The correct answer to this open question is the following.
The absolute rule of Peter the Great, Frederick II and Catherine the Great was different from the absolutism of earlier European monarchs in that they had a little bit more interested in the welfare of their people, and were not as self-centered as the many European monarchs of the time. They were more open to listening to ideas that could benefit them but also their servants.
They were similar to the other Kings and Queens of Europe in that they exerted their power and control over their territories. They were absolute Kings or Queens and imposed absolutist measures to consolidate their reigns.
The north didn't really need slaves (doesn't mean they didn't have any), the South, however, thrived by using slaves because of the free labor on their plantations.
