PIERRE BOAISTUAU - eTheses Repository - University of Birmingham

estrictions were integral parts of the theory of absolutism at the time, as manifested
in works such as Claude de Seyssel’s La Grande Monarchie de France (1515) which
is probably the best portrayal of French political constitution at the beginning of the
sixteenth century. 628
The principal concept of absolute monarchy in France was that the ruler was ordained
by God, a concept which relied on a rich medieval tradition. It was mainly based on
the notion of the two bodies of the king: the physical and the sacred. 629 The latter
embodied his royal dignity which allowed him to govern, and was often associated
with occult powers. One well-known example was the French king’s ability to heal by
touch. 630 This mystical power believed to reside in the sovereign’s body was the
clearest proof that he was divinely ordained, an emissary chosen from God. Biblical
passages were often used in support of this notion. For instance, Boaistuau cited
Deuteronomy, when God instructed Israelites how to select their king: ‘Quand tu
viendras en la terre que le Seigneur ton Dieu te donne […] tu diras: Je mettray un roy
sur moy, comme toute la gent qui est autour de moy, lors tu constitueras sur toy le
Roy que le Seigneur ton Dieu elira du milieu de tes freres’. 631 The belief that kings
were the image of God on earth (Boaistuau named them ‘images vives de Dieu’ and
‘lieutenans de Dieu en terre’) sustained the notion of absolute monarchy throughout
the sixteenth century. It also found its way into art and poetry, as indicated by the
628 Claude de Seyssel (c. 1450-1520) was a French jurist, historian and churchman. He was amongst the
first French writers to use the term ‘état’ in the sense of a governing institution. For more details see
Boone, R. A., War, Dominion and the Monarchy of France: Claude de Seyssel and the Language of
Politics in the Renaissance (Leiden, 2007). For De Seyssel, there were three bridles of absolute power:
religion, justice, and polity (ordinances).
629 See Kantorowicz, E. H., The King’s Two Bodies: A Study in Medieval Political Theology (Princeton,
1957). On the medieval tradition see Kern, F., Kingship and Law in the Middle Ages: I. The Divine
Right of Kings and the Right of Resistance in the Early Middle Ages (Oxford, 1956).
630 Bloch, M., The Royal Touch (London, 1973) remains the classic study on the subject.
631 Boaistuau, P., L’Histoire de Chelidonius Tigurinus, p. 12r. See also Proverbs 8:15-16: ‘By me kings
reign, and princes decree justice. By me princes rule, and nobles, even all the judges of the earth’.
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