Papal Jurisdiction and War as Judgment under the ius gentium

Abstract Raphael Fulgosius (1367–1427) in his comment on Dig. 1.1.5 appears to advance a revolutionary notion: In certain cases, the outcome of a war is itself a just verdict. In prior work, the emphasis rests almost entirely on his argument about the impossibility of judging the different sides’ claims to justice in a formal bellum . In fact, Fulgosius developed two frameworks: One of dissensiones , to be applied to conflicts within Christendom, where there would always be a common superior at least de iure, and another for conflicts between Christian and non-Christian gentes (or perhaps entirely between non-Christians), to which papal jurisdiction does not extend, with the acquisition of territory and captives being ratified by the legal effects of bellum as an institution of the ius gentium . This interpretation also holds up for reexamination the writings of jurists who relied on Fulgosius.