Political Science I / The State, the Nation and the Political System
Practice question · Multiple choice

Max Weber defines the state by its monopoly on legitimate violence, while Jean Bodin defines sovereignty as supreme power over citizens. If a government faces an armed domestic insurgency that controls territory, what follows for its status?

Hints
  1. What happens to a 'monopoly' when an armed rival successfully holds ground?
  2. How does internal sovereignty differ from formal legal claims in practice?
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A. Its internal sovereignty and claim to statehood erode

Why

Weber's definition requires physical control to be successfully claimed, not merely declared, whilst Bodin's internal sovereignty requires no rival authority within the realm. Insurgencies directly fracture both de facto enforcement and supreme internal command.

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