Francisco de Vitoria

Abstract

Francisco de Vitoria (1485–1546) was a Spanish theologian and philosopher known in the history of philosophy as a major figure in the revival of the study of Thomism in the sixteenth century. He used Thomism to formulate influential responses to the spiritual and political issues of his time, such as the Reformation, the nature of sovereignty and the notion of the sovereign state, imperial expansion, and the rights of conquered peoples. As a Counter-Reformation theologian, he asserted the goodness and rationality of man’s nature, which were manifested in his natural inclinations, irrespective of man’s reception of grace or spiritual status. His doctrine of natural inclinations had political consequences, and made him an opponent not only of Lutheranism but also of republicanism, as political authority – and particularly monarchy – was natural to man, not a result of his sinfulness, and its purpose was to enable man to fulfill his God-given human nature. The source of political authority was God, and God was therefore the source of human law, which men must see as binding in conscience. Yet, Vitoria contributed not only to the idea of a God-given mandate for the exercise of political power, but also to the idea of the limits of political power, as it must be constrained by the fulfillment of man’s humanity.