The federal system: the logical continuation of the tribal and feudal model

The APROFED association is coming back to you again following the reflection of one of its members aimed at knowing if the federal system could correspond to the logical continuation of the tribal and feudal model?

So we asked the AI ​​the question. Below is its answer in italics:

Yes, the federal system can be seen as a logical evolution of tribal and feudal systems, although this transition is neither linear nor universal. Here is how this historical connection can be established:

The tribal system

1. 1. • Tribal societies are often based on kinship ties and a relatively egalitarian or hierarchical organization depending on the clan leaders.

1. 1. • Decision-making is often decentralized, with each tribe having significant autonomy.

The feudal system

1. 1. • With the sedentarization and the increasing complexity of societies, feudalism emerged, particularly in Europe in the Middle Ages.

1. 1. • It is based on a hierarchy of lords and vassals where power is fragmented but rests on a pyramidal structure.

1. 1. • Local autonomy is strong, but the bond of loyalty to a superior overlord structures the whole.

The federal system

1. 1. • With the evolution towards nation-states and the need to reconcile local autonomy and national unity, federalism emerged.

1. 1. • It allows for structured decentralization where local entities (federated states, provinces, cantons) retain autonomy, but recognize a central authority for certain key skills (defense, currency, international relations).

Thus, we can say that federalism takes up certain aspects of tribal (local autonomy) and feudal (contractual relations between levels of power) systems, while integrating a modern structure guaranteeing the balance between unity and diversity.

As a reminder, the tribal era gradually ended in France with the Roman conquest and the integration of the Gallic peoples into the Roman Empire in 52 BC. However, tribal structures persisted locally for several centuries, particularly in the countryside, until the Roman administration completely imposed its institutions and way of life. When the latter collapsed in the 5th century AD, the tribal model reappeared . Gaul was then dominated by several Germanic peoples (Franks, Visigoths, Burgundians, Alamanni, etc.). These peoples were organized into kingdoms with a strong tribal structure, where power rested on warlords and bonds of personal loyalty. Clovis, king of the Franks (481-511), unified some of these tribes and founded the Merovingian dynasty. Between the 6th and 8th centuries, France moved from a tribal organization (Merovingian Franks) to a feudal organization (Carolingian and then Capetian lordships). With the Carolingians (8th – 9th centuries), notably Charlemagne (768-814), the tribal organization gave way to a more centralized administration. With the emerging royal power, therefore fragile, feudalism appeared. The 10th century saw the emergence of lordships , where local lords took more and more independence, laying the foundations of the feudal system. The true feudal age began fully around the 11th century and lasted until the French Revolution of 1789, marking the end of seigneurial and feudal rights.

It was then that the federal model appeared, inspired by the American Revolution and its independence a few years earlier, which led the new French leaders, having just abolished the bases of the old regime, to think about adopting this new mode of governance combining both the national and local levels (departments).

The Fête de la Fédération, on July 14, 1790 , a major celebration organized to commemorate the first anniversary of the storming of the Bastille and to symbolize the unity of the French nation after the beginnings of the Revolution, brought together around 100,000 people, including representatives (called fédérés) from all regions of France. Some even believed that the date of July 14 as a national holiday was, at its base, to commemorate this Fête de la Fédération and therefore the transition to a federal model. However, when the law of July 6, 1880 established July 14 as a national holiday, the text did not specify whether 1789 or 1790 was commemorated, which made it possible to reconcile the supporters of the two interpretations. In reality, both are often retained!

Unfortunately, the divisions between revolutionaries and royalists reappeared, the former turned towards a centralized model, in order to resolve this (military) crisis , which France has retained to this day. The relative peace after the Second World War allowed the beginning of a federal transition with the creation of regions, decentralization, … slowed down if not stopped by new armed conflicts such as the wars of decolonization, of which France, anxious not to lose its colonial empire, is at the origin.

If France took between 200 and 300 years to move from a tribal model to a feudal model , and assuming that a similar transition period would be necessary to make its transition between the feudal and federal models, we thus obtain, starting from the revolution of 1789, a date between 1989 and 2089. Today , in 2025, the French State would therefore be in full mutation. The example of the European Union and New Caledonia are perfect examples. Hoping that a new armed conflict will not thwart this transition or accelerate it to the detriment of human lives. It is time for France to evolve and no longer be, as some perceive it, a blocking element. From this evolution, we are certain great things will be born.

It is time for the State to put an end to “French particularism,” particularly at the political level, with the end of Jacobinism, established by Robespierre during “the Terror,” who, wanting a powerful State, established a strong centralization, preponderant in the management of the country. The attachment to national sovereignty leading to a distrust of advanced European integration must also be abandoned. To paraphrase General de Gaulle: federalism, yes. The chaos of nationalism, no. Centralization in times of crisis, yes. Centralization in order to preserve power and privileges, no.

You can also read the AI’s answers to other of our questions, such as:

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