Sovereignty in Conflict

"This edited collection provides a valuable addition to the literature on conflicts of sovereignty in Europe. The elaboration and exemplification of different types of sovereignty conflict, foundational, institutional and territorial, is illuminating."

Paul Craig, Emeritus Professor of English Law, St John’s College, Cambridge University, UK

“This book provides numerous insightful illustrations of sovereignty claims by a diverse set of actors, such as nationalist parties, irredentist movements, regions and the EU. In a multi-level polity such as the EU, which is based on the notion of shared sovereignty, conflicts can be very contentious. This book should be read by all students who wish to grasp the evolving nature of European politics. "

Jan Zielonka, Professor of European Politics, University of Oxford and Venice Ca Foscari, UK and Italy
This edited volume brings together leading international researchers in an attempt to disentangle and understand the multiple conflicts of sovereignty within the European polity in the aftermath of the 2008 economic crisis. While most research on sovereignty focuses on its international dimensions, what makes this volume distinctive is the focus on the mobilization of sovereignty discourses in national politics. Contrary to tired paradigms studying clashes between national and supranational sovereignty, the chapters of the volume offer a provocation for the readers – what if these old vertical conflicts of sovereignty are increasingly complemented by horizontal conflicts between executives and parliaments at both the national and international level?

Julia Rone is a postdoctoral researcher at the Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy at CRASSH, University of Cambridge, UK.

Nathalie Brack is Associate Professor in Political Science at the Université libre de Bruxelles andVisiting Professor at the College of Europe, Belgium.

Ramona Coman is Professor in Political Science at the Université libre de Bruxelles and President of the Institute for European Studies, Belgium.


Amandine Crespy is Associate Professor in Political Science at the Université libre de Bruxelles, and Visiting Professor at the College of Europe, Belgium.