Family Dictatorship - Successful Transitions of Power

Successful Transitions of Power

Dates in parentheses denote the period of rule.

• Rome: Augustus (27 BCE to 14 CE) succeeded by his adopted son Tiberius, succeeded by his adopted son Caligula, succeeded by his uncle Claudius, succeeded by his adopted son Nero. The office of the Roman Emperor, although it began as a family dictatorship as defined above - that is, no general law determined succession, but solely the amassed power of the members of the family in question - became increasingly monarchical over time, especially once it was transferred between dynasties. By the time of Constantine, the system had been effectively recognized as a hereditary monarchy, and the Empire's successor/continuing state, the Byzantine Empire, was explicitly monarchical (as evidenced by its motto, King of Kings Ruling Over Rulers).
• England: Oliver Cromwell (1653–1658) succeeded as Lord Protector of the Commonwealth by his son Richard Cromwell (1658–1659)
• Paraguay: Carlos Antonio López (1840–1862), succeeded by his son, Francisco Solano López (1862–1870)
• El Salvador: Carlos Meléndez (1915–1918), succeeded by his brother Jorge Meléndez (1919–1923), succeeded by his brother-in-law Alfonso Quiñónez Molina (acting 1918-1919, 1923–1927)
• Nicaragua: Anastasio Somoza García (1937–1947, 1950–1956), succeeded by his son Luis Somoza Debayle (1956–1963, de facto 1963-1967), succeeded by his brother Anastasio Somoza Debayle (1967–1972, de facto 1972-1974, 1974–1979)
• North Korea: Kim Il-sung (1948–1994), succeeded by his son Kim Jong-il (1994–2011), succeeded by his son Kim Jong-un (2011–). Kim Jong-il didn't officially take office until 1997, when his father was posthumously given the position of Eternal President. On 2 June 2009, it was reported that Kim Jong-il's youngest son, Kim Jong-un, was to be North Korea's next leader. Like his father and grandfather, he was given an official sobriquet, The Brilliant Comrade. It was reported that Kim Jong-il was expected to officially designate the son as his successor in 2012, but Kim Jong-il died in 2011 and Kim Jong-un was nevertheless announced as his successor.
• Haiti: François Duvalier (1957–1971), succeeded by his son Jean-Claude Duvalier (1971–1986)
• Cuba: Fidel Castro (prime minister 1959-1976, president 1976-2008), succeeded on an interim basis and later permanently by his brother, Raúl Castro (acting president 2006-2008, president 2008–)
• Iraq: Abdul Salam Arif (1963–1966), succeeded by his brother Abdul Rahman Arif (1966–1968)
• Togo: Gnassingbé Eyadéma (1967–2005), succeeded by his son Faure Gnassingbé (2005–). Under international pressure, Faure had to resign on February 25, 2005, but was re-elected in April.
• Gabon: Omar Bongo (President 1967-2009) died in June 2009. His son Ali Bongo Ondimba succeeded him after winning a disputed election in August 2009.
• Syria: Hafez al-Assad (1971–2000), succeeded by his son Bashar al-Assad (2000–). Bashar's elder brother, Basil al-Assad, had been designated for the presidency but died in 1994, six years prior to his father's death.
• Congo-Kinshasa: Laurent-Désiré Kabila (1997–2001), succeeded by his son Joseph Kabila (2001–). Joseph Kabila was democratically elected in October 2006.