Preface viii
Introduction 1
1 Medieval Political Ideas and Medieval Society 5
Medieval Sources 9
The Historical Context of Early Medieval Political Thought 11
Carolingian Christian Kingship and Feudal Society 13
Translatio Imperii 18
Theocratic Kingship 19
The Origins of Papal Authority and the Gelasian Doctrine 22
Two Swords Theory 28
The Twelfth-century âRenaissanceâ: Canon Lawyers and their Heirs 29
The Twelfth-century âRenaissanceâ and the Civil Lawyers 33
Civilians and Canonists 37
Individual and Collective Liberties 38
Sovereignty and Corporations 42
Natural Law, Rights and the Lawyersâ Concern for Individual Autonomy 46
Origins of Property Rights 49
Medieval Education: Practical Moral Philosophy of Ethics, Economics and Politics 50
The Contribution of Arabic and Jewish Thinking to the Twelfth-century âRenaissanceâ 54
Aristotle in the Universities 56
Ethics and Politics in the Liberal Arts Course 57
The Purpose of Aristotelian Rhetorical Persuasion 59
The Thirteenth âAristotelianâ Century 61
The Later Thirteenth-century Understanding of Rhetoricâs Service to a Prince: Giles of Rome 64
Aristotelian Rhetoric 65
Returning to Giles of Romeâs Rhetorical De regimine principum 69
Rhetoric outside the University and Aristotle within the University 71
Aristotleâs Ethics for Medieval University Students 73
Lawyers versus the Arts Faculty Philosophers 76
The New Mendicant Orders: Franciscans and Dominicans and Political Theory 77
2 St Thomas Aquinas 81
Philosophy of Man 84
Reality and Metaphysics 84
Naming, Natures and Actual Existents 86
Natures and Definitions 87
Substantial Form and Corporeal Individuation 88
Being and Essence 90
Cause and Effect 91
Grace Added to and Perfecting, Not Destroying, Nature 92
Sense Origin of Knowing 92
Reason and Will 95
The Willâs Relation to Justice as Universal Principle and as Historically Contingent Conclusion 97
Eudaimonia/beatitudo: Immortality and the Completion of Desire 98
Rationality and the Freedom of the Will 99
The Will and the Doctrine of Original Sin 100
Natural Theology 101
State and Church: The Consequences of Natural Theology 102
Free Will and Responsibility 104
Aquinas on Law and Politics 104
Natural Law beyond Cicero 105
Natural Human Community 106
The Consequences of the Fall 109
Individual Rights and the Stateâs Law 110
The Contrast with Augustine 112
The Mixed Constitution 113
Private Property Rights 115
3 John of Paris 118
Biographical Details 120
The Franciscan Position 122
The Dominican Position 123
The Origin of Government 124
The Thomistic Underpinning of dominium in rebus, Lordship and Ownership of Things 126
The Justification of Private Ownership 127
Limitations on Government 130
The Origin of the Priesthood 130
The Relation of the Church to its Property 132
Deposition Theory 133
4 Marsilius of Padua 134
Biographical Details 138
A Reading of Discourse 1 139
Some Observations from Discourse 2 158
Conclusion 166
5 William of Ockham 169
Biographical Details 170
Ockhamâs Positions on Church and State 171
Ockhamâs Epistemology 172
Ockhamâs Dualism Concerning Secular and Spiritual Government: Continuing the Narrative 175
Comparisons with Marsilius 177
The Exceptional Exercise of Coercive Authority 178
Natural Rights 179
Corporation Theory 179
Ockhamâs âAbsolutismâ 181
How did Ockham Come to Hold These Views? 181
Right Reason 185
Scriptural Hermeneutics 188
Ockhamâs Ethics 189
Conclusion 191
The Late Medieval Fortunes of Corporation Theories in the Churchâs âConciliar Theoryâ 193
6 The Italian Renaissance and Machiavelliâs Political Theory 199
The Italian City-states Compared with Other European Cities 199
The Unconventional Aims of this Chapter 203
Communal Discourses and Citizenship 207
Urban Commerce 212
The Venetian Way 213
Perceived Benefits of Citizen Status 215
Community, Civitas, Ranked Citizenship and Local Patriotisms 216
The Involvement of Citizens in Late Thirteenth-century Communal Government 219
The Communal Ideal and the Menace of Factions 220
The Evolution of the Florentine Governing Class 222
Who Wanted to Play an Active Role in Fifteenth-century Florentine Government? 228
Humanism and Humanist Conceptions of Florentine Republicanism 230
Fifteenth-century Florentine Ideology 238
Niccol² Machiavelli 241
Machiavelliâs Political Morality 247
Founding and Maintaining the âStatoâ 251
The Fixity of Manâs Nature 252
Character Formation 254
The âFitâ Between Character and the Times 256
Fortune 257
The Impetuous Prince Who Must Learn How Not to Have Fixed Dispositions 260
Learn to Imitate Foxes and Lions 262
Machiavelliâs âPopularâ Government: His Views of the Popolo 266
Conclusion 272
Bibliography 277
Index 291
