State Building, Sovereignty, and the Balance of Power (c. 1648–1815)

Unit 3: Absolutism and Constitutionalism

3.1 Context of State Building

The Shift in Sovereignty

The period following the Peace of Westphalia (1648) marked a fundamental shift in European politics. The religious wars that dominated the previous century gave way to wars of state.

  • Definition: Sovereignty is the supreme authority within a territory. In this era, the question was: Who holds this authority? The Monarch (Absolutism) or the Law/Representative Bodies (Constitutionalism)?
  • Modern State System: 1648 established the concept that states are independent agents with exclusive rights over their own territories and domestic affairs.

Three Levels of Authority

During the state-building process (1648–1815), European rulers sought to consolidate power:

  1. Dynastic Sovereignty: Power is vested in the ruling family (e.g., Bourbons, Habsburgs). The monarch is often viewed as above the law.
  2. Territorial Sovereignty: The state centralizes control over a defined geographic area, managing taxation, law, and the military.
  3. Emerging Popular Sovereignty: Theory proposed by Enlightenment thinkers (like John Locke) suggesting power resides with the people. Note: In Unit 3, this is a theoretical challenge to kings, not yet a widespread practice until the French Revolution.

Challenges to Centralization

Monarchs did not rule in a vacuum. They faced resistance from:

  • The Nobility: Feudal lords who feared losing their regional power, armies, and tax exemptions (e.g., The Fronde in France).
  • The Church: Previously a supra-national power, now increasingly subordinated to the state (e.g., Gallicanism in France).
  • Minority Language Groups: Centralization often meant imposing a national language.
    • Catalonia: Resisted Spanish Castilian dominance.
    • Scotland/Ireland: Resisted English Anglican/linguistic imposition.

3.2 Absolutism in Western Europe

Absolutism is a form of government where the monarch holds ultimate authority and is not restricted by a constitution or laws.

Theoretical Foundations

  • Divine Right of Kings: The belief that the monarch derives their right to rule directly from God and is accountable almost only to God.
    • Key Theorist: Bishop Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet (Tutor to Louis XIV).
  • Thomas Hobbes: In Leviathan (1651), he argued for absolute rule not because of God, but because humans are naturally chaotic and need a strong leader (