Filippo Decio or Decius (1454 – c. 1535) was an Italian

jurist A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyses and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal qualification in law and often a legal practitioner. In the Uni ...

whose services were courted by European universities and rulers. He was an influential representative of the pre-

Humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...

scholastic ''

ius commune ''Jus commune'' or ''ius commune'' is Latin for "common law" in certain jurisdictions. It is often used by civil law jurists to refer to those aspects of the civil law system's invariant legal principles, sometimes called "the law of the land" ...

'' tradition, and one of the leading jurists of his time together with Felino Sandeo, Antonio Cocchi Donati and Bartolomeo Socini.

Life

Born into a

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

ese noble family, Decio studied the humaniora and then law in

Pavia Pavia (, , , ; la, Ticinum; Medieval Latin: ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy in northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was the capit ...

under his brother Lancelotto and Jason de Mayno. In 1475, he attained a doctorate at

Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...

, where he taught civil and canon law until 1502, except for a 1484–87 stint in

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

. After squabbles within the Pisan faculty, he taught canon law in

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

from 1502; his salary was 600 gold

ducat The ducat () coin was used as a trade coin in Europe from the later Middle Ages from the 13th to 19th centuries. Its most familiar version, the gold ducat or sequin containing around of 98.6% fine gold, originated in Venice in 1284 and gained wi ...

s. In 1505 the French king

Louis XII Louis XII (27 June 14621 January 1515), was King of France from 1498 to 1515 and King of Naples from 1501 to 1504. The son of Charles, Duke of Orléans, and Maria of Cleves, he succeeded his 2nd cousin once removed and brother in law at the tim ...

, who was in

, requested that he move to Pavia; the initial objections of the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...

were overcome, and he moved there at the end of the year. By 1511 his salary had risen to 2000

florin The Florentine florin was a gold coin struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains (3.499 grams, 0.113 troy ounce) of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a purcha ...

s. Following departure of the French from Milan in April 1512 and the destruction of his home, his library and his manuscripts by the

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

army, he followed Louis XII's call to Valence and became a member of the

Grenoble lat, Gratianopolis , commune status = Prefecture and commune , image = Panorama grenoble.png , image size = , caption = From upper left: Panorama of the city, Grenoble’s cable cars, place Saint- ...

parlement A ''parlement'' (), under the French Ancien Régime, was a provincial appellate court of the Kingdom of France. In 1789, France had 13 parlements, the oldest and most important of which was the Parlement of Paris. While both the modern Fre ...

''. In 1516, the Duke of

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

succeeded in convincing Decio to return to Pisa, and in 1528 he moved to

. According to Mariano Sozzini, he died in Siena on 13 October 1535. He is buried in the

Camposanto Monumentale The Campo Santo, also known as Camposanto Monumentale ("monumental cemetery") or Camposanto Vecchio ("old cemetery"), is a historical edifice at the northern edge of the Cathedral Square in Pisa, Italy. "Campo Santo" can be literally translated ...

of Pisa, beneath a monument he himself commissioned before his death.

Publications

Celebrated in his time as a teacher and

, Decio was the most prominent and among the most prolific of the last generation of commentators following in the tradition of Cinus,

Bartolus Bartolus de Saxoferrato (Italian: ''Bartolo da Sassoferrato''; 131313 July 1357) was an Italian law professor and one of the most prominent continental jurists of Medieval Roman Law. He belonged to the school known as the commentators or postglo ...

and Baldus. His commentary of 1521 on the ''De regulis iuris'' of the ''Digests'', begun at Valence and completed at Pisa, sets out the methodological principles and criteria for a systematic approach to the study of law. His published works include: *''Apologia sacri Pisani Concilii moderni (auctore Ph. Decio)''. Pisis: per Palladium Bellonem Decium, sacri Pisani Concilii moderni calcographum, 511*''Philippi Decii ... Lectura super titulo de regulis iuris ff. edita in florentissima universitate Valentiae ubi tunc residebat & legebat cu summo apparatu & maximo scolasticor mco ursu ...''. Venetiis: impressa a Philippo Pincio, 1521 die 16 Januarij *''Commentaria in primam Digesti veteris partem: necnon in alias partes civiles ...'' Venetiis: De Tortis, 1523 **

References

* 1454 births 1530s deaths Writers from Milan 15th-century Italian jurists 16th-century Italian jurists {{Italy-law-bio-stub