Framing for the theories of the state
Political theories originated first and foremost from the central power. In Castile, they were developed in the significant written output masterminded by the monarchy and which treated of the most diverse subjects: sciences, poetry, history and above all the law. Alfonso X took a personal hand in the project, passing his instructions to teams of specialists. He put together a very sophisticated conception of the monarchic state, imbued with Aristotelian philosophy, resting on the notion of natural power. As against that, Philip the Fair did not make his own views public and it is difficult to make out the principles of his political thinking. Symbolic representations issued directly by the monarch such as the seals represent therefore an essential source even if they are not an exact account of reality. The most interesting written sources are the codes (ordines) where the liturgical rites for the main ceremonies concerning the royal person, notably the coronation, are consigned. The 1300 ordo requested by Philip has been lost, we must therefore be content with an analysis of the 1250 ordo, which was in fact drafted in the years 1260.
In his kingdom, the monopoly exercised on the written word by Alfonso X barely allowed other voices to be heard. Artistic representations alone ran an independent but consistent commentary. Conversely Philip the Fair allowed those authors who supported him to write, be they wildly extravagant like Pierre du Bois, a verbose justice officer in the provinces. behind the scenes, he encouraged some jurists to set in writing the monarchy's most cherished aspirations; in the years 1296-1302, at the height of the conflict with Boniface VIII, this led to an intense production of anonymous pamphlets. They served diverse purposes; they could, as required, be meant to intimidate or to ‘fly a kite'. Theologians, such as the Dominican friar John of Paris[1] could also think up and disseminate political theories different from those of the monarchy, so that France enjoyed a broader diversity of sources and thus of conceptions of the state.
The discourse held by the forces opposed to the construction of the monarchic state remained obscure. In Castile it can be guessed at in official chronicles posterior to Alfonso, or in Prince Sancho's chanceries' terminology. These wisps are not enough to recreate a theory of the state. The numerous adverse treatises aimed at the King of France were written outside the kingdom, in Italy in particular. On the strength of age-old arguments, they bolstered the universality of pontifical power and had an anti-state tenor.
