The Feudal and Early Modern State

The ancient state remained infrastructurally weak and possessing limited capacity. These characteristics were principally because of the limited development of a coherent, well-organized bureaucratic infrastructure and the narrow basis of organic interdependence enjoyed by the state. In feudal and early modern times, major attempts were made to overcome these weaknesses as the national state developed as the principal political form in Western Europe. There were two basic models of state-building in the most successful states: organic and overarching.