History of Medieval Political Thought

Joseph Canning is Senior Lecturer in History at the University of Wales, Bangor. He is the author of The Political Thought of Baldus de Ubaldis (1987).

• Preface; Introduction; 1 THE ORIGINS OF MEDIEVAL POLITICAL IDEAS, c. 300–c. 750 ; Byzantium: the Christian Empire; The West ; Christian kingship; Kingship and priesthood; The claims of the papacy; The Christian world-view and its implications for the state; 2 THE GROWTH OF SPECIFICALLY MEDIEVAL POLITICAL IDEAS, c. 750–c. 1050; Carolingian political ideas; Theocratic monarchy; Consent and fidelity; The transpersonal dimension; Ideas of empire; Political ideas, c. 900–c. 1050; Rome-based emperorship; Imperial kingship; 3 POLITICAL IDEAS IN THE HIGH MIDDLE AGES, c. 1050–c. 1290; Spiritual and secular power, c. 1050–c. 1150; The languages for political thought: the revived legacy of antiquity; Classical-literary: John of Salisbury; The language of Roman and canon law; Aristotelian language; 4 POLITICAL IDEAS IN THE LATE MIDDLE AGES, c. 1290–c. 1450; Ideas of church and of state, c. 1290–c. 1350; The conflicts between Philip IV and Boniface VIII; Italy: scholastic ideas and the myth of Rome; Marsilius of Padua and William of Ockham; Juristic thought; The ruler’s will and the normative structure; Territorial sovereignty; Corporation theory; Conciliar ideas; Origins; The Great Schism and the Councils of Pisa and Constance ; The Council of Basel; Conclusion

'The work of a scholar who is fully aware of the distinctive character and importance of all the sources he has to consider and who can evaluate the evidence in the context of a thorough knowledge and understanding of the societies that generated those sources.Canning has written one of those rare books which can be unreservedly recommended.' - Ecclesiastical History