Max Weber's Three Types Of Legitimacy

Legitimacy is defined as the right and acceptance of an authority. This right has two sides: the first where a state claims why it has a right to rule, and the second where the population accepts or tolerates the claim. Three such forms of legitimacy are employed, namely traditional, legal-rational, and charismatic legitimacies. To understand their importance, the definition of state must first be understood. As summarized by Max Weber, a state is one that claims monopoly on the legitimated use of force within a given territory. Although monopoly may be claimed on the use of force, a consensus of the people is necessary to maintain power, since that contributes to effective governance. In the case of a fragile state experiencing illegitimacy,

Max Weber has identified three types of legitimacy that have been prevalent in history, which are traditional, legal, and charismatic. Traditional legitimacy may be understood structurally as it is the act of claiming the right to rule through a long-established set of social structures, or in some examples, claiming the power to be given by God. This form is seldom challenged by the people, as religion or social structures that are established in centuries are manipulated to maintain power, and owing to the fact that they have not been challenged in the past, people do not resent to be governed under that system. A popular example supporting this claim is of Mandate of Heaven, a validation of rule introduced in the Zhou Dynasty in China. The Dynasty spread the word that their rulers were the only legitimate ones who held blessings of God, and overthrew the Shang Dynasty whose ruler they claimed had lost all blessings due to immoral activities. Wide popularity was gained through this mandate and China saw the rule under this dynasty for 800 years. However, if a ruler got overthrown, the mandate would validate itself by stating that whoever got overthrown was unfit for the position in the eyes of God. In the present era, although most parts of the world may be experiencing secularization, Peter Berger believes that religion is still used

In such types of system, authority is transferred from the masses to the rulers through the power of vote, and the system is defined in constitutional rules. Denmark is a prime example, and this is reinforced in a study conducted by University of Zurich that places the average quality of democracy in Denmark (88%) at the top among the list of countries included in the research. Francis Fukuyama in his “Politics as a Vocation” idealizes the system of Denmark through his notion of “getting to Denmark” – a term which implies that every nation can achieve a liberal democracy and an inclusive environment like Denmark’s in its own way. This further specifies three characteristics that may be observed in such a legal-rational state: functioning state, rule of law, and an accountable government. With the existence of these three institutions, a state may enjoy full internal sovereignty and hold consensual power. Organized domination is followed as public obedience is achieved through the administrative staff that is incentivized by material reward and social honor. This is of extreme important to states as this practice is now widely followed in the West that is getting modernized by the