Consent and Legitimacy: A Revised Bellicose Theory of State-Building with Evidence from around the World, 1500–2000

Andreas Wimmer

On March 9, Andreas Wimmer, Lieber Professor of Sociology and Political Philosophy at Columbia University, will deliver at talk at Social Science Matrix entitled “Consent and Legitimacy: A Revised Bellicose Theory of State-Building with Evidence from around the World, 1500–2000.” A paper related to the talk can be found here.

Abstract

This research builds on the large literature that discusses if frequent international wars enhance state-building, as famously argued by Charles Tilly. It integrates key insights of that literature and a series of additional arguments into a more comprehensive and systematic model of bargaining between rulers and ruled. The model specifies the conditions under which wars are likely to build states: if there are political institutions enabling such bargaining and expressing the consent of the ruled, if the population contributed substantially to the war efforts by providing soldiers and taxes, and if rulers are legitimized either through nationalism or success at war. The paper expands the empirical horizon of existing quantitative research by assembling two measures of state development, ranging from the early modern period to the present.

Professor Wimmer has also offered to meet with faculty and students between 10 and 1pm on Friday March 10. Sign up here: https://www.wejoinin.com/sheets/tukkm.

 

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