Evolution of European States: From Feudalism to Liberalism
The Formation of European States
The state, as a political and institutional complex within a defined territory, capable of effectively producing standards, using public force, and applying legal coercion on individuals or society under its jurisdiction, is not a new invention, nor is it exclusively European. These features are present in ancient civilizations. Throughout history, states have risen and fallen in diverse locations such as Byzantium, pre-Columbian America, and China.
During the sixteenth century, the King of France sought support from the Sultan in Istanbul to weaken the Emperor’s naval dominance in the Mediterranean. Spain sent an embassy to the Shah of Persia, the Ottoman Sultan’s rival in the Middle East, proposing an alliance. In the same century, a Portuguese fleet was capable of establishing and defending trading posts within the Shah’s territory, as well as in India and China. The Aztec state succumbed to a small Castilian expeditionary force. Gradually, non-European empires fell under the influence of Western states or the Russian monarchy.
From ‘The King Among Equals’ to ‘The Gentlemen from the King’
The medieval West possessed characteristics that allow historians to speak of a certain homogeneity. It consisted of kingdoms and principalities with limited political cohesion, composed of fiefdoms and cities. The feudal territories, primarily rural, were governed by lords who imposed taxes, administered justice, and maintained private armies. The kingdoms were not unified power structures. Public coercion was decentralized among many centers. The feudal lord, representing himself, did not exercise power to control orders under the king’s generic authority. The feudal lord was king of his servants. The king ruled the land he materially possessed. This heritage formed the basis of his claim to the crown and his influence over the rest of the kingdom, which depended on his personal relationships with the most powerful nobles.
The feudal nobility operated through private partnerships, creating pacts of allegiance where lords were obligated to other lords, and so on up to the king. The king was the first among equals, the noble peers. An army consisted of feudal knights who fought with their own arms, squires, and horses. Groups arrived together, led by a great lord to whom the knights were bound by covenant of vassalage. The king might lead the operation, or another great lord might take the initiative. Influence was proportional to contribution, and victory entitled one to greater gains. War was the profession of feudal lords and the means of acquiring new domains.
Looking ahead to the thirteenth century, armies became public, centralized, and bureaucratic, in contrast to the private, unregulated, and consolidating feudal retinues. In feudal armies, gentlemen from different realms often fought together. National identity mattered relatively little. El Cantar de Mio Cid serves as an affirmation of Castilian values against the duplicity of León and Aragón. Medieval Spain exemplifies the versatility of feudal loyalties.