What are 2 characteristics for oligarchy?

The term “oligarch” derives from “oligarchy,” a system of government in which a small number of people maintain power. Oligarchies most often connote tyrannical or despotic rule that controls or limits political agency of the majority not in control. Rulers in an oligarchy may establish power via nobility, social caste, religion, economic status, or any number of other factors.

In contemporary terms, an “oligarch” most commonly refers to an individual who is a member of an elite economic group and who maintains power through extreme wealth, important business ties, or similar connections.

Key Takeaways

• Most commonly today, the term “oligarch” refers to an individual who derives political power from their extreme wealth or significant business interests.
• The term oligarch is derived from “oligarchy,” meaning government by the few. Oligarchs can rule as a result of noble status, religion, language, or many other factors.
• Many societies have oligarchs, but some of the most common countries cited include Russia, China, and the United States.
• While oligarchies are commonly associated with despotic or tyrannical leadership, many forms of government can include elements of oligarchy.

Understanding Oligarchs

The term “oligarch” is commonly associated with a group of powerful business leaders in Russia, most of whom built or consolidated their wealth following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the 1990s. As the Soviet state collapsed, the future of state-owned assets and resources became unclear. A small group of well-connected businessmen jumped at the chance to privatize and take ownership of these assets and resources. Russian oligarchs include owners of mining and steel operations, media conglomerates, and similar operations that were formerly state-run.

Russian Oligarchs and the Government

The relationship between Russian oligarchs and the Russian government has been extremely volatile. While Boris Yeltsin was president of Russia in the 1990s, oligarchs became heavily involved in the country’s politics. Recognizing that connections with the government could provide insider information that could steer their own financial decisions, a small group of business tycoons became known as the “semibankirshchina” or “seven-banker outfit.” This group served as informal advisors to Yeltsin and steered his policies, sometimes even engineering the installation of their own politicians into positions of power.

When Vladimir Putin claimed the presidency in 2000, he drew attention for his efforts to crack down on oligarchs. He made efforts to break up some of these individuals’ companies and imprison some of the oligarchs themselves. However, some have argued that this punishment was intended primarily to exert control over oligarchs, rather than to rid the Russian government of corruption.

During Putin’s presidency, a significant number of new oligarchs have consolidated wealth and power. These include individuals with long-standing ties to Putin, business executives who have risen to power in the last two decades, and elite national security and military leaders. Typically, these new oligarchs have close ties with Putin’s government.

Foreign Investments

Many Russian oligarchs have developed a reputation for living lavish and ostentatious lifestyles. Oligarchs are known for investments in superyachts, mansions around the world, soccer teams, and other ultra-luxury items available only to the richest individuals in the world.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the United States, the European Union, and other nations have instituted strict sanctions against the Russian government. President Biden announced that the U.S. would “identify, hunt down, and freeze the assets” of oligarchs. There have been many reports of seized oligarch assets in recent weeks.

What countries are oligarchies?

Russia is a country commonly referred to as an oligarchy. However, several other countries could be said to have oligarchs, including China.

What makes someone an oligarch?

An oligarch typically refers to an individual who is extremely wealthy and exerts significant social or, especially, political power. Oligarchs are often associated with corrupt governments and despotic rulers.

How do oligarchs become rich?

Oligarchs may gain wealth through a variety of different means. In the case of Russia and former Soviet states, many oligarchs amassed wealth as the country moved from state-controlled to privatized industry after the fall of the Soviet Union. Many oligarchs gained control over formerly state-run operations, including energy, mining, and media companies.

Oligarchy ( Greek Ὀλιγαρχία, Oligarkhía) is a form of government where political power effectively rests with a small, elite segment of society (whether distinguished by wealth, family or military prowess). The word oligarchy is from the Greek words for "few" (ὀλίγον ófligon) and "rule" (ἄρχω arcgekho).

Oligarchy, Aristocracy, and Plutocracy

Historically, many oligarchies openly gave the political power to a minority group, sometimes arguing that this was an aristocracy ("organization by the 'best' and the 'brightest'"). Such states were often controlled by powerful families whose children were raised and mentored to be heirs of the power of the oligarchy. However, this power may also not be exercised openly, the oligarchs preferring to remain "the power behind the throne", exerting control through economic means. Although Aristotle pioneered the use of the term as a synonym for rule by the rich, for which the exact term is plutocracy, oligarchy is not always a rule by wealth, as oligarchs can simply be a privileged group.

Oligarchy vs. Monarchy

Early societies may become oligarchies as an outgrowth of an alliance between rival tribal chieftains or as the result of a caste system. Oligarchies can often become instruments of transformation, by insisting that monarchs or dictators share power, thereby opening the door to power-sharing by other elements of society (while oligarchy means "the rule of the few," monarchy means "the rule of the one"). One example of power-sharing from one person to a larger group of persons occurred when English nobles banded together in 1215 to force a reluctant King John of England to sign the Magna Carta, a tacit recognition both of King John's waning political power and of the existence of an incipient oligarchy (the noblility). As English society continued to grow and develop, the Magna Carta was repeatedly revised ( 1216, 1217, and 1225), guaranteeing greater rights to greater numbers of people, thus setting the stage for English constitutional monarchy.

Oligarchies may also evolve into more autocratic or monarchist forms of government, sometimes as the result of one family gaining ascendancy over the others. Many of the European monarchies established during the late Middle Ages began in this way.

Examples of oligarchies

Examples of a historical oligarchies are Sparta and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. A modern example of oligarchy could be seen in South Africa during the 20th century. Here, the basic characteristics of oligarchy are particularly easy to observe, since the South African form of oligarchy was based on race. After the Second Boer War, a tacit agreement was reached between English- and Afrikaans-speaking whites. Together, they made up about twenty percent of the population, but this small percentage ruled the vast native population. Whites had access to virtually all the educational and trade opportunities, and they proceeded to deny this to the black majority even further than before. Although this process had been going on since the mid-18th century, after 1948 it became official government policy and became known worldwide as apartheid. This lasted until the arrival of democracy in South Africa in 1994, punctuated by the transition to a democratically-elected government dominated by the black majority.

Russia has been labeled an oligarchy because of the power of certain individuals, the oligarchs, who gained great wealth after the fall of Communism. Critics have argued that this happened in illegitimate ways and due to corruption.

Capitalism as a social system, exemplified most notably by the United States, is sometimes described as an oligarchy. Critics argue that in a capitalist society, power - economic, cultural and political - rests in the hands of the capitalist class. Communist states have also been seen as oligarchies, being ruled by a class with special privileges, the nomenklatura.

"The Iron Law of Oligarchy"

Some authors such as Vilfredo Pareto, Gaetano Mosca, Thomas R. Dye, and Robert Michels believe that any political system will eventually evolve into an oligarchy (the " Iron law of oligarchy"). According to this school of thought, modern democracies should be considered as elected oligarchies. In these systems, actual differences between viable political rivals are relatively small and strict limits are imposed (by the oligarchic elite) on what constitutes 'acceptable' and 'respectable' political positions. Furthermore, politicians' careers depend heavily on unelected economic and media elites.

The historian Spencer R. Weart in his book Never at War argues that oligarchies rarely make war with one another.

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