In the economic boom of the post-war decades, the importance of oil grew for the functioning of modern economic and social orders, and thus also for the legitimacy of liberal-democratic state structures. When OPEC drastically raised oil prices in October 1973 and OAPEC restricted oil supplies to exert pressure in the Middle East conflict, it was neither sudden nor surprising. However, it clearly demonstrated that politics in Western Europe and the USA depended on a foundation that they could not control. Governments responded to this challenge to their sovereignty with a range of national and international measures, from expanding oil-related knowledge to restructuring energy sectors and diplomatic initiatives aimed at reorganizing the world of oil. The examination of these aspects of sovereignty politics is of great significance.