Hobbes makes some very convincing arguments for why a monarchy is the most effective form of government to maintain the commonwealth. However, A potential weakness of monarchies that Hobbes himself notes in Chap. xix is the area of "succession". In a monarchy, if the sovereign and his designated successors are killed, exiled, or otherwise removed from the state, then the state "returns to confusion and to the condition of a war". Furthermore, if it is unclear which successor the monarch has chose, the same confusion may occur. The concentration of power, which gives the monarchy many of it's strength, may also be the root of one of its greatest weaknesses.
In contrast, governments which are assemblies are much more difficult to destroy; by nature they cannot fail "unless the multitude that are to be governed fail". This hints that they may be more robust governments in the aspect of succession.
However, Hobbes might respond by claiming that the strengths of a monarchy outweigh this weakness, and that the various weaknesses of assemblies are greater than this resiliency. Also, Hobbes spends much of the end of Chap. xix emphasizing the importance of a good succession system, and so he might claim that a monarchy with a strong system for succession is a realistic goal and that succession is therefore a weakness that can be avoided. Maybe...
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