Libertarian philosopher Robert Nozick is Miniarchism’s most famous academic proponent. In his 1974 landmark book Anarchy, State, and Utopia, Nozick argues for a night-watchman state, with government reduced to its barest essentials: the military, the police, and the courts.
The term “night-watchman state” was actually coined as an insult by a German socialist named Ferdinand Lassalle in 1862. But Nozick adopted it as an ideal, arguing that individuals have absolute negative rights - such as the right to liberty and property - that serve as "moral side constraints upon what we may do." These boundaries cannot be crossed by anyone, including a democratic majority, but Nozick's set out to demonstrate to anarchists that a "night-watchman state" could emerge naturally and legitimately without violating anyone’s individual rights.
The night-watchman state remains a foundational ideal for libertarian thought, sparking enduring debates about the true balance between individual liberty and collective responsibility.