The union of virtues, wise king and idea of political community in policraticus by John of Salisbury

Abstract

In the article, based on the analysis of the treatise Policraticus, on the Frivolities of Courtiers and the Footprints of Philosophers (1159), the author explores the social and political ideas of the prominent English intellectual, diplomat and writer John of Salisbury (1115/1120–1180), and above all the arguments about the virtuous sovereign, his power, duties and functions, as well as society (“healthy” and “ill”), considered in the context of the medieval theory of the “body politic”. The author studies the key ideas of the thinker, including the “middle way” that a pious ruler should follow, avoiding extremes in actions and judgements, and also finds out John’s interpretation of law and justice as regulators of life.