Gratian and the Schools of Law, 1140-1234: Second Edition

Collected Studies CS1071The central figure in this volume is that of Gratian, whose monumental compilation of canon law sparked off the revival of legal studies in the medieval West. In other collections of essays, Stephan Kuttner dealt with the development of canon law in the two centuries that followed the publication of Gratian's Decretum, and the ideas that this engendered; here he is concerned with the foundations upon which all these later efforts were based. The work of Gratian is, of course, the principal focus, but the studies then follow the spread of the teaching of law, from its inception at Bologna in the 1140s to its appearance soon after in other centres of learning in the West especially in France, in the Anglo-Norman schools and in Germany. With a quarter of the volume consisting of additional notes and extensive indexes, it makes a contribution of the greatest importance to the historical study of canon law. For this second edition, a new section of additional notes has been supplied, and the volume is introduced with an essay by Peter Landau; these take account of the important recent work on Gratian and the Decretum and chart the significance of Stephan Kuttner's work.

About the Author

Stefan Kuttner was born in 1907 in Bonn/Germany and studied Law and Legal History in Freiburg/Br. and Berlin. He completed his Doctorate in Law at Berlin University in 1930 and was a disciple of Prof. Ulrich Stutz in History of Canon Law. Dismissed from Berlin University because of his Jewish Family in 1933, he converted to the Catholic Church and took a position at the Vatican Library. In 1940 he was called to become chair in History of Canon Law at the Catholic University of America, Washington /D.C where he resided until 1964. He was called to Yale University 1964 before movingt to the Unviersity of California in 1970.

Peter Landau was born in Belin in 1935. He studied Law, History and Philosophy in Berlin Free University, Freiburg/Br. and Bonn. He worked as an assistant at the Law Faculty in Bonn from 1960 whilst completing his dissertation, joining Professor Kuttner's graduate sutides course at Yale in 1965 where he also lectured on Medieval Canon Law. After declining calls to the universities of Frankfurt/M. and Berkeley/Cal. he accepted the call of the university of Munich 1987 where he was Dean of the Law faculty 1993 - 1995. He was also President of the Society of Medieval Canon Law 1988 - 2000 and President of the Stephan - Kuttner - Institute of Medieval Canon Law 1990 - 2015(SKIMCL). He has authored 'Kanones und Dekretalen'(1995), 'Grundlagen und Geschichte des evangelischen Kirchenrechts und des Staatskirchenrechts' (Jus Ecclesiasticum 92, 2010), 'Europaeische Rechtsgeschichte und kanonisches Recht im Mittelalter'(2015), 'Deutsche Rechtsgeschichte im Kontext Europas'(2016).