Caesarism in the Post-Revolutionary Age Crisis, Populace and Leadership : Bloomsbury Academic : 9781474267540 : 1474267548 : 31 Oct 2019 : This book is open access and available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. It is funded by Knowledge Unlatched. Debates about the legitimacy and 'essence' of political rule and the search for 'ideal' forms of government have been at the very heart of political thought ever since antiquity. Caesarism in the Post-Revolutionary Age explores the complex relationship between democracy and dictatorship from the 18th century onwards. More concretely, it assesses how democracy emerged as something compatible with dictatorship, both at the level of political thought and practice. Taking Caesarism ? a political alternative somewhere between democracy and dictatorship ? as its key concept, the book considers: * To what extent was Caesarism seen as a new post-revolutionary form of rule? * What were the flaws and perils, strengths and promises of Caesaristic re