaking archipelago off West Africa, Cape Verde is one of the continent's most stable democracies, with semi-presidentialism, peaceful alternation of power, a tourism and diaspora-remittance economy, a Catholic majority and relatively liberal customs.
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Catalonia (Spain)
An autonomous region in northeastern Spain, Catalonia combines its own national identity and language, an industrial, cosmopolitan economy, progressive social politics, and a strong independence movement that culminated in the 2017 referendum.
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Chile
A South American presidential republic, Chile combines stable democracy, an open market economy, and a strong social and progressive agenda, a legacy of redemocratization after Pinochet's military dictatorship.
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China
A single-party socialist state, China unites the absolute political control of the Communist Party with a state-directed market economy, becoming a global industrial, technological, and geopolitical power.
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Chongqing (China)
China's largest directly administered municipality, Chongqing combines heavy industry, a car-making base and freight trains to Europe with Bo Xilai's "Chongqing model" (public housing, anti-crime campaign, "red songs"), ended in 2012.
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Colombia
A South American presidential republic, Colombia combines democracy, a strong Catholic tradition, and a market economy, seeking to consolidate peace after decades of armed conflict under an unprecedented left-wing government.
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Costa Rica
A presidential republic in Central America, Costa Rica stands out for abolishing its armed forces, its consolidated democracy, its environmental commitment, and a tradition of political stability and peace in the region.
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Croatia
A Catholic parliamentary republic, Croatia belongs to the EU, the euro, Schengen and NATO, with a dominant Adriatic tourism sector, long-lasting HDZ governments, a contested memory of the war of independence, a Serb minority and a Church influential on family issues.
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Cuba
A single-party socialist state in the Caribbean, Cuba maintains a planned economy, strong state control, and universal public services, with power centralized since the revolution led by Fidel Castro in 1959.
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Cyprus
A presidential republic of the EU, divided since the Turkish invasion of 1974, with an occupied north recognized only by Turkey, an influential Orthodox Church, a services and finance economy, sovereign British bases, a strong communist party and a peace plan rejected in 2004.
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Czechia
A parliamentary republic in Central Europe, Czechia combines a consolidated liberal democracy, a strong secular tradition, an industrialized market economy, and integration into the European Union after the end of the socialist bloc.
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Dagestan (Russia)
A republic of the Russian Federation in the North Caucasus, Dagestan is multiethnic and Sunni Muslim-majority, with strong Sufi religiosity, local clans, dependence on subsidies from Moscow, repression of radical Islamism, and little real autonomy.
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Denmark
A Nordic parliamentary monarchy, Denmark combines a generous welfare state, high taxes, and a competitive market economy, pairing strong social equality with more restrictive migration policies.
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DR Congo
The second-largest country in Africa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is led by Tshisekedi, with a fragile state, war in the east against M23 and other militias, vast cobalt and copper wealth and a legacy of Mobutism and Belgian rule.
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Ecuador
An Andean republic dollarized since 2000, Ecuador is governed by Daniel Noboa, who declared an internal armed conflict against organized crime and deployed soldiers in the streets and prisons, but saw foreign military bases rejected in a 2025 referendum.
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Egypt
An Arab presidential republic, Egypt is governed by an authoritarian regime with heavy military weight, which prioritizes security and stability, controls the opposition, and directs much of the economy through the state.
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El Salvador
A presidential republic in Central America, El Salvador gained prominence for its tough security policy against gangs and its adoption of bitcoin, uniting strong popular support and the concentration of power in the executive.
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England (United Kingdom)
The largest constituent country of the United Kingdom, England is governed directly by Westminster with no parliament of its own, with an established Church of England, a public health service (NHS), a financial centre in London, a Brexit majority and a growing populist vote.
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Estonia
A Baltic parliamentary republic, Estonia unites liberal democracy, an open economy, an advanced digital state, and strong Euro-Atlantic alignment, remaining vigilant about national sovereignty in the face of Russian pressure.
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Ethiopia
An ethnic federation in East Africa and a never-colonized state, Ethiopia is led by Abiy Ahmed and the Prosperity Party, emerging from the Tigray war, with ethnic tensions and an opening state economy, plus the Renaissance Dam.
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European Union
A supranational political and economic union, the European Union integrates democratic states through shared institutions, a common market, coordinated regulation, free movement, and a strong commitment to rights, secularism, and international cooperation.
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Finland
A Nordic parliamentary republic, Finland combines a welfare state, social market economy, high educational and technological performance, progressive values, and a strategic culture shaped by territorial defense and its border with Russia.
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Florida (United States)
A US state with a conservative, pro-market profile, Florida combines low taxation, tourism, intense immigration, combative cultural politics, and a state government active in security and education.
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France
A European semi-presidential republic, France combines a strong republican and secular tradition, a robust welfare state, a mixed economy, and a prominent diplomatic, cultural, and military role in the European Union and the world.
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Georgia
A semi-presidential republic in the Caucasus, Georgia pursues integration with the European Union and NATO, maintains an open market economy, and faces Russian occupation of Abkhazia and South Ossetia since 2008.
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Germany
A parliamentary federal republic, Germany is Europe's largest economy, with a social market economy, a strong export industry, and a central role in the European Union, uniting democratic stability and geopolitical weight.
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Ghana
A stable presidential republic in West Africa, Ghana has had peaceful alternation of power since 1992, a free press and civil society, an economy of cocoa, gold and oil, a Pentecostal Christian majority and IMF-backed debt restructuring.
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Greece
A southeastern European parliamentary democracy with the Orthodox Church recognized in its constitution, Greece overcame the debt crisis under EU-imposed austerity, is governed by Kyriakos Mitsotakis's New Democracy and legalized same-sex marriage in 2024.
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Greenland (Denmark)
An autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark, Greenland has its own government and parliament, an Inuit majority, a fishing economy sustained by Danish subsidies, public health and education, a debate over independence and an Arctic contest over minerals and military bases.
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Gujarat (India)
A state in western India and Narendra Modi's home, Gujarat has a vegetarian, Jain-influenced commercial culture, an industrial and export economy, the pro-business 'Gujarat model', alcohol prohibition and BJP dominance, and was a laboratory of Hindu nationalism.
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Guyana
An English-speaking South American presidential republic, Guyana has enjoyed an offshore oil boom since 2019, with among the world's highest growth, politics split between Indo-Guyanese and Afro-Guyanese and a dispute over Essequibo with Venezuela.
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Hong Kong (China)
A global financial center, Hong Kong is an autonomous region of strong free-market capitalism and technocratic management, whose broad autonomy has been increasingly restricted by mainland China's political control.
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Hungary
A parliamentary republic in Eastern Europe, Hungary is governed under so-called illiberal democracy, uniting nationalism, Christian conservatism, sovereignty vis-à-vis the European Union, and strong control of media and institutions.
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Iceland
A Nordic parliamentary republic, Iceland combines stable democracy, a welfare state, an open market economy, a highly secular and progressive society, strong institutional trust, and a peaceful foreign policy without permanent armed forces.
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Illinois (United States)
A Midwestern state dominated by Chicago, Illinois combines a Democratic political machine with a history of corruption, strong public-sector unions, a huge pension debt, strict gun laws, liberalized social policy and a conservative agricultural interior.
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India
The world's largest democracy, India is a federal parliamentary republic of 1.4 billion people, governed since 2014 by Narendra Modi and the BJP, with rising Hindu nationalism, a fast-growing economy and a foreign policy of strategic autonomy.
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Indonesia
The world's largest Muslim country, Indonesia is a democratic presidential archipelagic republic, with an expanding market economy, great ethnic and religious diversity, and growing regional weight in Southeast Asia.
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Iran
A theocratic Islamic republic, Iran combines elected institutions with the supreme authority of the clerics, under the rule of the religious jurist, a state-controlled economy, and strong regional projection in the Middle East.
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Iraq
A federal parliamentary republic since 2003, Iraq shares power among Shias, Sunnis and Kurds through informal quotas, with an autonomous Kurdistan, state-linked armed militias and an economy dependent on state oil.
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Ireland
A European parliamentary republic, Ireland combines liberal democracy, an open market economy attractive to multinationals, a tradition of neutrality, and rapid social transformation toward progressive policies.
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Israel
A parliamentary republic in the Middle East, Israel combines a vibrant democracy, a strong Jewish national identity, an advanced technology economy, and a prolonged conflict with the Palestinians that dominates its politics and security.
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Italy
A Mediterranean parliamentary republic, Italy unites a long cultural heritage, a diversified market economy, and unstable, fragmented politics, with the recent rise of conservative and nationalist forces.
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Ivory Coast
A West African presidential republic, Ivory Coast is led by Alassane Ouattara, has a cocoa and coffee economy, emerged from the civil wars of 2002 and 2011, lives with a Muslim north and Christian south divide and keeps close ties with France.
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Jamaica
A Commonwealth parliamentary democracy in the Caribbean, Jamaica has the British king as head of state, alternation between two parties, a strong religious and reggae culture, a tourism and remittance economy and high urban violence.
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Jammu and Kashmir (India)
A Himalayan region with a Muslim majority, disputed by India, Pakistan and China, Jammu and Kashmir lost its special autonomy in 2019 and became a union territory governed by New Delhi, with insurgency, a heavy military presence and tourism.
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Japan
An Asian parliamentary monarchy, Japan unites tradition and high technology, with an advanced market economy, an aging society, and stable conservative politics, maintaining constitutional pacifism and strong global economic weight.
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Jordan
A Hashemite monarchy with an elected parliament, but with the king controlling government, army and foreign policy, Jordan relies on foreign aid and remittances, hosts many Palestinian refugees and has had peace with Israel since 1994.
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Kazakhstan
The largest country in Central Asia, Kazakhstan is a presidential republic with concentrated power, heir to the Nazarbayev regime, with a secular state, an oil and minerals economy and a balance between Russia, China and the West.
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Kenya
A presidential republic with competitive elections and a strong civil society, Kenya has a 2010 constitution decentralized into 47 counties, a services and tech economy such as M-Pesa, ethnic tensions and recent tax protests.
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Kerala (India)
A state in India's southwest, Kerala elected the world's first communist government by popular vote in 1957 and alternates left and center in power. It has the country's best social indicators, a Gulf remittance economy and a plural population of Hindus, Muslims and Christians.
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Kosovo
A former Serbian province, Kosovo declared independence in 2008, recognized by about half of the UN but not by Serbia, Russia and China. An Albanian-majority secular parliamentary republic with a Serb minority, NATO troops and a remittance economy.
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Kuwait
Hereditary Gulf emirate ruled by the Al Sabah family, Kuwait had a combative elected parliament and a relatively free press, but the emir suspended it in 2024 and began revoking citizenships en masse. State oil economy with broad welfare for citizens.
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Kyrgyzstan
A Muslim-majority Central Asian republic, Kyrgyzstan toppled presidents in 2005, 2010 and 2020 and now concentrates power in Japarov, with a restricted press, a remittance and gold economy and reliance on Russia and China.
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Laos
A one-party communist republic, Laos has been ruled by the Lao People's Revolutionary Party since 1975, with a party-controlled market economy, heavy debt to China, Mekong hydropower dams and a tolerated Theravada Buddhism.
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Latvia
A Baltic parliamentary republic, Latvia combines the EU, NATO and an open economy with defence of the Latvian language, citizenship withheld from part of the Russian-speaking minority, distrust of Russia and a Lutheran, Catholic and Orthodox society that is highly secular.
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Lebanon
A parliamentary republic in the Middle East, Lebanon divides power among religious communities in a confessional system, with pluralism, a strong service sector, and chronic political and economic instability.
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Liechtenstein
A tiny European principality, Liechtenstein is a prosperous constitutional monarchy, with strong local autonomy, a liberal economy based on finance and industry, and one of the highest income levels per capita in the world.
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Lithuania
A Baltic semi-presidential republic, Lithuania left the USSR in 1990 and belongs to the EU, the euro and NATO, with strong hostility to Russia, high military spending, support for Ukraine, an open economy and a Catholic-majority society that is secularizing.
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Luxembourg
A European grand duchy and global financial center, Luxembourg combines parliamentary monarchy, an open economy, deep European integration, and a multicultural society sustained by services, technology, and finance.
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Macau (China)
A Chinese special administrative region and the world's largest gambling center, Macau unites very low taxes, a hyper-open economy of casinos and tourism, a Portuguese Catholic heritage, and a political system controlled by Beijing, without full democracy.
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Madrid (Spain)
The autonomous community around the Spanish capital, Madrid has been governed by the People's Party since 1995 and, under Isabel Díaz Ayuso, became a showcase of low taxes, economic freedom, school choice and attraction of capital and Latin American immigrants.
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Malaysia
An elective federal monarchy in Southeast Asia, Malaysia combines democracy, a multiethnic society, Islam as the official religion, and a state-directed market economy, with affirmative action policies for Malays.
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Maldives
An island presidential republic, the Maldives makes Sunni Islam the state religion and a condition of citizenship, lives on luxury tourism and fishing and depends on India and China, with high debt, climate threat and political disputes.
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Malta
A small island republic in the European Union, Malta has a two-party parliamentary democracy, strong Catholic influence, an economy of tourism, gaming and financial services, military neutrality, divorce legalized in 2011 and abortion still highly restricted.
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Massachusetts (United States)
A northeastern US state, Massachusetts is a progressive stronghold and a hub of education and science, with prestigious universities, a strong liberal tradition, and politics focused on social rights and innovation.
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Mauritius
An Indian Ocean island independent since 1968, Mauritius is a multiethnic parliamentary democracy with an Indo-Mauritian majority, alternation of power, an economy of tourism, sugar and finance, a strong welfare state and a society balancing Hindus, Christians and Muslims.
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Mexico
A presidential federal republic in North America, Mexico unites electoral democracy, a market economy integrated with the United States, and persistent challenges of inequality, corruption, and drug-related violence.
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Minas Gerais (Brazil)
A historic mining state and birthplace of a failed 18th-century independence conspiracy against colonial rule, Minas Gerais has an economy built on mining and agriculture, with traditionally moderate, conciliatory politics.
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Moldova
A parliamentary republic between Romania and Ukraine, Moldova is a European Union candidate, has a Russian-backed separatist Transnistria, a poor remittance-dependent economy, a split between pro-European and pro-Russian axes and strong Orthodox influence.
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Monaco
A small Mediterranean principality, Monaco combines constitutional monarchy, low taxation, strong dependence on financial services and luxury tourism, maintaining a conservative social order and great economic openness.
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Mongolia
A democratic republic between Russia and China, Mongolia left communist rule in 1990 and has competitive elections, a mining-dependent market economy, a nomadic tradition, and a revival of Tibetan Buddhism.
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Montenegro
A small Balkan country independent from Serbia since 2006, Montenegro is a NATO member, EU candidate and uses the euro, has left Djukanovic's long dominance and lives the dispute between Montenegrin and Serb identity and the role of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
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Morocco
A constitutional monarchy in North Africa, Morocco has an elected parliament, but the king, Commander of the Faithful, holds real power, with official Islam, a market economy open to trade, and a claim over Western Sahara.
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Mozambique
A presidential republic ruled by Frelimo since independence from Portugal in 1975, Mozambique overcame civil war, faces a jihadist insurgency in Cabo Delgado, violently disputed elections in 2024 and an economy of gas, coal and farming.
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Myanmar
A Southeast Asian country ruled by a military junta since the 2021 coup, Myanmar is in civil war against ethnic and pro-democracy militias, with official Buddhist nationalism and persecution of the Muslim Rohingya minority.
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Nepal
A former Hindu kingdom, Nepal has been a secular federal republic since 2008, after the Maoist civil war, with unstable coalitions, an economy of remittances, tourism and hydropower, dependence on India and China and Gen Z protests in 2025 that toppled the government.
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Netherlands
A parliamentary monarchy, the Netherlands is known for its liberal tradition, social tolerance, and free trade, with an open, globalized economy and progressive policies on customs and individual rights.
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New Hampshire (United States)
A small state in the northeastern United States, New Hampshire is known for its strong libertarian culture, low taxation, absence of a state income tax, and a motto that exalts liberty above all.
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New York (United States)
The financial and cultural center of the United States, New York combines liberal, progressive politics, enormous immigrant diversity, a globalized service-based economy, and strong symbolic weight in the world.
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New Zealand
A Pacific parliamentary monarchy, New Zealand is known for progressive democracy, social welfare, and an open market economy, with strong recognition of Māori culture and the country's bicultural partnership.
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Nigeria
Africa's most populous country, Nigeria is a federation split between a Muslim north, with sharia in twelve states, and a Christian south, dependent on oil and scarred by Boko Haram, and under Bola Tinubu it cut fuel subsidies.
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North Korea
A totalitarian single-party state, North Korea maintains a planned economy, international isolation, and a cult of the Kim dynasty, uniting communism, nationalism, and the self-reliance doctrine known as Juche.
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North Macedonia
A Balkan parliamentary republic, North Macedonia changed its name in 2019 to end the dispute with Greece, joined NATO in 2020 and negotiates EU accession, blocked by Bulgaria, with a 25% Albanian minority and a low-income economy.
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Norway
A Nordic parliamentary monarchy, Norway combines a broad welfare state, oil wealth managed by a large sovereign fund, and strong social equality, serving as a benchmark of quality of life and social democracy.
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Oman
An absolute sultanate on the Gulf, majority Ibadi, Oman concentrates power in the sultan, who also heads the government, and lives on oil and gas under diversification, with a neutral foreign policy of regional mediation.
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Pakistan
A parliamentary Islamic republic and nuclear power, Pakistan alternates civilian governments with strong army tutelage, with sharia-inspired laws, a mixed economy dependent on foreign aid, and a permanent rivalry with India.
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Palestine
Recognized by the UN as an observer state, Palestine is governed by the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority, with territory split between the occupied West Bank and a Gaza Strip devastated by war, an aid-dependent economy, and elections suspended for two decades.
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Panama
A unitary presidential republic that abolished its standing armed forces and maintains a dollarized economy centered on the Canal, financial services, the Colón Free Trade Zone, and international trade integration.
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Paraguay
A unitary presidential republic governed for decades by the Colorado Party, with low taxation, a soy- and beef-exporting economy, major hydroelectric output at Itaipú, and a conservative, largely Catholic society bilingual in Guaraní.
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Paraná (Brazil)
A southern state with strong agribusiness and European immigrant settlement, Paraná combines a thriving agricultural and industrial economy with a mostly conservative, economically liberal electorate.
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Pennsylvania (United States)
An industrial northeastern state and cradle of the Constitution, Pennsylvania is split between Democratic Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and a conservative interior, with shale gas, a union tradition, hunting culture and a state monopoly on wine and spirits.
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Peru
A unitary presidential republic marked by severe political instability and successive presidential removals, with an open economy based on mining, widespread labor informality, and deep inequality between the coast and the Andean and Amazonian regions.
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Philippines
An archipelagic presidential republic, the Philippines combines a democracy dominated by political dynasties, a strong Catholic identity, and a market economy, with security and anti-crime agendas in the spotlight.
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Poland
A parliamentary republic in Eastern Europe, Poland combines democracy, a strong Catholic and nationalist identity, and a growing market economy, with politics marked by tensions between conservatism and liberalism.
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Portugal
A European semi-presidential republic, Portugal combines consolidated democracy, a market economy integrated into the European Union, a moderate welfare state, low institutional conflict, secularized Catholic heritage, and strong Atlantic openness.
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Puerto Rico (United States)
Unincorporated United States territory in the Caribbean, Puerto Rico holds American citizenship without full voting representation in Congress, faces an ongoing debate between statehood, independence, and the current status, and struggles with debt crisis and heavy dependence on federal tax incentives.
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Punjab (India)
A Sikh-majority state in India's northwest, Punjab is the country's breadbasket and a Green Revolution symbol, with a tradition of community and military service, the memory of the Khalistan movement and the Golden Temple massacre, and an AAP government.
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Qatar
A small absolute Gulf monarchy, Qatar concentrates power in the royal family and bases its wealth on natural gas, pairing religious conservatism with intense international projection through investments, media, and diplomacy.
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Quebec (Canada)
Mostly French-speaking Canadian province, Quebec protects French as its common and official language and holds broad powers within the federation. Nationalism and secularism mark its politics; since October 2026 it is governed in a minority by the sovereigntist Parti Québécois.
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Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
A state symbolizing Brazilian tourism and culture, Rio de Janeiro faces urban violence and territorial disputes between militias and drug gangs, with politics dominated by public security and populism.
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Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil)
Brazil's southernmost state, Rio Grande do Sul has a strong regional identity and a tradition of polarized political disputes, with an economy built on agribusiness, ranching, and industry.
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Rojava (North and East Syria)
An autonomous region in northern Syria, Rojava organizes itself through democratic confederalism, with local self-management, gender equality, ethnic pluralism, and ecology, inspired by the libertarian ideas of Abdullah Öcalan.
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Romania
A semi-presidential republic with an Orthodox majority, Romania inherits Ceaușescu's regime and combines the EU, NATO and US bases with a low flat tax, an anti-corruption drive, rising nationalism, an influential Church and the annulment of the 2024 presidential election.
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Russia
A Eurasian presidential republic, Russia concentrates power in an authoritarian, nationalist regime, with an economy dependent on natural resources, a strong military apparatus, and a foreign policy of confrontation with the West.
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Rwanda
An authoritarian developmental state under Paul Kagame since 2000, Rwanda rebuilt after the 1994 genocide, bans ethnic discourse, restricts the opposition, grows with a tech focus and, per the UN, backs the M23 in Congo.
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Santa Catarina (Brazil)
A southern state settled by Azorean and other European immigrants, Santa Catarina has a high human development index, a diversified small- and medium-business economy, and a predominantly conservative electorate.
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São Paulo (Brazil)
Brazil's most populous and wealthiest state, São Paulo is the country's industrial and financial engine, marked by strong economic liberalism, a cosmopolitan culture, and decisive weight in national politics.
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Saudi Arabia
An absolute Gulf monarchy, Saudi Arabia unites power concentrated in the royal family, strict application of Islam, and an oil-dependent economy, pursuing controlled modernization under the crown prince's leadership.
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Scotland (United Kingdom)
A constituent country of the United Kingdom, Scotland has its own parliament, a distinct national identity and language, a strong independence movement (2014 referendum), and social-democratic politics further left than England's.
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Senegal
A Sufi Muslim-majority West African republic, Senegal is a stable secular democracy that since 2024, under Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Ousmane Sonko, has pursued left-wing sovereigntism: it removed French troops and criticizes the CFA franc.
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Serbia
An Orthodox-majority Balkan country, Serbia has been dominated since 2012 by Aleksandar Vučić's party, is an EU candidate yet close to Russia and China, militarily neutral, does not recognize Kosovo and faced massive student protests in 2025.
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Shenzhen (China)
China's first Special Economic Zone, created by Deng Xiaoping in 1980, Shenzhen went from fishing village to global technology and manufacturing hub (Huawei, Tencent, DJI), with a dynamic market under Communist Party oversight.
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Singapore
An Asian city-state, Singapore is a parliamentary republic dominated by a single party, combining open capitalism, efficient technocratic management, strict order, and limited political freedoms in the name of progress.
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Slovakia
A parliamentary republic born of the peaceful split of Czechoslovakia in 1993, integrated into the European Union, NATO, and the euro, with an industrial economy centered on automotive manufacturing and politics marked by nationalism, Catholic traditionalism, and scepticism toward foreign military aid.
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Slovenia
A parliamentary republic that separated peacefully from Yugoslavia in 1991 and joined the European Union, NATO, and the euro, combining a market economy with strong social protection, influential unions, and a largely secular society.
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Somalia
A fragile federal republic, Somalia has a central government of limited authority, power shared among clans and federal states such as Puntland and Jubaland, a de facto separatist Somaliland and the jihadist Al-Shabaab insurgency.
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South Africa
A parliamentary republic, South Africa is the continent's largest industrial economy and a multiracial democracy born from the end of apartheid, marked by cultural diversity and deep social inequalities.
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South Korea
An Asian presidential republic, South Korea combines a vibrant democracy, an export-oriented market economy, and technological leadership, the result of rapid development under strong state impetus.
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Spain
A parliamentary monarchy, Spain combines a consolidated democracy, strong decentralization into autonomous communities, a market economy, and social, progressive policies, with regional tensions such as the Catalan question.
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Sri Lanka
An island presidential republic in South Asia, Sri Lanka gives constitutional primacy to Buddhism, won the war against Tamil separatists in 2009, faced the 2022 debt crisis, and elected a left-wing coalition in 2024.
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Sudan
In civil war since 2023 between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, after Bashir's fall in 2019 and the 2021 coup, Sudan faces famine, mass displacement, state collapse and rivalry among regional powers.
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Suriname
A former Dutch colony in South America, Suriname is a multiethnic parliamentary republic of Hindustanis, Creoles, Javanese and Maroons, with ethnically based parties, a legacy of the dictator Bouterse and an economy of gold, offshore oil and high debt.
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Sweden
A Nordic parliamentary monarchy, Sweden is a benchmark of social democracy, with a broad welfare state, high taxes, strong social equality, and an open, innovative market economy combined with progressive values.
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Switzerland
A European federal confederation, Switzerland is known for its direct democracy, strong cantonal autonomy, historic neutrality, and a prosperous economy based on finance, precision industry, and institutional stability.
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Syria
Under President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Syria is in a transition begun after Assad’s fall, with a 2025 provisional constitution, reconstruction, and challenges of unity, security, and minority rights.
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Taiwan
An island presidential republic, Taiwan is a vibrant democracy and global technology hub, especially semiconductors, living under constant military threat from China, and is Asia's pioneer in progressive causes such as marriage equality.
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Tajikistan
Tajikistan has been ruled by Emomali Rahmon since 1992, with power gradually passed to his son, a banned opposition, repression of Islamists and the hijab, a remittance and aluminum economy and reliance on Russia and China.
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Tamil Nadu (India)
A state in India's far south, Tamil Nadu is the cradle of the Dravidian movement, uniting Tamil language pride, rejection of Hindi and Brahmin hegemony, welfare populism and defense of federal autonomy, with strong industry and DMK and AIADMK in power.
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Tanzania
A presidential republic under a dominant party, Tanzania has been governed by the CCM since independence, heir to Nyerere's ujamaa socialism, with a union of mainland and Zanzibar, gradual economic opening and growing repression of the opposition.
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Texas (United States)
The second-largest US state, Texas stands out for its conservatism, its culture of strong individual freedom, low taxation, and a dynamic market economy tied to energy and industry.
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Thailand
A constitutional monarchy in Southeast Asia, Thailand alternates civilian governments and strong military influence, with a revered monarchy, predominant Buddhism, and a market economy geared toward tourism and exports.
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Timor-Leste
A young semi-presidential democracy, Timor-Leste won independence from Indonesia in 2002 after 24 years of occupation, is Catholic-majority, uses the US dollar, depends on its oil sovereign fund and joined ASEAN in 2025.
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Tunisia
A North African republic, Tunisia was the cradle of the Arab Spring and the region's only democracy until 2021, when President Saied suspended parliament and concentrated power, amid economic crisis and a strong UGTT labor union.
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Turkey
A presidential republic between Europe and Asia, Turkey combines electoral democracy with strong concentration of power, nationalism, religious conservatism, and an assertive foreign policy in the Middle East and the Mediterranean.
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Turkmenistan
A closed Central Asian dictatorship, Turkmenistan is ruled by the Berdimuhamedow family, with a personality cult, total press control, permanent neutrality, a natural gas economy and almost total dependence on China as buyer.
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Uganda
Governed by Yoweri Museveni since 1986, Uganda is a dominant-party presidential republic with no term or age limit, a repressed opposition, a harsh anti-LGBT law, a very young population, large refugee intake and oil on the way.
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Ukraine
A semi-presidential republic in Eastern Europe, Ukraine is consolidating democracy, national identity, and closer ties to the West while resisting the Russian invasion, a struggle that dominates its politics, economy, and society.
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United Arab Emirates
A federation of Gulf monarchies, the United Arab Emirates combines power concentrated in the royal families, a liberal economy diversified beyond oil, and strong bets on technology, tourism, and global finance.
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United Kingdom
A parliamentary monarchy, the United Kingdom has a long liberal and democratic tradition, a market economy, and a strong financial sector, maintaining global influence after leaving the European Union in the process known as Brexit.
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United States
A global power and presidential federal republic, the United States combines a strong liberal tradition, a dynamic market economy, technological innovation, and a two-party system that polarizes national political life.
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Uruguay
A South American presidential republic, Uruguay is recognized for solid democracy, strong secularism, broad social rights, and progressive policies, pairing institutional stability with a market economy.
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Utah (United States)
A western US state with a Mormon majority, Utah combines the Latter-day Saints Church's influence over family and customs, a flat income tax, balanced budgets, a booming tech sector, a welcoming stance toward refugees and strict alcohol control.
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Uzbekistan
A Muslim-majority Central Asian republic, Uzbekistan is ruled as a secular authoritarian regime by President Mirziyoyev, with gradual economic opening after Karimov, heavy surveillance and an economy of cotton, gold and gas.
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Vatican City
A city-state governed by the Holy See, the Vatican combines religious sovereignty, an absolute elective monarchy, and clerical administration, functioning as the institutional center of the Catholic Church and a global diplomatic actor.
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Venezuela
A South American presidential republic, Venezuela lives under an authoritarian regime of socialist and nationalist orientation, marked by concentration of power, a prolonged economic crisis, and heavy emigration of its population.
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Vermont (United States)
A small rural New England state, Vermont combines direct-democracy town meetings, the progressive politics of Bernie Sanders, cooperatives, dairy farming and environmentalism, with one of the least religious populations in the country and permissive gun laws.
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Vietnam
A single-party socialist state, Vietnam maintains the Communist Party's political control alongside market reforms that opened the economy, promoting rapid industrial growth and integration into global trade.
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Washington, D.C. (United States)
The capital of the United States, Washington concentrates federal power and government institutions, with the strong weight of the public machine, a globalist orientation, and a central role in the country's diplomacy and military power.
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West Bengal (India)
A state in eastern India, West Bengal was ruled 34 years by the left and then by Mamata Banerjee (2011-2026), until the BJP won in 2026. It has a strong Bengali identity, Kolkata as cultural capital, 27% Muslims and a border with Bangladesh.
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Wyoming (United States)
The least populous U.S. state, Wyoming levies no state income or corporate tax, bases its economy on oil, gas, and mining, and combines a strong gun culture with deep distrust of the federal government.
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Yemen
Divided by civil war since 2014, Yemen has a Saudi-backed recognized government in the south and the Zaydi Houthis in the north; southern separatists were defeated in 2026. There is famine, Red Sea attacks and a barely existing state.
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Zapatista Chiapas (Mexico)
Zapatista territories in southern Mexico, self-governed since 1994 by mostly Maya communities through caracoles and Good Government Councils, rejecting political parties and the state, with cooperative agrarian economy and strong women's leadership.
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Zimbabwe
Ruled by Zanu-PF since 1980, Zimbabwe passed from Mugabe's dictatorship to President Mnangagwa, with radical land reform, historic hyperinflation, Western sanctions, an informal dollarized economy, disputed elections and repression of the opposition.
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Zug (Switzerland)
Switzerland's smallest canton and one of the lowest-taxed jurisdictions in the world, Zug attracts holdings and foundations through low taxation, hosts the Crypto Valley around Ethereum and accepts tax payments in bitcoin, under cantonal direct democracy.
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Historical regimes
Antiquity
City-states, republics and empires of the ancient world.
Ancient Egypt
c. 3100–30 a.C.A Nile Valley civilization ruled by pharaonic dynasties through periods of unity and fragmentation. Sacred kingship, temples, and agricultural administration structured society; practices and institutions varied over three millennia.
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Kingdom of Israel
c. 1047–930 a.C.A monarchy uniting the Hebrew tribes under Saul, David and Solomon, the Kingdom of Israel concentrated power in a king anointed by a prophet, with Jerusalem and the Temple as its religious center, the law of the Torah, tribal levies and expansion over its neighbors.
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Sparta
c. 900–192 a.C.A militarist city-state of Ancient Greece, Sparta organized its whole society around war, with a mixed regime of kings and council, rigid discipline, austerity, and dominance over a vast subjugated population.
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Persian Empire (Achaemenid)
550–330 a.C.The first great universal empire in history, Achaemenid Persia governed dozens of peoples through autonomous satrapies, roads, and tribute, tolerating local languages, laws, and religions under the absolute authority of the King of Kings.
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Republican Rome
509–27 a.C.An aristocratic republic of antiquity, Rome balanced consuls, Senate, and tribunes of the plebs in a mixed system of elective magistracies, expanding across the Mediterranean through citizen legions and a strong cult of civic virtue.
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Democratic Athens
c. 508–322 a.C.A city-state of Ancient Greece, Athens was the cradle of direct democracy, with citizens deciding the polis's course in assembly, although participation excluded women, foreigners, and slaves from political life.
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Macedonian Empire
336–323 a.C.Empire formed by the conquests of Philip II and Alexander the Great, combining Macedonian military monarchy, Persian administration, Greek city founding, and Hellenistic cultural fusion over diverse territories.
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Maurya Empire
c. 322–185 a.C.India's first great empire, the Maurya unified almost the whole subcontinent under Chandragupta, Bindusara and Ashoka, with centralized bureaucracy, espionage, a standing army and the Arthashastra, until Ashoka embraced Buddhism and nonviolence after Kalinga.
View profileRoman Empire
27 a.C.–476 d.C.A vast empire of antiquity, Rome united military power, law, and centralized administration under the emperor, expanding across three continents and bequeathing language, laws, and institutions that shaped Western civilization.
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Middle Ages
Empires, merchant republics and medieval communities.
Gupta Empire
c. 320–550India's classical golden age, the Gupta Empire (c. 320-550) ruled northern India as a Hindu monarchy with vassals, fostered science, mathematics, Sanskrit literature and art, revived Vedic rites and consolidated the caste system.
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Byzantine Empire
330–1453Heir of the Roman Empire in the East, Byzantium lasted a thousand years fusing Orthodox Christianity, imperial autocracy, and Justinianic law, with the emperor as head of the Church and Constantinople as a Christian capital defending Europe.
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Umayyad Caliphate
661–750The first dynastic caliphate of Islam, based in Damascus, the Umayyad Caliphate ruled from 661 to 750, expanded from Spain to India, arabized administration and coinage and favored the Arab elite over converts until overthrown by the Abbasids.
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Republic of Venice
697–1797A powerful medieval merchant republic, Venice was governed by a commercial oligarchy that dominated Mediterranean trade, uniting stable institutions, a strong navy, and immense economic power for centuries.
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Abbasid Caliphate
750–1258A Sunni caliphate with its capital in Baghdad, the Abbasids ruled from the Maghreb to Central Asia under a caliph with religious and political authority, with a Persian-style bureaucracy, long-distance trade, and the House of Wisdom in the Islamic Golden Age.
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Papal States
756–1870Temporal state of the Papacy, the Papal States united spiritual and political authority under the Pope, applying canon law and clerical government over central Italy for centuries.
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Kingdom of France
843–1792From West Francia to the monarchy’s abolition in 1792, the kingdom moved from feudal rule toward centralized absolutism. The Catholic Church, landed aristocracy, and military expansion shaped much of its history.
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Kingdom of Scotland
c. 843–1707A sovereign kingdom traditionally dated to 843, with its own Crown, Parliament and law until union with England in 1707. The dynastic union of the crowns in 1603 and the Presbyterian Reformation shaped its history.
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Kievan Rus'
c. 880–1240A dynastic federation of East Slavic principalities, with Kyiv as a political and commercial hub on routes between the Baltic and Constantinople. The court adopted Byzantine Christianity in 988; succession disputes and Mongol invasions dissolved its unity.
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Medieval Iceland (Commonwealth)
c. 930–1262A rare society without a central state, medieval Iceland was organized by local chieftains and an assembly, the Althing, settling disputes through laws and private agreements in a decentralized system close to anarchy.
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Holy Roman Empire (First Reich)
962–1806A federation of Central European territories, the Holy Roman Empire gathered principalities and cities under an elected emperor and strong Church influence, marked by fragmented power and the autonomy of its members.
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Kingdom of Hungary
1000–1918Founded under Stephen I, the kingdom passed through native dynasties, partial Ottoman rule, and Habsburg government. Nobility, Catholicism, and Hungarian autonomy played changing roles across nearly a millennium.
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Kingdom of Jerusalem
1099–1187A crusader state founded after the First Crusade, the Kingdom of Jerusalem was a Latin Catholic feudal monarchy, backed by the Templar and Hospitaller military orders, with powerful barons, constant holy war and a Frankish elite over a native majority.
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Renaissance Florence
1115–1532A city-state of the Italian Renaissance, Florence united banking and commercial capitalism, factional disputes among guilds and families such as the Medici, and a patronage that revolutionized the arts, letters, and political thought.
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Crown of Aragon
1137–1716A dynastic union of Aragon, Catalonia, and other Mediterranean lands whose constituent realms kept their own laws and assemblies. The Crown expanded through trade and conquest; its institutions were gradually abolished after the War of the Spanish Succession.
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Mongol Empire
1206–1368Founded by Genghis Khan, the Mongol Empire unified steppe tribes, expanded through devastating military campaigns, and ruled diverse peoples through vassalage, tribute, and pragmatic religious tolerance.
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Kingdom of Castile
1230–1715United with León in 1230, Castile expanded across Iberia and later the Americas. The Crown, nobility, and Catholic Church shaped its politics; institutions changed over the nearly five centuries covered here.
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Ethiopian Empire
c. 1270–1974A monarchy of the Solomonic dynasty, one of the world's oldest, the Ethiopian Empire resisted European colonization at Adwa in 1896, had a state Orthodox church, a feudal system and modernization under Haile Selassie, until the Derg coup in 1974.
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Kingdom of Naples
1282–1816Bourbon realm of southern Italy with an agrarian base, popular Catholic piety, counter-revolutionary resistance, and royal centralism prior to unification.
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Old Swiss Confederacy
1291–1798Medieval alliance of autonomous cantons formed from the 1291 Pact, the Old Swiss Confederacy operated without a strong central power, combining direct democracy in local assemblies (Landsgemeinde), independent peasant militias, and weak joint military/diplomatic coordination among the cantons.
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Ottoman Empire
1299–1922A vast Muslim empire, the Ottomans ruled for centuries over lands spanning Europe, Asia, and Africa under the power of the sultan and caliph, uniting religious and political authority with great diversity of peoples and faiths.
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Portuguese Empire
1415–1822The first and longest-lasting of the European colonial empires (1415–1822), it united absolute monarchy, militant Catholicism, and global thalassocracy, carrying Christian faith, language, and Portuguese administration from the Americas to Africa, India, and Asia.
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Early modern era
Monarchies, colonial empires and republics of the early modern era.
Habsburg Spain
1516–1700Habsburg Spain, especially under Philip II, was a Catholic Counter-Reformation state, marked by the Inquisition, purity-of-blood laws, religious expulsions, and wars defending the faith.
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Viceroyalty of New Spain
1535–1821The Spanish viceroyalty covering Mexico, Central America, today's US Southwest and the Philippines, governed by a viceroy and audiencias under royal patronage, with the Inquisition, a caste society, haciendas, silver mining and Crown-monopolized trade.
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Kingdom of Denmark–Norway
1537–1814Nordic dual monarchy centered in Copenhagen, characterized by an absolutist Lutheran state church, mercantilist maritime trade, and Baltic strait tolls.
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Calvinist Geneva
1541–1564The city of Geneva under Calvin (1541–1564) organized itself as an urban Reformed theocracy, with the Consistory disciplining public morality and the Ordonnances Ecclésiastiques regulating all religious and civil life and exporting Puritanism.
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Kingdom of Ireland
1542–1800Established in 1542, the kingdom was ruled in personal union by the English and later British Crown, with administration in Dublin. The Catholic majority faced penal laws and political exclusion; legislative union with Great Britain ended the kingdom in 1800.
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Grand Duchy of Tuscany
1569–1859Italian state under the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty, pioneer in abolishing the death penalty, characterized by moderate administration and cultural heritage.
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Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
1569–1795A union of Poland and Lithuania from 1569 to 1795, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was a noble republic with an elected king, a Sejm and the liberum veto, unusual religious tolerance and a vast multiethnic territory, until partitioned by Russia, Prussia and Austria.
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Dutch Republic (United Provinces)
1581–1795A pioneering modern merchant republic, the United Provinces were a confederation governed by a commercial oligarchy, marked by religious tolerance, free trade, and immense naval and financial power at their height.
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Tokugawa Japan
1603–1868The Tokugawa shogunate pacified Japan after the Sengoku era with a feudal system of domains (bakuhan), a rigid four-class social hierarchy, official Neo-Confucianism, a ban on Christianity and external isolation (sakoku).
View profileSwedish Empire
1611–1721A Lutheran Baltic power in the Thirty Years' War and the wars of Charles X and Charles XII, the Swedish Empire rested on a fiscal-military state, a monarchy with four estates and the Lutheran Church, until Poltava and Nystad.
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Tsarist Russian Empire
1613–1917The Russian Empire under the Romanovs combined Orthodox Christianity, dynastic autocracy, territorial expansion, and imperial bureaucracy, with the Tsar as political head and defender of the official faith.
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Qing Dynasty China
1644–1912China's last imperial dynasty, founded by the Manchus, the Qing ruled through a Confucian examination bureaucracy, extended the empire to Tibet and Xinjiang, restricted foreign trade to Canton and declined with the Opium Wars and the Taiping Rebellion.
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Electorate of Hanover
1692–1814Electoral principality of the Holy Roman Empire in personal union with the British Crown, Protestant and commercially active, shaped by Enlightenment diplomacy.
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Kingdom of Prussia
1701–1918A German kingdom with a strong military and administrative tradition, Prussia united monarchy, a disciplined bureaucracy, and a powerful army, leading German unification and embodying the cameralist state and enlightened despotism.
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Kingdom of Sardinia
1720–1861Piedmontese state led by the House of Savoy that enacted the Albertine Statute, modernized its infrastructure and diplomacy, and spearheaded Italian unification.
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Sweden-Finland
1721–1809The kingdom of Sweden-Finland after the loss of empire: the Age of Liberty with a Riksdag of four estates, pioneering press freedom (1766), Gustav III's absolutist coup in 1772 and the loss of Finland to Russia in 1809.
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Thirteen British Colonies
c. 1732–1776British colonies on the North American Atlantic coast, with assemblies of white property owners, governors appointed by the Crown, established and dissenting churches, trade under the Navigation Acts, slavery in the South and expansion into Indigenous lands.
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Kingdom of Nepal
1768–2008A Hindu monarchy founded by Prithvi Narayan Shah in 1768, the Kingdom of Nepal resisted the East India Company, passed through hereditary Rana rule and absolute monarchy until 1990 and was abolished in 2008, at the end of the Maoist civil war.
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Qajar Empire
1789–1925Persian dynastic empire centered on the Shah's authority and Shia clergy, marked by defensive reforms, tribal rivalries, and growing Russian and British colonial pressure.
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First French Republic
1792–1804Proclaimed in 1792 after the fall of the monarchy, the First French Republic executed Louis XVI, lived through the Jacobin Terror under the Committee of Public Safety, dechristianized the country, fought revolutionary wars and ended with Napoleon's Empire in 1804.
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19th century
Empires, newly unified nations and revolutionary experiments of the 19th century.
Austrian Empire (Habsburgs)
1804–1867Founded by the Habsburgs in 1804, the Austrian Empire was a multinational Central European monarchy until the Compromise of 1867. Under Francis I and Metternich, it combined centralized administration, Catholic primacy, and liberal repression.
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Napoleonic Empire
1804–1815Under Napoleon Bonaparte, the First French Empire concentrated absolute power in the emperor, imposed the Civil Code and a centralized administration across conquered Europe, and sustained its territorial expansion through continuous warfare and a mass-conscription army.
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Kingdom of Bavaria
1805–1918South German kingdom allied to the German Confederation and later the German Empire, marked by strong Catholic identity, conservatism, and regional autonomy.
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Kingdom of Saxony
1806–1918Lutheran German state with pioneering manufacturing and mining, a Catholic dynasty, and parliamentary traditions inside the German Confederation and Empire.
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Gran Colombia
1819–1831An ephemeral republic created by Simón Bolívar, Gran Colombia gathered vast territories of northern South America into a centralist, militarized state, which dissolved within a few years due to regional and political rivalries.
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Empire of Brazil
1822–1889The only long-lasting empire in the Americas, imperial Brazil was a parliamentary monarchy under Pedro I and Pedro II, marked by political stability, a slave-based agrarian economy, and strong state centralization.
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Kingdom of Greece
1832–1924, 1935–1973Hellenic state under the Wittelsbach and Glücksburg dynasties, forged in independence against the Ottomans, marked by strong Orthodox faith, royal authority, and Megali Idea expansionism.
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British Empire
1837–1901At its Victorian height, the British Empire was the largest in history, uniting parliamentary monarchy, the industrial revolution, and global colonial rule, with strong commercial, naval, and cultural expansion across the world.
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British Raj
1858–1947The direct rule of the British Crown over India from 1858 to 1947, the Raj governed through a viceroy and civil service, with allied princely states, railways, commodity exports, repression of revolts, famines and a final partition into India and Pakistan.
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Confederate States of America
1861–1865Formed by the secession of eleven Southern states to preserve slavery, the Confederate States combined radical state confederalism, a traditionalist and religious agrarian society, and free trade, before being defeated in the Civil War.
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Kingdom of Italy
1861–1946Italian state unified by the House of Savoy under the Albertine Statute, characterized by administrative centralization, liberal politics, and Mediterranean ambitions.
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Old West United States
c. 1865–1890The American frontier after the Civil War, with expanding railroads, mining and ranching, wars against Native peoples, local justice and sheriffs, widely carried firearms and little federal presence.
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Austro-Hungarian Empire
1867–1918A dual monarchy in Central Europe, the Austro-Hungarian Empire gathered multiple nationalities under the Habsburg dynasty, combining aristocracy, imperial bureaucracy, political Catholicism, and growing nationalist tensions.
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Empire of Japan
1868–1947The Japanese imperial regime of the early 20th century combined sacred monarchy, militarism, accelerated industrialization, expansionist nationalism, and strong social discipline until its defeat in World War II.
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Meiji Japan
1868–1912During the Meiji Era, Japan underwent rapid modernization directed by the emperor, who abolished feudalism, industrialized the country, and created modern institutions, uniting tradition, nationalism, and military ascent.
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French Third Republic
1870–1940Proclaimed after Napoleon III's fall in 1870, the French Third Republic was a durable parliamentary regime, with secularism in 1905, free public schooling, a colonial empire, the Dreyfus Affair, victory in the Great War and collapse before Germany in 1940.
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German Empire (Second Reich)
1871–1918The German imperial state from 1871 to 1918 united Prussian-led federalism, limited constitutional monarchy, male suffrage for the Reichstag, strong Kaiser and chancellor authority, rapid industrialization, militarism, and the foreign policy of a rising power.
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Paris Commune
março–maio de 1871The revolutionary government that held Paris for 72 days in 1871, the Commune established direct democracy with recallable mandates, workers' self-management of workshops, separation of Church and state, and equal pay, becoming a symbol of communal socialism.
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20th and 21st centuries
Regimes of the 20th and 21st centuries: totalitarianisms, dictatorships, revolutions and democratic experiments.
Kingdom of Bulgaria
1908–1946An independent kingdom from 1908 to 1946, the Bulgaria of Tsars Ferdinand and Boris III fought in the Balkan and world wars, allied with the Axis in 1941, shielded Bulgarian Jews from deportation and was abolished by the communist regime in 1946.
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Theocratic Tibet
1913–1950A de facto independent state between the fall of the Qing and the Chinese invasion, Tibet was a Buddhist theocracy ruled by the Dalai Lama, with monasteries and aristocracy owning the land, peasants bound to it and deliberate isolation from the modern world.
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Free Territory (Makhnovshchina)
1918–1921During the Russian Revolution, Makhno's Free Territory was an anarchist experiment in Ukraine, with self-managed peasant communes and popular militias that rejected both the White state and Bolshevik power.
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Weimar Republic
1919–1933Germany's first democracy, the Weimar Republic united parliamentarism, proportional representation, and intense cultural life, but was undermined by economic crises and political instability that paved the way for Nazism.
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Fascist Italy (Mussolini)
1922–1943The birthplace of fascism, Mussolini's Italy was a totalitarian dictatorship that fused nationalism, a cult of the leader, a corporatist state, and militarism, suppressing opposition and seeking imperial expansion by force.
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Soviet Union (USSR)
1922–1991The world's first socialist state, the USSR was a single-party federation with a planned economy and centralized power, becoming a global superpower and the pole of communism during the Cold War.
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Atatürk's Turkey
1923–1938A republic founded by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk on the ruins of the Ottoman Empire, Kemalist Turkey abolished the caliphate and imposed laicism, the Latin alphabet, women's rights, and economic statism under the single-party CHP.
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Brazil (Vargas Era)
1930–1945Under Vargas, Brazil experienced a nationalist, developmentalist regime that promoted state-directed industrialization, labor legislation, and the centralization of power, laying the foundations of Brazilian labourism.
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Nazi Germany (Third Reich)
1933–1945A totalitarian regime led by Hitler, the Third Reich imposed a racist, expansionist dictatorship, a cult of the leader, and a police state, being responsible for World War II and the genocide of the Holocaust.
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New Deal United States
1933–1945Under Franklin Roosevelt, the United States expanded federal power with Social Security, bank regulation, public works and stronger unions, while keeping capitalism, racial segregation in the South and mobilizing for the Second World War.
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Portugal (Estado Novo)
1933–1974Under Salazar, the Portuguese Estado Novo was a conservative, corporatist dictatorship that united Catholic nationalism, order, and political control without mass mobilization, holding the country and its colonies for decades.
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Cárdenas's Mexico
1934–1940Government of the Cardenista peak, marking the institutionalized Mexican Revolution through oil nationalization, ejido land reform, worker-peasant incorporation, popular secularism, and strong presidential leadership.
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Anarchist Aragon and Catalonia
1936–1939During the Spanish Revolution, regions of Aragon and Catalonia lived an anarchist experiment of collectivizing land and factories, with workers' self-management and social organization without a central state.
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Francoist Spain
1939–1975A dictatorship born of the Civil War, Franco's Spain was an authoritarian, Catholic, corporatist regime that united nationalism and political repression and lasted until the democratic transition after the dictator's death.
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Socialist Yugoslavia
1945–1992A socialist federation led by Tito, Yugoslavia adopted workers' self-management and an independent path from Moscow, uniting diverse peoples under a single party until fragmenting into wars in the 1990s.
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Peronist Argentina
1946–1955Under Perón, Argentina experienced a populist, nationalist regime that united strong working-class support, corporatism, industrialization, and the expansion of social rights, leaving a lasting mark on the country's politics.
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Apartheid South Africa
1948–1994A regime of institutional racial segregation, apartheid South Africa denied rights to the Black majority and concentrated power in the white minority, with separation laws that provoked strong internal resistance and sanctions.
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East Germany
1949–1990The German Democratic Republic was a socialist state aligned with the Soviet Union, with single-party rule, an extensive political police, a planned economy, rigid social control, state secularization, and military integration into the Eastern Bloc.
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Maoist China
1949–1976Under Mao, revolutionary China was a single-party communist state, with a collectivized economy and permanent mass mobilization, marked by campaigns such as the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution.
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Iran under the Shah
1953–1979Under Mohammad Reza Pahlavi after 1953, Iran combined authoritarian monarchy and political repression with industrialization, land reform, and women's rights in the White Revolution. Allied with the US, it funded development with oil until 1979.
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Nasser's Egypt
1954–1970Under Nasser, Egypt was a nationalist, developmentalist republic that nationalized strategic sectors, led pan-Arabism, and united Arab socialism, agrarian reform, and strong leadership in the Middle East.
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Kádár's Hungary
1956–1989Established after the crushing of the 1956 revolution, Kádár's regime combined single-party rule, Soviet alignment, gradual economic liberalization, a small private sector, and consumer welfare.
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Cuba under Fidel Castro
1959–2008Ruled by Fidel Castro from 1959 to 2008, Cuba became a one-party socialist state, with a nationalized economy, universal health and education, a Soviet alliance, repression of dissidents, mass exile and confrontation with the United States, from the embargo to the missile crisis.
View profilePark Chung Hee's South Korea
1961–1979Under Park Chung Hee, South Korea combined military-authoritarian rule, rigid anti-communism, social discipline, and state planning aimed at export-led industrialization, building the major chaebols and preparing the country's technological rise.
View profileBrazil under Military Rule
1964–1985Dictatorship installed in 1964, combining political repression, censorship, and security agencies with state-led developmentalism, major infrastructure projects, market reserves, and conservative moralism during the Cold War.
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Rhodesia
1965–1979After unilaterally declaring independence from the United Kingdom in 1965, Rhodesia kept power in a white minority through a property-based franchise, sustained an agricultural and mining economy under international sanctions, and fought a long civil war until the transition to Zimbabwe.
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Ba'athist Iraq
1968–2003Ruled by the Ba'ath Party from 1968 to 2003, Iraq combined Arab nationalism, state oil and one-party rule. Under Saddam Hussein, the regime intensified repression, fought wars against Iran and Kuwait, and faced international sanctions.
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Gaddafi's Libya
1969–2011Under Muammar Gaddafi (1969–2011), Libya nationalized oil and proclaimed the Jamahiriya's direct democracy. Power remained concentrated in Gaddafi, backed by revolutionary committees and repression of the opposition.
View profileAllende's Chile
1970–1973Under Allende's Popular Unity, Chile attempted democratic socialism through copper and bank nationalization, agrarian reform, and economic planning until the 1973 military coup.
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Pinochet's Chile
1973–1990A military dictatorship born of the 1973 coup, Pinochet's Chile united severe political repression with the pioneering adoption of neoliberal free-market reforms, deeply marking the country's economy and memory.
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Khmer Rouge Cambodia (Pol Pot)
1975–1979A radical regime led by Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge imposed extreme agrarian communism, emptied the cities, and abolished money and property, causing one of the greatest genocides of the 20th century in Cambodia.
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Sankara's Burkina Faso
1983–1987Under Thomas Sankara, Burkina Faso combined food self-sufficiency, mass vaccination and literacy campaigns, women's emancipation, rejection of foreign debt, and a frontal break with French neocolonialism.
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Fujimori's Peru
1990–2000Under Alberto Fujimori, Peru combined a self-coup and the closing of Congress with neoliberal shock reforms, privatisations and trade liberalisation, alongside a dirty war against the Shining Path marked by massacres and forced sterilisations.
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Chávez's Venezuela
1999–2013Under Hugo Chávez, from 1999 to 2013, Venezuela lived '21st-century socialism', with a new constitution, oil-funded social programs, nationalizations, currency and price controls, deep polarization, confrontation with the United States and power concentrated in the president.
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Assad's Syria
2000–2024Under Bashar al-Assad (2000–2024), Syria was a centralized Ba'athist regime sustained by security forces, a clientelist state economy, and alliances with Russia and Iran during the civil war.
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