Table Of ContentJus Gentium in Humanist Jurisprudence
History of European Political
and Constitutional Thought
Series Editors
Erica Benner (Yale University)
László Kontler (Central European University)
Mark Somos (Max Planck Institute for Comparative
Public Law and International Law)
Associate Editors
Anna Becker — Alberto Clerici — Adriana Luna- Fabritius
Gaby Mahlberg — Jani Marjanen — Eva Piirimae
Advisory Board
Duncan Bell — Hans Blom — Annabel Brett — Lea Campos Boralevi
Janet Coleman — John Dunn — Pamela Edwards — Ioannis Evrigenis
Xavier Gil — David Grewal — Oleg Kharkhordin — Paschalis Kitromilides
Anne Peters — Christopher Smith — Balázs Trencsényi
Martin van Gelderen — Richard Whatmore
volume 9
The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/ hepct
Jus Gentium in Humanist
Jurisprudence
On Justice and Right
By
Susan Longfield Karr
LEIDEN | BOSTON
Cover illustration: Emblem 39 (‘Harmony’) from Andrea Alciati, Andreae Alciati Emblemata cum
commentariis Claudii Minois I.C. Francisci Sanctii Brocensis, & notis Laurentii Pignorii Patavini. Novissima
hac editione in continuam unius commentarii seriem congestis, in certas quasdam quasi classes dispositis,
& plusquam dimidia parte auctis. Opera et vigiliis Joannis Thuilii Mariaemontani Tirol … Accesserunt in fine
Federici Morelli … Corollaria & monita, ad eadem Emblemata. Cum indice triplice (Patavii: Apud Petrum
Paulum Tozzium, 1621).
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Longfield Karr, Susan F., author.
Title: Jus gentium in humanist jurisprudence : on justice and right /
by Susan Longfield Karr.
Description: Leiden ; Boston : Brill, [2022] | Series: History of European
political and constitutional thought, 2589-5966 ; volume 9 | Based on
author’s thesis (doctoral - University of Chicago, 2008) issued under title:
Nature, self, and history in the works of Guillaume Budé, Andrea Alciati,
and Ulrich Zasius : a study of the role of legal humanism in western
natural law. | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2022029785 (print) | LCCN 2022029786 (ebook) |
ISBN 9789004523661 (hardback) | ISBN 9789004528451 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Law–Europe–Roman influences. | Jus gentium (Roman
law)–History–16th century. | Humanism–Europe–History–16th century. |
Natural law–Europe–History–16th century. | Budé, Guillaume,
1468-1540–Influence. | Alciati, Andrea, 1492-1550–Influence. | Zasius,
Ulrich, 1461-1535–Influence.
Classification: LCC KJC431 .L66 2022 (print) | LCC KJC431 (ebook) |
DDC 340.5/4–dc23/eng/20220831
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022029785
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022029786
Typeface for the Latin, Greek, and Cyrillic scripts: “Brill”. See and download: brill.com/b rill- typeface.
issn 2589- 5966
isbn 978- 90- 04- 52366- 1 (hardback)
isbn 978- 90- 04- 52845- 1 (e- book)
Copyright 2022 by Susan Longfield Karr. Published by Koninklijke Brill nv, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Koninklijke Brill nv incorporates the imprints Brill, Brill Nijhoff, Brill Hotei, Brill Schöningh, Brill Fink,
Brill mentis, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Böhlau and V&R unipress.
Koninklijke Brill nv reserves the right to protect this publication against unauthorized use. Requests for
re- use and/ or translations must be addressed to Koninklijke Brill nv via brill.com or copyright.com.
This book is printed on acid- free paper and produced in a sustainable manner.
Contents
A cknowledgements ix
L ist of Figures xi
I ntroduction
Historical Imagination, Collective Memory, and the Historicization of
Roman Law 1
part 1
Guillaume Budé: Jus, Justice, and Dignity
1 S etting the Scene
Justinian’s Digest and University- Based Jurisprudence 21
1 C orpus iuris civilis: Composition and Transmission 22
2 L aw before Lawyers 27
3 R eform, Revolution, and Rediscovery 32
4 M odus docendi: The Methods of the Schoolmen and the Advent of
the Studia humanitatis 46
2 E xcavating, Restoring, and Redefining Jus at the Foundations of
Humanist Jurisprudence 60
1 A Humanist, Not a Lawyer 60
2 T he 1508 Annotationes: Answering— and Amplifying— the Call for
Change 64
3 H idden in Plain View: Radical Departure, Traditional Scholarship 73
4 S plitting Good from Fair: Accursius’ Error and Budé’s
Entanglement 78
5 T he Proper Method for Studying and Interpreting the Law 89
6 J us as a Defining Characteristic of Justice and Man qua Man 101
7 J us Has Been Given to All Mankind 109
8 S ignificance of Budé’s Re- interpretation of Jus and Jus Gentium 115
part 2
Ulrich Zasius: Jus, Jus Gentium, and Rights
3 R e- defining Jus to Restore Justitia
Ulrich Zasius’ Methods in Word and in Action 119
vi Contents
1 H umanist First, a Lawyer Second 119
2 C ombining Methods: Historicizing Law to Observe Justice 123
3 I n Praise of the Law: A True and Useful Science 124
4 T heory Meets Practice: Zasius Explains His Methods 139
5 O rdinary Lecture, Exceptional Interpretation 146
6 ‘ What Is Justice; What Is Jus?’ 146
7 T he Historical Necessity for and the Moral Authority of Lawyers and
Jurists 154
8 ‘ In What Manner Is Justice Divided?’ 158
9 M ethods in Action: Ex fontibus ad initium 161
4 B reaking with Tradition
Jus Gentium as a Source of Universal Rights and Obligations 165
1 D isentangling Jus Gentium, Defining Natural Law 165
2 D efining Natural Law and Jus Gentium 167
3 T he First Three Qualities of Natural Law: Instruction, Sociability, and
Preservation 169
4 J us Gentium as the Fourth Quality of Natural Law 175
5 B efore and Beyond the Lectern: Pairing Zasius’ Lecture and
Lucubrationes 178
6 E levating Jus Gentium 179
7 D istinct, but Not Divided: The Double- Aspect of Jus Gentium 187
8 U niversal, but Not Unlimited: The Right to Resist and the Power to
Punish 192
9 J us Gentium as a Cache of Universal Rights 197
10 J us Gentium as a Cache of Universal Obligations 199
11 T he Limits of Slavery 204
12 T he Trouble with Tyranny 211
13 I mplications of Zasius’ Re- interpretation of Jus Gentium 216
part 3
Andrea Alciati: Jus, Violence, and Imperium
5 S elf- Evident Truths and Demonstrable Facts
Power, Politics, and Persuasion 221
1 L awyer First, Humanist Second 221
2 L aw and Violence: Alciati’s Career in Context 228
3 T he Art of Justice, the Power of Speech, and the Necessity of
Jurists 250
Contents vii
6 T he Tenacity of Violence and the Parity of Right
Alciati’s [Re- ] Interpretation of Jus and Jus Gentium 271
1 E quality Through Enmity: War- Making as State- Making 271
2 C hanging the Subject: Alciati’s Radical Departure from His Humanist
Peers 275
3 T he Trouble with Imperium: Alciati’s Novel Departure from His
Scholastic Predecessors 277
4 J us as Necessity in Action 282
5 H omicide, Commerce, and War: Meticulous Meditations on
Proximate and Remote Cause 288
6 S lavery as a Marker of Imperium 295
7 R ulers and Brigands; Superior and Inferior Princes 298
8 U niversal Empire Rejected 305
9 I mperium Interrupted 308
10 C ontests Among Equals: Dueling as an Analogy to War 322
11 T he Practical Significance of Alciati’s Novel Re- interpretation of Jus
Gentium in Context 329
12 J us as a Marker of Equality in Humanist Jurisprudence 334
C onclusion
The Re- formation of Europe and the Turn to Jus Gentium 338
A ppendix: Select Emblems by Andrea Alciati 351
B ibliography 369
I ndex 394
Acknowledgements
This book would not be possible without the generous support of the University
of Chicago Department of History, the German Academic Exchange Service
(daad), Herzog August Bibliothek, Max Planck Institute for Legal History and
Legal Theory, the Max Weber Fellowship Program at the European University
Institute, the Mellon Foundation, the Law and Public Affairs Program at
Princeton University, and the University of Cincinnati, especially the Depart-
ment of History and the College of Arts and Sciences.
Nor would this book exist without the generosity of a vast array of men-
tors, scholars, friends, and colleagues, who, in seminars, symposia, workshops,
conferences, research venues, coffee breaks, and hikes, have not only shown
great interest in the project but have also encouraged me to make the story of
how ius gentium was transformed at the hands of the ‘fathers of legal human-
ism’ accessible to a variety of audiences that all too often do not intersect.
To that end, I am incredibly grateful for the insightful questions, invaluable
feedback, and generosity of Constantin Fasolt, Martin van Gelderen, Anthony
Grafton, Michael Geyer, Tamar Herzog, William J. Novak, James Hankins,
Annabel Brett, James Tully, Quentin Skinner, Brian Cummings, Lorraine
Datson, Kim Lane Scheppele, Marie Theresa O’Connor, Stephen Porter,
A. J. Aiseirithe, Daniel Gullo, Peter Brooks, Elizabeth Mertz, Gordon Silverstein,
Janet McLean, Michael Lobban, Erika Gasser, Laura Culbertson, Tracy Teslow,
Janne E. Nijman, Chana Baron, Katherine Sorrels, Robert Stern, Sigrun Haude,
Ethan Katz, Maura O’Connor, Douglas B. Klusmeyer, Steven Gill, Theo Jung,
James Murray, and, of course, Abigail Laura Karr and Ingo Trauschweizer. All of
whom gave freely of their time to discuss the nuances of the argument, pushed
me to clarify concepts, and challenged me to be a better writer. Special thanks
are also due to the editors of this series and to those who carefully reviewed
the manuscript, their comments and suggestions have undoubtedly made this
a better work. And, to William Barker, who graciously shared the images of
Alciati’s Emblems that appear in this volume from his private collection.
I owe an enormous debt to Constantin Fasolt, James Hankins, Daniel Gullo,
Cameron Hawkins and James Murray for their Latin expertise and advice
that helped me (over the life of this project) render the meandering prose of
Guillaume Budé and the technical vocabularies of Ulrich Zasius and Andrea
Alciati into accessible English. Naturally, all errors remain my own.
Finally, I wish to thank Janne E. Nijman and Anthony Carty, co-editors of
Morality and Responsibility of Rulers: European and Chinese Origins of a Rule of
