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Politics: A Treatise on Government

Aristotle · c. 335–322 BCE primary

passage 135 of 193 · BOOK I > CHAPTER XI (1/2)

in brief
Aristotle says monarchies are preserved by opposite means to their destruction: a kingdom lasts when the king’s power stays moderate, making him less despotic and less envied.

Monarchies, in a word, are preserved by means contrary to what I have already mentioned as the cause of their destruction; but to speak to each separately: the stability of a kingdom will depend upon the power of the king's being kept within moderate bounds; for by how much the less extensive his power is, by so much the longer will his government continue; for he will be less despotic and more upon an equality of condition with those he governs; who, on that account, will envy him the less.

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topics: fortune and the turn of the wheel · monarchy and royal succession · tyranny and despotism

Politics: A Treatise on Government · Aristotle · 335–322 BCE