David Stasavage, "The Decline and Rise of Democracy: A Global History from Antiquity to Today" (Princeton UP, 2020)

Oct 18, 2025

David Stasavage, Dean for Social Sciences at NYU and author of The Decline and Rise of Democracy, explores the intricate history of global democratic practices. He reveals how early democracies flourished in small, weak states with simple technologies, contrasting these with the centralized bureaucracies of ancient empires. Stasavage discusses the interplay of literacy and governance, the evolution of representative mandates, and the legacy of the Magna Carta. He also shares insights on modern democracy's challenges and the historical influences shaping today’s political landscape.

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INSIGHT

Bureaucracy Shapes Regime Type

Strong, centralized bureaucracies reduce rulers' need for popular consent and favor autocracy.
Weak bureaucracies force rulers to cooperate with local elites, enabling early democratic practices.

INSIGHT

Communication Enables Bureaucracy

Writing and printing expanded bureaucratic capacity by spreading literacy and texts.
China’s exam system and woodblock printing show communication technology can build state bureaucracy.

INSIGHT

Early Vs. Modern Democratic Constraints

Early democracies lacked bureaucracies, so rulers had to rely on popular consent.
Modern democracies combine strong states with popular control, creating new vulnerabilities.

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Historical accounts of democracy's rise tend to focus on ancient Greece and pre-Renaissance Europe. The Decline and Rise of Democracy: A Global History from Antiquity to Today (Princeton University Press, 2020) draws from global evidence to show that the story is much richer--democratic practices were present in many places, at many other times, from the Americas before European conquest, to ancient Mesopotamia, to precolonial Africa. Delving into the prevalence of early democracy throughout the world, David Stasavage makes the case that understanding how and where these democracies flourished--and when and why they declined--can provide crucial information not just about the history of governance, but also about the ways modern democracies work and where they could manifest in the future.

Drawing from examples spanning several millennia, Stasavage first considers why states developed either democratic or autocratic styles of governance and argues that early democracy tended to develop in small places with a weak state and, counterintuitively, simple technologies. When central state institutions (such as a tax bureaucracy) were absent--as in medieval Europe--rulers needed consent from their populace to govern. When central institutions were strong--as in China or the Middle East--consent was less necessary and autocracy more likely. He then explores the transition from early to modern democracy, which first took shape in England and then the United States, illustrating that modern democracy arose as an effort to combine popular control with a strong state over a large territory. Democracy has been an experiment that has unfolded over time and across the world--and its transformation is ongoing.

Amidst rising democratic anxieties, The Decline and Rise of Democracy widens the historical lens on the growth of political institutions and offers surprising lessons for all who care about governance.

David Stasavage is dean for the social sciences and Julius Silver Professor of Politics at New York University.

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