Which concept discusses federalism and the idea of 'an empire within an empire' at the state level?

• A. Imperium in Imperio
• B. The Federalist Papers
• C. The Social Contract
• D. Leviathan

Answer: (A)

Imperium in imperio describes a situation where a subnational authority maintains its own sovereignty within the bounds of a larger political order. In a federal system, this highlights how power can be layered: a state or community might exercise real political authority that runs parallel to the wider national government. The idea of an “empire within an empire” at the state level captures that tension—an autonomous or semi-sovereign power operating inside the state, challenging the notion of a single, unified sovereignty. The phrase is used in American political thought to discuss federalism and the possibility of a distinct political order existing inside another. For example, Sutton Griggs’s Imperium in Imperio uses this imagery to explore a separate Black political order within a state, illustrating how nested sovereignties can function and conflict within the republic.

The Federalist Papers analyze how to structure a union and balance power between national and state authorities, but they don’t invoke the image of a sub-state empire within a state. The Social Contract centers on legitimate political authority arising from the people and the general will, not on nested sovereignties. Leviathan argues for a single, all-encompassing sovereign, not a “state within a state.”