Dios, Patria, Fueros y Rey: Thomistic and Greek Political Philosophy as Applied Through Spanish Carlism
Open Access
Author:
Fuentes, Victor
Area of Honors:
Philosophy
Degree:
Bachelor of Arts
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Brady Bowman, Thesis Supervisor Brady Bowman, Thesis Honors Advisor Christopher Robert Moore, Faculty Reader
Keywords:
Aquinas Aristotle
Abstract:
The political philosophy of both the ancient Greek philosophers (such as Aristotle) and the scholastics (such as Thomas Aquinas) formed the basis for much of the political landscape throughout Europe from the advent of Christianity to the Era of Enlightenment. With the advent of new political ideas, the philosophies of the ancients gradually fell out of use. One example of how these more ancient philosophies persisted in the era of liberalism is Spanish Carlism, a legitimist political movement that arose in Spain in the early 19th century in response to the liberalization of the Spanish throne and persists to this day. Carlists, despite their never having maintained sole political control of Spain, adhere to an ideology rooted in the ancient principles. The four tenets of Carlism–Dios, Patria, Fueros y Rey (God, country, charters, and king)–are derived from the ideas expressed by Aristotle and Aquinas. This thesis explores these relationships, arguing that Carlism represents an application of Aristotelian and Thomistic political philosophy in a modern context.
