Development of Statehood and Law in European Countries in the 7th-17th Centuries in the Context of the Evolution of the Military System
( Pp. 11-18)

Abstract: Research objective. The article examines the problems of the formation of the armed forces system in the context of the development of statehood and law in European countries in the 7th-17th centuries. The process of the transformation of medieval society, statehood, and law in the context of the development of the armed forces is analyzed. The purpose of this scientific research is to establish and identify the features of the existing relationships between the transformation of statehood and law, as well as the system of recruitment for the armed forces. This is necessary to determine the main direction of the development of statehood and the military system in relation to the European countries of the period under consideration. Conclusions. As a result of the conducted research, the authors concluded that the monopoly on the right to use armed force is inextricably linked to the monopoly on political power in the European states of the Middle Ages and the New Time. The process of transforming the mononorm of protecting the country by free members of the community into privileges is noted. As a result, the remnants of military democracy institutions wither away, and the importance of the general militia is virtually lost. Subsequently, with the formation of centralized states and the overcoming of feudal fragmentation, political power is concentrated in the hands of monarchs who rely on the third estate and professional mercenary armies. This leads to the loss of the feudal lords' monopoly on armed force, and the resulting power vacuum is filled by the coercive force of royal authority. The transformation of the private legal principles underlying the oath of feudal loyalty into a public legal duty to serve not just the monarch, but the country, is taking place.

Mayurov, N.P., Makarov, D.A. (2026). Development of Statehood and Law in European Countries in the 7th-17th Centuries in the Context of the Evolution of the Military System. Gaps in Russian Legislation, 19(1), 11-18. EDN: DZGVHY

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vassalage, military democracy, army, mononorma, privilege, militia, patrimonial state, chivalry.