Dictators are not the only political leaders who have been known to appear publicly in full uniform. Many modern democratic Heads of State have an official "state uniform" or special medals and insignia that are legally allowed to be worn on ceremonial occasions. Such formal dress greatly varies from country to country. Former British colonies often have very elaborate outfits for their head of state, while many South American leaders simply wear a sash.

Unlike dictators, however, most democratic leaders only wear decorations that they have legally earned through military service, and not simply awarded to themselves.

Since many of today's political leaders were born after World War II, (or were very young at the time) and thus have earned very few military honors, such ceremonial dress is not as widely seen anymore. I suspect the fact that we now associate politicians wearing military uniforms with dictators and Nazis and their ilk is also partially responsible.

Indonesian President Sukarnoputri	Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez	Nepal Premier Chand
President of Trinidad and Tobago	Governor General of Canada	Governor General of Australia
Governor General of New Zealand	Governor General of Jamaica	Governor General of the Bahamas
Thailand Prime Minister Shinawatra	Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo	Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen
Croatian President Franjo Tudjman	Governor of Bermuda	Maylaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi

As you can see above, Governor Generals of various Commonwealth Realms often wear medals and chains and things on ceremonial occasions. This is a tradition that persists from colonial days, when the Governor General used to wear a complete uniform, similar to the uniform the Governor of Bermuda is wearing above. The formal Governor General's military uniform was phased out at different dates in different countries. Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa appear to have dispensed with it at quite an early date, while Canada kept it until the early 70's. I suspect it was phased out for a number of reasons- perhaps the most notable being the fact that many Governor Generals no longer had a personal military background, thus making the wearing of uniforms seem phony and anachronistic. The Privy Councilor's uniform (also known as the Windsor uniform) was likewise worn by the Governor General's Lieutenants, and even the Prime Ministers and Cabinet Ministers of the Commonwealth Realms on ceremonial occasions during the same era.

The full Governor General's uniform, as worn by Canadian Governor General Roland Michener (served 1967-1974)

Formal wear

In many countries, when the Head of State appears at a white-tie ball or state dinner it is common for him to accessorize his tuxedo with various official trinkets and sashes that symbolize his office. The President of France, for example, often wears the sash and chain of the Legion of Honour, France's highest civilian award. This practice is largely a European tradition. Royalty usually wear decorations on their tuxedos, and other non-monarchial heads of state have in turn emulated the practice.

Sometimes leaders only wear decorations they personally have earned (such as Eisenhower and Churchill below), other times their accessories are awarded upon assuming office, or are otherwise special "exclusive" things that only they get to wear.

French President Jacques Chirac	Finnish President Ahtisaari	Portugese President Sampaio
Iceland President Grimmson	South African President Mbeki	German President Rau
Lebanese President Amin Gemayel	American President Eisenhower	British Prime Minister Churchill

Symbols of Office

Sometimes the leaders just wear special chains or medals to symbolize their office, and not necessarily only on formal occasions.

On the next page you can see Presidential Sashes, another common symbol of office.

President of the Phillippines	President of the Ukraine	President of Suriname
President of Lithuania	President of Kazakhstan