Commentary
Origins in Urban Citizenship
The concept of citizenship dates back to the ancient Mediterranean world, but in the West, citizenship was initially associated with urban residents after the fall of the Roman Empire. Cities and towns offered various advantages to their citizens, including protection from feudal lords and the freedom to perform professions.
Citizenship within cities allowed for political participation and protection against monarchs seeking to expand their power. Ruling classes in cities guarded their privileges against monarch intervention, maintaining independence through local government.
The rise of absolutist monarchs in Europe led to the centralization of citizenship, replacing town citizenship with national subjecthood. This shift weakened local institutions and increased central control over individuals, ultimately nationalizing citizenship.
William Safran explains that in the ancient regime, membership in the nation was defined by a sharing of religion, social relationships, duties, rights, and cultural patterns, all of which were promoted and protected by the state. This led to the fusion of citizenship and nationality. Additionally, during this time, the concept of territorial citizenship solidified, with physical location becoming a central factor in determining one’s relationship with the state.
The French Revolution played a significant role in shaping modern citizenship ideals, emphasizing direct rule and a strong central state. This revolutionary model abolished mediating institutions, putting every individual in a direct relationship with the state. The spread of French-inspired political ideology during this period led to the convergence of European states on the concept of national citizenship.
The promotion of national citizenship served as a propaganda tool to strengthen state control over territories. By connecting citizenship to nationalism, states were able to centralize power and expand control over wealth and personnel. While town citizenship had more identifiable obligations, national citizenship introduced more abstract and theoretical benefits for individuals.
In the United States, the concept of national citizenship evolved over time, with the federal government gradually asserting more control over citizenship rights. As federal power grew, the idea of national citizenship independent of state citizenship became more pronounced. This shift allowed for a more centralized approach to citizenship in the country. Citizenship in the United States was primarily a conceptual idea, resembling the abstract and functional citizenship model favored by the French Jacobins. This eventually led to the elimination of member-state control over citizenship through the adoption of the Fourteenth Amendment to the national constitution. Today, the focus is on determining the extent of the national legislature’s authority in regulating citizenship.
The diminishing significance of local citizenship coincided with the expansion of state power in various policy realms. While the central government had limited powers in imposing direct taxation or conscription in the nineteenth century, it gained new authority in the early twentieth century, including the introduction of a national income tax and the implementation of the first federally-administered mass conscription program during World War I.
The transformation and centralization of American identity were completed by this time, as being an American became synonymous with being a United States citizen. The concept of state-level citizenship became less relevant as national citizenship status took precedence, mirroring the growth and consolidation of state power both in the U.S. and Europe.
The possibility of reversing this process exists, but the idea of national citizenship remains crucial for central states as it helps consolidate power and diminish loyalties to other institutions. While it is conceivable to have national states without national citizenship, experience has shown that direct rule over the population tends to benefit the state. Centralized control over national citizenship serves to reinforce the state’s authority and weaken attachments to external entities.
References:
1. The Swiss federal government has regulatory authority over cantonal naturalization powers, although cantons primarily handle naturalization, each with varying requirements.
2. Trzciński, K. (2021). Citizenship in Europe: The Main Stages of Development of the Idea and Institution. Studia Europejskie—Studies in European Affairs, 25(1), 13.
3. van Creveld, M. (1999). The Rise and Decline of the State. New York: Cambridge.
4. Safran, W. (1997). Citizenship and Nationality in Democratic Systems: Approaches to Defining and Acquiring Membership in the Political Community. International Political Science Review, 18(3), 315.
5. Gordon, A., & Stack, T. (2007). Citizenship Beyond the State: Thinking with Early Modern Citizenship in the Contemporary World. Citizenship Studies, 11(2), 121.
6. Tilly, C. (1995). The Emergence of Citizenship in France and Elsewhere. International Review of Social History, 40(Supplement 3), 228.
7. Xi, W. (2010). Citizenship and Nation-Building in American History and Beyond. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2, 7020.
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