Politics from Law or Law as Politics? Hugh of Poitiers’s Chronica and the Politics of ius in the Mid-twelfth Century

A twelfth-century legal conflict over Vézelay Abbey, documented by monk Hugh of Poitiers, reveals that the concept of ius ('law, right') was intrinsically political. This study demonstrates that such conflicts were not merely about jurisprudential norms but about defining a just societal order. By analyzing Hugh's Chronica, written between 1140s and 1160s, the research challenges modern distinctions between legal and political aims in jurisdictional disputes of the mid-twelfth century. The findings underscore that competing understandings of ius shaped contemporary legal actors' arguments, forcing a reevaluation of how law and politics intertwined during this period.

Taylor, A. (2025). Politics from Law or Law as Politics? Hugh of Poitiers’s Chronica and the Politics of ius in the Mid-twelfth Century. The Journal of Legal History, 46(1), 148–171. https://doi.org/10.1080/01440365.2025.2456283