The Concepts of Universal Monarchy & Balance of Power in the first Half of the Seventeenth Century – a Case Study

The struggle for political influence and hegemony in early modern Europe was pursued not solely by military means, but also by a variety of theories which aimed to foster such claims. Universal monarchy and balance of power were the two main concepts employed in the strife, if not for empire, at least for hegemony. This chapter contrasts these two concepts by a case study comparing Discourse Touching the Spanish Monarchy by Tommaso Campanella with the Grand Design by the Duke of Sully, both written in the seventeenth century. Dynastic and confessional allegiances remained to play their part in the ensuing European state system, as can be seen in Campanella’s and Sully’s proposals. However, the Westphalian settlement of 1648 was multi-polar and power relations were increasingly complex, which was reflected in Samuel Pufendorf’s work. A brief look at Pufendorf highlights how political thought developed further in the attempt to understand and organize the increasingly complex European state system