Federal republic
A federal republic is a federation of states with a republican form of government. A federation is composed of a number of self-governing states united by a federal government. In a federation, unlike in a unitary state, the self-governing status of autonomous regions is constitutionally entrenched and cannot be revoked by a unilateral decision of the central government. The states in a federation also maintain all political sovereignty that they do not yield to the federation. Usage of the term republic is inconsistent but, as a minimum, it means a state or federation of states that does not have a monarch as head of state.
Three states explicitly describe themselves as federal republics. These are the Federal Republic of Germany, the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. A close variant is the term federative republic, which appears in the full official title of Brazil. Not every federation is a republic; for example Canada, Australia, and Malaysia are each federal constitutional monarchies.
Contents |
List of federal republics
Contemporary
Historic
- United Provinces of Central America (1824-1840)
- "Great Colombia" (1819-1831), later Colombia (federal republic until 1886; unitary republic after 1886)
- Federal Republic of Cameroon (République Fédérale du Cameroun) (1961-1972)
- Czechoslovakia (1969-1992)
- Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1922-1991)
- Yugoslavia (1945-2003)
- Serbia and Montenegro (2003-2006)
Fictional
- Galactic Republic (Star Wars)
- New Republic (Star Wars)
- United Federation of Planets (Star Trek)
- New California Republic (Fallout 2)
See also
Categories
Federalism | Republicanism