Other Features of the State

Although the State is composed of the four essential elements, described above, it is also characterized by certain other features. They follow from the four essential elements, especially from the two, sovereignty and territory. They are as under:

(i) Unity:

It simply means that the; population and territory of the State are organised and united under a single supreme power. Unity, however, is an attribute, not an element It arises from the elements of territorial integrity and sovereignty of the State.

(ii) Continuity or Permanence:

It means that the State continues to exist for all times. Theoretically, the State is immortal. Its laws and sovereignty are for all times. Governments may change, but the State continues to exist; the king dies, but the kingdom lives on. In actual practice, howevefr, it is not the State but the idea of the State that is immortal. The actual States have .frequently changed in history, at times by slow evolution and at times, by forcible revolution. Once England was an absolute monarchy, then she became an oligarchy, now she is a crowned democracy, in which the Queen or King is a mere figurehead. In France, these changes have taken place in a violent, revolutionary way. Similarly, Russia before 1917 was an absolute monarchy, but she is today a Communist State. Moreover, one State can be conquered and annexed by another State, just as England subjugated many States in the post-Mughal India. So, in practice, States are not continuous and immortal, as they are claimed to be in theory.

(iii) Equality:

It means that all States, whether big or small, are equal in the eyes of International law. It is an attribute of external sovereignty.

 

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