Revolutions in Sovereignty: How Ideas Shaped Modern International Relations : How Ideas Shaped Modern International Relations

Resource Information

The work Revolutions in Sovereignty: How Ideas Shaped Modern International Relations : How Ideas Shaped Modern International Relations represents a distinct intellectual or artistic creation found in San Francisco Public Library. This resource is a combination of several types including: Work, Language Material, Books.

Label

Revolutions in Sovereignty: How Ideas Shaped Modern International Relations : How Ideas Shaped Modern International Relations

Title remainder

How Ideas Shaped Modern International Relations

Statement of responsibility

Daniel Philpott

Creator

• Philpott, Daniel

Contributor

• hoopla digital

Author

• Philpott, Daniel

Subject

• Political science -- History and amp | Theory
• Electronic books
• Sovereignty
• International relations

Language

eng

Summary

How did the world come to be organized into sovereign states? Daniel Philpott argues that two historical revolutions in ideas are responsible. First, the Protestant Reformation ended medieval Christendom and brought a system of sovereign states in Europe, culminating at the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. Second, ideas of equality and colonial nationalism brought a sweeping end to colonial empires around 1960, spreading the sovereign states system to the rest of the globe. In both cases, revolutions in ideas about legitimate political authority profoundly altered the "constitution" that establishes basic authority in the international system. Ideas exercised influence first by shaping popular identities, then by exercising social power upon the elites who could bring about new international constitutions. Swaths of early modern Europeans, for instance, arrived at Protestant beliefs, then fought against the temporal powers of the Church on behalf of the sovereignty of secular princes, who could overthrow the formidable remains of a unified medieval Christendom. In the second revolution, colonial nationalists, domestic opponents of empire, and rival superpowers pressured European cabinets to relinquish their colonies in the name of equality and nationalism, resulting in a global system of sovereign states. Bringing new theoretical and historical depth to the study of international relations, Philpott demonstrates that while shifts in military, economic, and other forms of material power cannot be overlooked, only ideas can explain how the world came to be organized into a system of sovereign states

Cataloging source

Midwest

Dewey number

• 320.15
• 320.15

Index

no index present

Literary form

non fiction

Nature of contents

dictionaries

Series statement

Princeton Studies in International History and Politics

Target audience

adult