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Free keywords:
Coup, ruler, governance rent, successorship regimes
Abstract:
Appointing a successor (the “prince”) allows the ruler (the “king”) to alter the structures of conflicts that take place
between him and his potential challengers, as well as the structures of conflicts
that take place among his potential challengers. Motivated by historical
examples and using an infinite horizon
rulership competition game, we show that while an appointed
prince constitutes a powerful and dangerous threat to the incumbent ruler
(the elevated threat effect),
the appointed prince can also offer the incumbent ruler increased protection against other potential challengers
( the barrier effect).
We determine conditions when the overall effect of appoint
ing a successor benefits the incumbent
ruler and enables him to acquire a
larger share of the governance rent in equilibrium.
