Paweł Włodkowic (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

: ''Paulus Vladimiri'') (ca. 1370 – 9 October 1435) was a Polish scholar, jurist and rector of the

Kraków Academy The Jagiellonian University (Polish: ''Uniwersytet Jagielloński'', UJ) is a public research university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1364 by King Casimir III the Great, it is the oldest university in Poland and the 13th oldest university in ...

. He advocated a form of

religious tolerance Religious toleration may signify "no more than forbearance and the permission given by the adherents of a dominant religion for other religions to exist, even though the latter are looked on with disapproval as inferior, mistaken, or harmful". ...

and defended

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

and native non-Christian tribes against the

Teutonic Knights The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians o ...

and the

crusading The First Crusade inspired the crusading movement, which became an important part of late medieval western culture. The movement influenced the Church, politics, the economy, society and created a distinct ideology that described, regulated, a ...

movement in general.

Early life and education

Though it is commonly assumed that "Włodkowic" was a surname, it was in fact a

patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. Patronymics are still in use, including mandatory use, in many countries worldwide, alt ...

denoting that he was the son of a certain ''Włodko'' or ''Włodzimierz'' of the Dołęga family. He was born in Brudzeń Duży near

Dobrzyń nad Wisłą Dobrzyń nad Wisłą (Polish pronunciation: ; german: Dobrin an der Weichsel) is a town in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland. It lies on the Vistula River in the vicinity of Włocławek. As of December 2021, the town has a population of ...

between 1370–1373. His family owned land in the Dobrzyń Province and was related to the Lasota family from

Mazovia Mazovia or Masovia ( pl, Mazowsze) is a historical region in mid-north-eastern Poland. It spans the North European Plain, roughly between Łódź and Białystok, with Warsaw being the unofficial capital and largest city. Throughout the centurie ...

whose notable members include Mikołaj Lasota, the treasurer of Konrad of Mazovia. He was a graduate of the Collegiate Church of St. Michael School in

Płock Płock (pronounced ) is a city in central Poland, on the Vistula river, in the Masovian Voivodeship. According to the data provided by GUS on 31 December 2021, there were 116,962 inhabitants in the city. Its full ceremonial name, according to th ...

(currently the Marshal Stanisław Małachowski High School) where probably he was ordained as a priest. He studied at

Prague University ) , image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg , image_size = 200px , established = , type = Public, Ancient , budget = 8.9 billion CZK , rector = Milena Králíčková , faculty = 4,057 , administrative_staff = 4,026 , students = 51,438 , underg ...

, where he took degrees in 1393. In 1400, he became the Canon of Płock. He continued studying law at

Padova 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 ...

, Italy, in 1404–8. It was probably in this period that he visited the Roman Curia in place of Piotr of Kobylin, fulfilling his duties as the Polish King's prosecutor. In 1411 or 1412 he was made a doctor of

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

at the Academy in

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

, where he also began to lecture. He was influenced by the philosophies of

William of Ockham William of Ockham, OFM (; also Occam, from la, Gulielmus Occamus; 1287 – 10 April 1347) was an English Franciscan friar, scholastic philosopher, apologist, and Catholic theologian, who is believed to have been born in Ockham, a small vil ...

, Matthew of Cracow and Stanisław of Skarbimierz. In 1413 he served as King Jagiełło's emissary at Buda, Hungary, during disputes with the Teutonic Order. In 1414–1415 he became

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

and in 1418 prorector of Cracow Academy.

The Council of Constance Address

Paweł Włodkowic represented Poland at the 1414 Council of Constance, where he delivered a thesis about the power of the Pope and the Emperor, the ''Tractatus de potestate papae et imperatoris respectu infidelium'' (Treatise on the Power of the Pope and the Emperor Respecting Infidels). In it he drew the thesis that pagan and Christian peoples could coexist in peace and criticized the Teutonic Order for its wars of conquest of native non-Christian peoples in

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

and Lithuania. Due to his religious and political influence, in 1421 Pope Martin V sent Antonio Zeno to investigate the Teutonic Order and its activities, though this investigation was later suspended on the grounds that it infringed upon the privileges of the new Holy Roman Emperor

Sigismund Sigismund (variants: Sigmund, Siegmund) is a German proper name, meaning "protection through victory", from Old High German ''sigu'' "victory" + ''munt'' "hand, protection". Tacitus latinises it '' Segimundus''. There appears to be an older form of ...

, who wished to conduct his own negotiations between the two parties. Włodkowic’s address at the council is considered to have been "not only one of the greatest achievements of Poland in their political fight against the Teutonic Order but also a huge contribution to the Christian theory of just war." At the Council of Constance, Paweł Włodkowic and all the Polish delegation defended

Jan Hus Jan Hus (; ; 1370 – 6 July 1415), sometimes anglicized as John Hus or John Huss, and referred to in historical texts as ''Iohannes Hus'' or ''Johannes Huss'', was a Czech theologian and philosopher who became a Church reformer and the insp ...

Later life and death

In 1420 Paweł Włodkowic represented Poland at a conference between Poland and the Teutonic Order held in

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

under the aegis of

Sigismund of Luxemburg Sigismund of Luxembourg (15 February 1368 – 9 December 1437) was a monarch as King of Hungary and Croatia ('' jure uxoris'') from 1387, King of Germany from 1410, King of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor from 1433 until his deat ...

. As early as the beginning of the 15th century, along with Stanisław of Skarbimierz, Włodkowic strongly supported the idea of

conciliarism Conciliarism was a reform movement in the 14th-, 15th- and 16th-century Catholic Church which held that supreme authority in the Church resided with an ecumenical council, apart from, or even against, the pope. The movement emerged in response to ...

and pioneered the notion of peaceful coexistence among nations – a forerunner of modern theories of

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

. Throughout his political, diplomatic and university career, Paweł Włodkowic expressed the view that a world guided by the principles of peace and mutual respect among nations was possible and that pagan nations had a right to peace and to possession of their own lands. For this, he, the king of Poland, and the entire Polish nation were virulently attacked by the Dominican

John of Falkenberg John of Falkenberg or Johannes Falkenberg (born in Falkenberg, Pomerania, date unknown; died about 1418 in Italy — or, according to other accounts, in his native town) was a German Dominican theologian and writer. His prominence in medieval hist ...

(himself later condemned and imprisoned for his intemperance), and his thesis somewhat more judiciously rejected by Dominic of San Gimignano, Ardecino de Porta of Novara, and

André Dias de Escobar André Dias de Escobar ( la, Andreas Didaci de Escobar; 1348–1448) was a Portuguese Benedictine theologian. Born at Lisbon, Andreas de Escobar joined the Dominicans and then the Augustinians before becoming a Benedictine monk. He became doctor i ...

Bishop of Ciudad Rodrigo The Diocese of Ciudad Rodrigo ( la, Dioecesis Civitatensis) is a Roman Catholic diocese in Spain, located in the city of Ciudad Rodrigo in the ecclesiastical province of Valladolid.Kłodawa Kłodawa is a town in central Poland with 6,699 inhabitants (2014). It is situated in the Greater Poland Voivodeship (since 1999), having previously been in Konin Voivodeship (1975–1998). Kłodawa lies on the Rgilewka (a tributary of the Wa ...

, where he died in 1435.

Selected works

*''Tractatus de annatis camerae apostolicae solvendis'' (1414-1415) *''Tractatus de potestate papae et imperatoris respectu infidelium'' (1415) *''Puncta accusationis ex parte Polonorum contra Cruciferos'' (1416) *''Causa inter reges Poloniae et Cruciferos coram concilio Constantiense ex parte Polonorum dicta'' (1416) *''Tractatus de ordine Cruciferorum et de bello Polonorum contra dictos fratres'' (1416) *''Scriptum denunciatorium errorum Satyrae Joannis Falkenberg O. P. Concilio Constanteinsi datum'' (1416-1417) *''Allegationes pro parte regis Polonie coram Sigismundo Imperatore'' (1420) *''Oculi'' (1420) *''Ad vivendum'' (1421) *''Letter to the Bishop of Kraków'' (1432)

Critical editions of works

*Ludwik Ehrlich, ''Pisma wybrane Pawła Włodkowica / Works of Paul Wladimiri (A Selection)'' (3 vols., Warszawa: PAX, 1966-69). Latin edition, Polish and English translation. *Stanisław Bełch, ''Paulus Vladimiri and His Doctrine Concerning International Law and Politics'' (2 vols., The Hague: Mouton, 1965)
vol. II
Latin edition.

Sources

* http://original.britannica.com/eb/topic-646378/Pawel-Wlodkowic * http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/646378/Pawel-Wlodkowic * http://www.123exp-biographies.com/t/00034177042/ * https://web.archive.org/web/20080622093435/http://www.wzks.uj.edu.pl/epi/2004/lha11/zyciorys.html (in Polish) * http://czasopisma.upjp2.edu.pl/thepersonandthechallenges/article/view/1653

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wlodkowic, Pawel Year of birth uncertain 1435 deaths 15th-century Polish Roman Catholic priests 14th-century Polish Roman Catholic priests Canon law jurists Polish diplomats Polish political writers Jagiellonian University faculty Charles University alumni University of Padua alumni Polish expatriates in the Czech lands Polish expatriates in Italy People from Lipno County Rectors of the Jagiellonian University