Rump state

Possible extent of the "Kingdom of Soissons", a Roman rump state following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire.

A rump state is the remnant of a once much larger state that was reduced in the wake of annexation, occupation, secession, decolonization, a successful coup d'état, or revolution on part of its former territory. In the last case, a government stops short of going into exile because it controls parts of its remaining territories.

A rump state may face a higher likelihood of renewed conflict with the states formed from its former territories, depending on the manner of its reduction. There are numerous examples throughout history as well as contemporary ones, although the designation is sometimes disputed.

Terminology and etymology

The term rump state dates back to usage of 'rump', meaning 'back-end' or 'hind quarters' in the mid-15th century. It then became used in political terms to describe the English 'Rump Parliament' from 1648 - 1653, which included only the remaining members after the "Pride's Purge". In this case using rump to denote "tail" or what remains.

Now the full term rump state is a political science term of art meaning "a state or country that is much smaller and less powerful than it used to be, after a period of war, political change".

Definition

A rump state is the remnant of a formerly larger state, controlling only a portion of its former territory due to revolution, secession, or losses from war. It is not a government in exile, which controls none of its former territory.

There tends to be tension between the rump state and its former territories, making likeliness of violent conflict between them higher. Violent secessions are much more likely to produce subsequent fighting between the states compared to peaceful separations.

Examples

Rump states have arisen throughout history. After the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in Gaul, the Kingdom of Soissons survived as a Roman rump state until it was conquered by the Franks in 486. After the Jin dynasty assumed control over northern China in 1127, the Southern Song persisted as a rump state of the Northern Song dynasty. Vatican City can be considered a rump state of the Papal States, confined to the Vatican hill after the capture of Rome in 1870 and established as an independent state by the Lateran Treaty of 1929. The Republic of Turkey was a rump state left in Anatolia after the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. Taiwan is the rump state of the Republic of China left over after the retreat from the mainland. The current status of Taiwan is disputed and varies based on the observer's perspective.

See also

References

Citations

  1. ↑ Tir, Jaroslav (2005-10-01). "Keeping the Peace after Secession: Territorial Conflicts Between Rump and Secessionist States". Journal of Conflict Resolution. 49 (5): 713–741. doi:10.1177/0022002705279426. ISSN 0022-0027.
  2. ↑ Cederman, Lars-Erik; Mueller-Crepon, Carl (2023). "Nationalism and the Puzzle of Reversing State Size" (PDF). p. 13, 14. Retrieved 2026-01-23.
  3. ↑ "Rump - Etymology, Origin & Meaning". etymonline. Retrieved 2026-08-25.
  4. ↑ "Rump - Etymology and Meaning". Archived from the original on August 12, 2026. Retrieved Aug 25, 2026.
  5. ↑ Worden, Blair (1974). The Rump Parliament 1648–53. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-29213-9.
  6. 1 2 "rump state". dictionary.cambridge.org. 2026-08-19. Retrieved 2026-08-25.
  7. ↑ "Government-in-exile | Definition, Examples, World War II, & International Law | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2026-08-25.
  8. ↑ Tir, Jaroslav (2005). "Keeping the Peace after Secession: Territorial Conflicts between Rump and Secessionist States". The Journal of Conflict Resolution. 49 (5): 713–741. ISSN 0022-0027.
  9. ↑ Dodd, Leslie (25 November 2016). "Kinship Conflict and Unity among Roman Elites in Post-Roman Gaul". Official Power and Local Elites in the Roman Provinces. Routledge. p. 170. ISBN 9781317086147.
  10. ↑ Chaffee, John W. (2015). The Cambridge History of China Volume 5 Part Two Sung China, 960-1279. Cambridge University Press. p. 625.
  11. ↑ "Vatican country profile". BBC News. 2012-05-08. Retrieved 2025-12-20.
  12. ↑ Nicolle 2008, p. 178
  13. ↑ Williams, Jack; Ch'ang-yi, David (2008). Taiwan's Environmental Struggle. Routledge Contemporary Asia Series (1st ed.). Taylor & Francis. p. 18. ISBN 978-0-415-44723-2. Taiwan was now the rump state of the 'Republic of China', under the Kuomintang (KMT) or 'Nationalist' party rule, 'temporarily' in exile on the island [...]
  14. ↑ Williams, Jack F.; Lee, Shyu-tu (2014). Taiwan's Struggle: Voices of the Taiwanese. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 7. ISBN 978-1-4422-2143-7. Exactly what is Taiwan—nation state, de facto nation, rump state, pariah state, renegade province? The answer depends very much on the viewpoint of the observer.

Sources