Table Of ContentTHE WORLDVIEW AND THOUGHT
OF TOLOMEO FIADONI
(PTOLEMY OF LUCCA)
DISPUTATIO
Editorial Board
Dallas G. Denery II Bowdoin College
Georgiana Donavin Westminster College
Cary J. Nederman Texas A&M University
Founding Editor
Richard Utz Western Michigan University
Previously published volumes in this series are listed at the back of this book.
VOLUME 22
THE WORLDVIEW AND THOUGHT
OF TOLOMEO FIADONI
(PTOLEMY OF LUCCA)
by
James M. Blythe
H
F
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Blythe, James M., 1948-
The worldview and thought of Tolomeo Fiadoni (Ptolemy of
Lucca). -- (Disputatio ; v. 22)
1. Bartholomew, of Lucca, ca. 1236-1327. 2. Political
science--Italy--History--To 1500.
I. Title II. Series
320.1'01-dc22
ISBN-13: 9782503529264
© 2009, Brepols Publishers n.v., Turnhout, Belgium
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,
without the prior permission of the publisher.
D/2009/0095/72
ISBN: 978- 205-3-52926-4
Printed on acid-free paper
As always, for Sheila
and for those who died while I was writing this book:
my mother, Ann Blythe, my aunt, Charlotte Horton,
and my father-in-law, Abe Mangel
The ultimate end of the Christian people is eternal life […]. It pertains to the pontifical
priesthood to lead to that end; therefore it will be his singularly to command in providing
and in exercising governance, and in disposing those things which are necessary to that
end, and similarly in removing impediments to following that end. Which art Aristotle
in Ethics calls architectonic among the political virtues.
—Tolomeo Fiadoni, De iurisdictione ecclesiae
Some provinces are servile by nature, and despotic rule should guide these, counting regal
rule as despotic. Certain others have a virile spirit, a bold heart, and a confidence in their
intelligence, and these cannot be ruled other than by political rule […]. Such lordship is
especially strong in Italy, where […] the inhabitants were always less able to be subjected
than others.
—Tolomeo Fiadoni, De regimine principum
CONTENTS
Acknowledgements ix
Preface xiii
Chapter 1: The Natural, the Supernatural, and the Stars 1
Chapter 2: Human Origins, Nature, and the First Governments 17
Chapter 3: Women, Gender, and the Family 35
Chapter 4: God’s Plan for History 73
Chapter 5: Empire and Papacy 97
Chapter 6: Varieties of Government 125
Chapter 7: The City, the Citizen, and the Polity as Organism 155
Chapter 8: The Roman Republic, Northern Italy, and the Best Polity 179
Chapter 9: City Governments and Civic Humanism 207
Chapter 10: Conclusions and Legacy 227
Bibliography 243
Citation Index to the Works of Tolomeo Fiadoni 261
General Index 265
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Since I worked on this and the companion volume, The Life and Works of
Tolomeo Fiadoni (Ptolemy of Lucca), at the same time, my acknowledgments
are virtually the same for both, except for my particular debt to John La
Salle.
I am especially grateful to John, with whom I published two articles evaluating
an unknown early manuscript of Hans Baron on Tolomeo Fiadoni. John was an
undergraduate honours student who was directed to this important manuscript
by his advisor, Ronald Witt of Duke University. Ron asked me if I could help
John with some questions, and after some discussions among the three of us I
agreed to collaborate with John and suggested using his work as the basis for two
articles. In the end, the published articles contain much that was original both
to John and to me. In this book I have used our joint work in parts of Chapters
8 and 9 for the evaluation of Baron’s claim that Tolomeo was an early civic
humanist.
Father Emilio Panella of Santa Maria Novella in Florence, who has published
extensively on the manuscript tradition of Tolomeo’s work and the documentary
material in Italian archives pertaining to him, was extremely helpful to me during
my two research trips to Italy. He pointed me to materials, made invaluable
suggestions, and on two occasions made telephone calls for me when my wretched
spoken Italian did not suffice.
David Wootton, author of an important article on the modern meaning of
republicanism and Tolomeo’s role in originating and transmitting it, very kindly
sent me a copy of the book in which his article had appeared, since I could
not obtain the Italian publication through Interlibrary Loan at my university.
Everyone interested in political thought should be sure to read (it is available on
the Internet for those unable to obtain the book).
x
Acknowledgements
I am grateful to the University of Memphis for several grants that have enabled
me to pursue my research for this book. On two occasions I received Summer
Research Grants that paid for two month-long trips to Italy. While there I was
able to collect images of many archival documents and unpublished books, as well
as visit many of the central places in Tolomeo’s life. One fall semester I received
a Professional Development Assignment (our equivalent of a sabbatical), during
which I was able to bring all the disparate sections of this book and its companion
on Tolomeo’s life and works into what I hope is a coherent organization. And
finally I was honoured with a Dunavant Professorship, which provided very
substantial extra funds for three years that I was able to use for my research and
other professional needs.
Last but not least, my wife, Sheila Martin, as she always does, tirelessly read my
manuscript and found many errors, ambiguities, and infelicitous wordings. We
both like nothing more than sitting next to each other at our respective computers
writing our very different books, and we have spent countless pleasant hours the
past ten years doing just that.
