Water Dynasty

A water dynasty (also called a water-monopoly empire) is a political structure which is characterized by the following traits:
*A caste system of some kind
*A powerful, armed ruling caste
*Some or all necessities (such as water, food, or power) in the hands of the ruling caste

Water dynasties tend to be very stable, often lasting centuries. The lower castes are afraid to rebel against the upper castes because the upper castes control the necessities for life. The upper caste treats the lower castes as servants or worse, and squashes any attempt at rebellion or reform by cutting off the flow of necessities to that area, or by assassination.

Despite the internal stability of water dynasties, they tend to be very vulnerable to outside forces. Anything that removes the control of the upper castes will cause the dynasty to fall apart.

Some examples of water dynasties are:
*Various Chinese and Japanese dynasties
*The Aztec and Mayan empires
*Many feudal societies

The Soviet Union also exhibited many of the characteristics of a water dynasty, and arguably had a caste system, peasants/workers and Communist Party leaders.