Max Weber, although his definition is a bit more nuanced:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Weber
> Weber defined the state as an entity that successfully claims a "monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force within a given territory".
"Legitimate" is a tarpit, but in practical terms it's pretty much what others recognize as legitimate. That's the difference between a warlord and a dictator: One controls an armed gang, the other controls a military.
This poses some problems for people claiming that anarchism can work: If a region declares itself anarchist, but the majority can and will enforce its rules by force, is it anarchist or majoritarian? Is there any practical difference?
I wouldn't be so certain about that. History is filled with examples of corporations doing exactly that sort of thing, usually (but not always) by having a government act as their proxy.