中世纪晚期(1250—1450)英格兰国家的形成

State Formation in Late Medieval England,1250—1450

众所周知,国家的出现是世界历史上最重要的进步之一。在绝大部分有关中世纪晚期英格兰国家形成的讨论中,"战争国家"和"法律国家"都是其结构基础,但这两者并非彼此对立竞争的关系。值得注意的还有几点:第一,在英国模式的制度组成中,议会的地位无可替代。第二,这段时期英国的政治文化或许比结构特征更为重要。第三,中世纪晚期语言和宗教领域发生的重要变革,使英国人意识到自身的民族性和他们所处的政治体系。第四,国家的概念逐渐成为英格兰政治心态中一个永久性的构成元素。

The emergence of the state is widely recognized as one of the most important developments in world history. The ＂war state＂ and the ＂law state＂ are the structural basis of most discussion about state formation in later medieval England. However, it＇s not necessary to see them as being in competi- tion with each other. Parliament was the most significant of those institutions in the English example. The political culture of the period could be deemed to be more important than structures. In linguistic and religious terms, the later Middle Ages witnessed significant changes in the way that the English considered themselves and the political system in which they lived. Then state had become a permanent part of English political mentality.