The aim of the article is to assess S.N. Eisenstadt’s contribution to comparative politics and political theory through a direct analysis of his major contribution The Political Systems of Empires (1963).The legacy of T. Parsons’ structural-functionalism is openly traceable in The Political Systems of Empires, and that notwithstanding an appraisal of S.N. Eisenstadt’s grand comparative research design is possible with regard to three major aspects: 1) the conceptual and theoretical framework employed by Eisenstadt to interpret the political systems of the historical bureaucratic societies; 2) the analysis of the conditions of the success and failure of these societies; 3) the comparative method employed in such an analysis, based of the scientific canons of formulation of hypotheses, control through measurements, and verification. The Political Systems of Empires still stands as one of the major contemporary contribution to historical sociology and comparative politics and its stimulation to further research is unquestionable.
