is a

forged Forging is a manufacturing process involving the shaping of metal using localized compression (physics), compressive forces. The blows are delivered with a hammer (often a power hammer) or a die (manufacturing), die. Forging is often classif ...

letter written in the name of

Augustine of Hippo Augustine of Hippo ( , ; ; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430) was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings deeply influenced the development of Western philosop ...

which asserts that the morally superior side is always superior in battle and therefore that wars are proven to be

just war The just war theory () is a doctrine, also referred to as a tradition, of military ethics that aims to ensure that a war is morally justifiable through a series of criteria, all of which must be met for a war to be considered just. It has bee ...

s by their military success. The letter was widely accepted as authentic, and reassured soldiers that God was on their side.

Ideology

is best known for its simple assertion that

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

will assure that the morally superior side will win military battles, and conversely, that victory itself validates that the use of force was appropriate. Udo Heyn claims this was a Germanic notion, and Phillip Wynn reports that it had long been believed in pagan antiquity by the time of this letter. This understanding was, in fact, utterly rejected by Augustine. Kelly DeVries regards the theology of as shallow and considers it to raise problems of

theodicy In the philosophy of religion, a theodicy (; meaning 'vindication of God', from Ancient Greek θεός ''theos'', "god" and δίκη ''dikē'', "justice") is an argument that attempts to resolve the problem of evil that arises when all powe ...

and legitimacy as soon as the first Christian army loses. Gravi also urges prayer for victory before battle, which was also rejected by Augustine, who found such prayers inappropriate.

History

was written in the fifth century. The letter was widely accepted as authentic from its introduction through the medieval era, and was the most frequently cited text in this period on holy war. It was invoked to justify numerous wars, including by

Hincmar of Reims Hincmar (; ; ; 806 – 21 December 882), archbishop of Reims, was a Frankish jurist and theologian, as well as the friend, advisor and propagandist of Charles the Bald. He belonged to a noble family of northern Francia. Biography Early life Hincm ...

Rabanus Maurus Rabanus Maurus Magnentius ( 780 – 4 February 856), also known as Hrabanus or Rhabanus, was a Frankish Benedictine monk, theologian, poet, encyclopedist and military writer who became archbishop of Mainz in East Francia. He was the author of t ...

Sedulius Scottus Sedulius Scotus or Scottus ( fl. 840–860) was an Irish monk, teacher, Latin grammarian, and scriptural commentator who lived in the 9th century. During the reign of the Emperor Lothair (840–855), he was one of a colony of Irish teachers at L ...

Ivo of Chartres Ivo of Chartres, canon regular, Can.Reg. (also Ives, Yves, or Yvo; ; 1040 – 23 December 1115), was a French canon regular and abbot who then served as the Bishop of Chartres from 1090 until his death. He was an important authority in Catholic c ...

, and

Bernard of Clairvaux Bernard of Clairvaux, Cistercians, O.Cist. (; 109020 August 1153), venerated as Saint Bernard, was an abbot, Mysticism, mystic, co-founder of the Knights Templar, and a major leader in the reform of the Benedictines through the nascent Cistercia ...

It was also recited at the

Siege of Lisbon The siege of Lisbon, from 1 July to 25 October 1147, was the military action against the Almoravid dynasty that brought the city of Lisbon under the definitive control of the new Christian power, the Kingdom of Portugal. The siege of Lisbon w ...

in . ''Gravi'' imbued the

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding ...

with confidence that God was on their side, squelching all moral concerns and leading to behavior that did not comply with then-accepted

rules of war The law of war is a component of international law that regulates the conditions for initiating war (''jus ad bellum'') and the conduct of hostilities (''jus in bello''). Laws of war define sovereignty and nationhood, states and territories, ...

. The work lost influence with the

renaissance of the 12th century The Renaissance of the 12th century was a period of many changes at the outset of the High Middle Ages. It included social, political and economic transformations, and an intellectual revitalization of Western Europe with strong philosophical and ...

, which developed more sophisticated

jurisprudence Jurisprudence, also known as theory of law or philosophy of law, is the examination in a general perspective of what law is and what it ought to be. It investigates issues such as the definition of law; legal validity; legal norms and values ...

and moral reasoning, At the same time, Augustine's own opinions on just wars, which had been largely unknown, were studied by the

decretists In the history of canon law, a decretist was a student and interpreter of the . Like Gratian, the decretists sought to provide "a harmony of discordant canons" (''concordia discordantium canonum''), and they worked towards this through glosses ('' ...

and through them,

Aquinas Thomas Aquinas ( ; ; – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican Order, Dominican friar and Catholic priest, priest, the foremost Scholasticism, Scholastic thinker, as well as one of the most influential philosophers and theologians in the W ...

as well. The authenticity of was not conclusively rejected until

Erasmus Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus ( ; ; 28 October c. 1466 – 12 July 1536), commonly known in English as Erasmus of Rotterdam or simply Erasmus, was a Dutch Christian humanist, Catholic priest and Catholic theology, theologian, educationalist ...

. Although it is regarded by contemporary scholars as "obviously un-Augustinian", it is now widely recognized that has inaccurately influenced scholars of Augustine's views on war even up through modern times.

Ideology

History

Published editions

See also

Notes

Citations

References

Further reading