King James I of England is famously associated with the 'Divine Right of Kings,' a political theory asserting that a monarch is subject to no earthly authority and derives the right to rule directly from the will of God. This theory was used to justify absolute monarchy and resist parliamentary attempts to limit royal power during his reign.

The organic theory of the state, famously championed by thinkers like Herbert Spencer and Bluntschli, posits that the state functions like a biological organism. In this view, the state is not a mechanical construct created by contract, but a living entity where individual citizens are analogous to cells, and the government acts as the central nervous system, maintaining the health and unity of the whole.

Social contract theory is primarily concerned with explaining the origin of the state and the legitimacy of political authority. It argues that individuals collectively agree, either explicitly or implicitly, to surrender certain natural freedoms in exchange for the protection and stability provided by a sovereign government. This theoretical framework shifts the basis of political legitimacy from divine right to the consent of the governed.

Critics, including historical sociologists, argue that the Social Contract theory is historically inaccurate because there is no empirical evidence of a formal, voluntary agreement among individuals to form a state. Instead, states typically emerged through conquest, evolution, or gradual social development rather than a conscious, singular act of collective consent as described by theorists like Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau.

The Theory of Divine Origin is among the oldest explanations for political authority. It predates modern scientific and social contract theories, reflecting early human attempts to understand power by linking it to supernatural or religious authority, thereby legitimizing the ruler as a representative of the divine on earth.

Liberalism often views the state as a product of historical evolution and social contract, where individuals collectively agree to form a government to protect their natural rights. This historical perspective suggests that the state emerged through gradual development and consensus, rather than through force or purely economic class struggle, emphasizing the importance of legitimacy and consent in political organization.

The Force Theory posits that the state originated from the subjugation of the weak by the strong. Adolf Hitler is frequently cited in political science literature as a modern proponent of this view, as his ideology emphasized the necessity of power, conquest, and the dominance of the state through military and physical force to achieve national objectives.

The Theory of Divine Origin suggests that the ruler's authority is derived directly from God, rendering the monarch accountable only to the divine rather than the people. This doctrine, often called the 'Divine Right of Kings,' was historically utilized to justify absolute monarchy, as any resistance to the king was viewed as an act of rebellion against God.

Johann Kaspar Bluntschli was a prominent 19th-century jurist who extensively developed the organic theory of the state. He argued that the state is a living, masculine organism, possessing a soul and a body. By drawing a direct parallel between the state's structure and the human body, he sought to explain the state's natural growth, its internal organs (institutions), and its inherent vitality, viewing the state as a moral and physical entity.

Individualists, particularly those in the classical liberal tradition, argue that the state is a necessary evil. It is considered 'necessary' because it provides essential functions like protection of life and property, but an 'evil' because its coercive power inherently restricts individual liberty and autonomy.