Sovereignty Controversies in the 16t-18th Centuries and Their Contemporary Implications

Abstract

The history of the concept of sovereignty is the history of its theoretical controversies. This is due to the fact that the founder of the concept, J. Bodin, defined it as “absolute”, that is, “free from all restraints and conditions”. This raised serious questions as to the feasibility of imposing certain limitations upon sovereignty. Side by side with the “absoluteness” controversy proceeded another, centering on “indivisibility” of sovereignty, the attribute which meant that sovereignty cannot be divided. Rousseau played a significant role in this controversy. Locke and Montesquieu, fathers of the “division of power” theory, are remembered for opposing and denying the “absolute” nature of sovereignty, on the one hand, and “indivisibility” on the other. What was denied in terms of “indivisibility”, however, was one aspect of sovereignty, while in the other aspect, sovereignty remains theoretically “indivisible” even today. Now that Bodin's “absoluteness” and one aspect of “indivisibility” have been denied, a new theory of sovereignty needs to be formulated on the basis of “Rule of Law” and universal norms and values of mankind such as world peace and human rights. If so formulated, sovereignty will win a new status of recognition and approval in the world of politics.