ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the basic units of local government, and analyses the significance of regional and representative institutions; and examines informal channels of political exchange which helped to hold polities together. Traditional institutions of local government varied remarkably in size and shape but certain parameters can be determined. In England, the Tudors effectively carried out a revolution in local government with minimal institutional reform: the existing network of ecclesiastical parishes was adapted for secular administrative purposes, and unpaid gentlemen magistrates were entrusted with supervisory duties at the county level. At the regional level, there was very significant variation in institutional arrangements within individual territories. All political systems depend on the existence of chains of command through which centre and periphery can communicate. In most of Europe, regardless of size and regime, there were clear trends towards the professionalization and bureaucratization of local government, especially through legally trained officials.
