Vindiciae contra tyrannos
Encyclopedia
Vindiciae contra tyrannos (meaning: "Defences [of liberty] against tyrants") was an influential Huguenot
tract published in Basel
in 1579. The work proceeds through four questions concerning the response of the people to their king. The first two questions are treated briskly and concern whether a people are bound to obey and/or are able to resist their king when he breaks the divine law. The third and longest question considers whether the people can resist a king on the grounds that he is destroying the commonwealth. The answer to each of these questions is an affirmative and the work is interesting for the grounds that it gives for popular resistance. The work merges the theological view of covenant with the legal understanding of contract to show why resistance can be justified in the eyes of the law. However, it stops short of inviting any individual to judge a king. Rather, individuals could only take up arms if they are led by an inferior magistrate (so termed to distinguish them from the superior magistrate, i.e., the king). This shows considerable restraint in the wake of the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre
and in comparison to other Reformed thinkers such as Christopher Goodman
and John Knox
. The fourth question considers whether foreign princes can legally support a popular rising against a king on the conditions set out in the first three questions.
Its author remains uncertain, since it was written under the pseudonym of "Stephen Junius Brutus". Likely candidates for its authorship include Hubert Languet
and Philippe de Mornay
.
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
tract published in Basel
Basel
Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
in 1579. The work proceeds through four questions concerning the response of the people to their king. The first two questions are treated briskly and concern whether a people are bound to obey and/or are able to resist their king when he breaks the divine law. The third and longest question considers whether the people can resist a king on the grounds that he is destroying the commonwealth. The answer to each of these questions is an affirmative and the work is interesting for the grounds that it gives for popular resistance. The work merges the theological view of covenant with the legal understanding of contract to show why resistance can be justified in the eyes of the law. However, it stops short of inviting any individual to judge a king. Rather, individuals could only take up arms if they are led by an inferior magistrate (so termed to distinguish them from the superior magistrate, i.e., the king). This shows considerable restraint in the wake of the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre
St. Bartholomew's Day massacre
The St. Bartholomew's Day massacre in 1572 was a targeted group of assassinations, followed by a wave of Roman Catholic mob violence, both directed against the Huguenots , during the French Wars of Religion...
and in comparison to other Reformed thinkers such as Christopher Goodman
Christopher Goodman
Christopher Goodman BD was an English reforming clergyman and writer. He was a Marian exile, who left England to escape persecution during the counter-reformation in the reign of Queen Mary I of England. He was the author of a work on limits to obedience to rulers, and a contributor to the Geneva...
and John Knox
John Knox
John Knox was a Scottish clergyman and a leader of the Protestant Reformation who brought reformation to the church in Scotland. He was educated at the University of St Andrews or possibly the University of Glasgow and was ordained to the Catholic priesthood in 1536...
. The fourth question considers whether foreign princes can legally support a popular rising against a king on the conditions set out in the first three questions.
Its author remains uncertain, since it was written under the pseudonym of "Stephen Junius Brutus". Likely candidates for its authorship include Hubert Languet
Hubert Languet
Hubert Languet was a French diplomat and reformer. The leading idea of his diplomacy was that of religious and civil liberty for the protection and expansion of Protestantism...
and Philippe de Mornay
Philippe de Mornay
Philippe de Mornay , seigneur du Plessis Marly, usually known as Du-Plessis-Mornay or Mornay Du Plessis, was a French Protestant writer and member of the Monarchomaques .- Biography :...
.