In his reflections, the Author emphasises the importance of territory for human life and its social behaviour. He draws attention to the role of law in the evolution of the meaning of territory for the human being and the society. The Author examines the processes of transformation that have taken place in relation to the quite durable views on the essence of the territory. The role of the state territory, as a traditional criterion for the legitimacy of legal regulations, is changing. This is notably evident when solving problems related to the „European territory”, consisting of a number of independent states. This in turn leads to a crisis of the „European sphere” in its encounter with conservative tendencies to regain state influence on what is going on in its territory. It is difficult to determine which direction the resolution of the undeniable contradictions which exist between the state and its territory and the prevailing manifestations of global nature will take.