Religious freedom and the law of nations in late medieval Poland: The case of pawel Wlodkowic (Paulus Vladimiri)

All rights reserved. The purpose of this article is to spread the work of Pawel Wlodkowic (Paulus Vladimiri), Polish late-medieval canonist, who developed the law of the nations, especially the non-Christian nations and religious freedom. The article begins by introducing the author and his historical context, then Wlodkowic's ideas regarding the fundamental equality of all human beings, their freedom, especially religious freedom and the right of pagan nations to exist. This paper will show that evangelizing pagan nations are the author's concern, which drives him to study people and communities' rights and freedoms, and therewith the development of the ius gentium.