Marsilius of Padua: The Defender of the Peace

This book was the first new translation in English for fifty years of this classic of western political thought.

Annabel Brett's authoritative rendition of the Defensor Pacis was the first new translation in English for fifty years of this classic of western political thought, and includes a chronology, notes for further reading, and up-to-date annotation aimed at the student reader encountering this major text for the first time.The Defender of the Peace of Marsilius of Padua is a massively influential text in the history of western political thought. Marsilius offers a detailed analysis and explanation of human political communities, before going on to attack what he sees as the obstacles to peaceful human coexistence - principally the contemporary papacy. Annabel Brett's authoritative rendition of the Defensor Pacis was the first new translation in English for fifty years, and a major contribution to the series of Cambridge Texts: all of the usual series features are provided, included chronology, notes for further reading, and up-to-date annotation aimed at the student reader encountering this classic of medieval thought for the first time. This edition of The Defender of the Peace is a scholarly and a pedagogic event of great importance, of interest to historians, political theorists, theologians and philosophers at all levels from second-year undergraduate upwards.