Power is always personal: any study of a Western democratic leader today reveals that, even in a transparent system with its short periods in office, personalities shape administrations. Democratic leaders often rule through trusted retainers instead of official ministers. In any court, power is as fluid as human personality.
Simon Sebag Montefiore, The Romanovs: 1613-1918
aristocracy, autocracy, chronology, dynasty, history, politics, russia