Greece once stood at the top of the world. His philosophy, sculptures, paintings, theater and architecture were some of the great gifts he left us, but the most important is democracy. Democracy is believed to have been created in a city in ancient Greece; this city is known as Athens. The success that Athens had as a city is attributed to the way they handled their government. In this city everyone had a say in what they wanted to do. Undoubtedly, democracy has been the best ancient idea for every country in the world to maintain. Britain has a remarkable history as a superpower that at one point had its own empire. They were certainly successful, but they did not yet have an established democracy, and it actually took Britain several years to achieve this. So when did Britain become democratic and why? The main reason why Britain changed from a monarchy to a democracy was the industrial revolution. In the Middle Ages, the monarchy was extremely strong in Britain. There were many amazing kings and queens; there were kings like James I, George III, Henry VII, and many others known for doing things like separating the Catholic Church from England or being challenged by American colonists. During this time period people were not allowed to think for themselves. Both the Church and the monarchy did not allow people to have their own ideas or express their own opinion. Kings had absolute control over everything from raising taxes to imposing a religion on their people. Everyone in the British kingdom was forced to think like the king and live for the king. There were only two types of people in that time, there were those who were not… middle of the paper… as it is today. Interestingly, Great Britain, after becoming a democratic country, retained the monarchy and does not have an official written constitution. Works Cited Albert, Craig, William Graham, Donald Kagan, Steven Ozment, and Frank Turner. “Toward Parliamentary Government in England” The Legacy of World Civilizations. 9. Combined. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2011. 462. Print. The official website of the British monarchy. The role of the monarchy. Retrieved November 8, 2013, from http://www.royal.gov.uk/monarchuk/howthemonarchyworks/howthemonarchyworks.aspxWelcome to a History of England - History of England. The Dark Ages (450 - 1066) - Introduction - History of England. Retrieved November 7, 2013, from http://www.historyofengland.net/kings-and-queens/the-dark-ages-450-1066-introduction#the_dark_ages_450__1066__introduction__summary