Page 184 - 《社会》2025年第2期

等级与君主制的起源：孟德斯鸠的封建法问题

constituting the foundation of monarchical order. The fusion of vassalic military
power and the property of fiefs gave rise to territorial jurisdiction， while the
“independent liberty” of barbarians evolved into a “liberty under the law”.
Crucially， the establishment of feudalism entailed a reconfiguration of monarchy
itself: the primal “leader鄄loyalty” relationship between monarchs and vassals was
supplanted by a fief鄄based “grant鄄protection” dynamic， fundamentally altering the
nature of royal power. Through the pursuit of hierarchical equilibrium， reciprocal
rights between monarchs and nobles were formalized. Mores centered on honor
catalyzed institutional change， enabling the displacement of jurisdiction of the lords
by royal jurisdiction through rationalized appellate systems. This process
simultaneously shaped both monarchical power and the orders鄄epitomized by the
robe nobility鄄that mediated its exercise. As a political government， monarchy’s
defining feature lies in its reliance on intermediary orders for the execution of
power. Monarchic authority is inherently generative: its institutional channels
constitute the very fabric of society. As a modern social form， monarchy implies a
society constituted by the spirit of hierarchy， which remained inextricably linked to
state power， effectively rendering “society” an intrinsic dimension of the state. By
intervening in historical debates about the origins of the nobles， Montesquieu not
only gave a new understanding to monarchy as a form of government， but also
advanced a historically grounded theory of the state.
Keywords：Monarchy， Hierarchy， Nobles， Jurisdiction， honor

一、 引言

1748 年，在《论法的精神》出版前夕，孟德斯鸠提到，“我需要完成
关于封建法的两章，这样我的作品才算完整”（Ellis，1989）。 这一往往被
视为“附录”的关于封建制或法国君主制起源的章节，在什么意义上构
成其作品不可或缺的部分，始终是一个悬而未决的问题。
在大革命后的共和国体制下， 如何理解和反思君主制传统（Ancien
Régime）始终是法国文明的核心关切。 经典历史社会学刻画了君主制之
于现代社会的意义，它被视为西方文明之现代转型的关键阶段。 这种视
角肇端于马克斯·韦伯，他从垄断暴力之正当使用的角度定义了现代国
家（韦伯，2010），随后，新韦伯主义的“财政—军事模型”更加强调绝对

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