Historical figure Thomas More. Chapter IV

Thomas More - English lawyer, philosopher, humanist writer. Lord Chancellor of England. In 1516, he wrote the book “Utopia,” in which he depicted his idea of ​​an ideal system of social order using the example of a fictional island state.

More saw the Reformation as a threat to the church and society, criticized the religious views of Martin Luther and William Tyndale and, while serving as Lord Chancellor, prevented the spread of Protestantism in England. Refused to recognize Henry VIII as the head of the Church of England and considered his divorce from Catherine of Aragon invalid. In 1535 he was executed under the Act of Treason. In 1935 he was canonized as a saint of the Catholic Church.

Education

Thomas was born on February 7, 1478, the son of Sir John More, a London judge who was known for his honesty. More received his primary education at St. Anthony's School. At the age of 13, he came to John Morton, Archbishop of Canterbury, and served as his page for some time. Thomas's cheerful personality, wit, and desire for knowledge impressed Morton, who predicted that More would become "a marvelous man." More continued his education at Oxford, where he studied with Thomas Linacre and William Grosin, famous lawyers of the time. In 1494 he returned to London and became a barrister in 1501.

Apparently, More did not intend to pursue a career as a lawyer all his life. For a long time he could not choose between civil and church service. While studying at Lincoln's Inn (one of the four barristers' colleges), More decided to become a monk and live near the monastery. Until his death, he adhered to a monastic lifestyle with constant prayers and fasting. However, More's desire to serve his country put an end to his monastic aspirations. In 1504 More was elected to Parliament, and in 1505 he married.

Family life

In 1505 More married 17-year-old Jane Colt, the eldest daughter of an Esquire from Essex. According to a biography written by his brother-in-law, William Roper, Thomas liked her younger sister better, but out of courtesy he chose Jane. More's friends described her as quiet and kind-hearted. Erasmus of Rotterdam advised her to obtain additional education to that which she had already received at home, and became her personal tutor in the fields of music and literature. More and Jane had four children: Margaret, Elizabeth, Cecil and John.

In 1511 Jane died of a fever. Within a month, More married again, choosing the wealthy widow Alice Middleton as his second wife. Unlike his first wife, Alice was known to be a strong and straightforward woman, although Erasmus testifies that the marriage was a happy one. More and Alice had no children together, but More raised Alice's daughter from his first marriage as his own. In addition, More became the guardian of a young girl named Alice Cresacre, who later married his son, John More. More was a loving father who wrote letters to his children when he was away on legal or government business and encouraged them to write to him more often. More became seriously interested in women's education, an attitude that was highly unusual at the time. He believed that women were just as capable of scientific achievement as men and insisted that his daughters receive higher education, just like his son.

Religious controversy

In 1520, reformer Martin Luther published three works: “Address to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation”, “On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church”, “On the Freedom of the Christian”. In these works, Luther outlined his doctrine of salvation by faith, rejected the sacraments and other Catholic practices, and pointed out the abuses and harmful influence of the Roman Catholic Church. In 1521, Henry VIII responded to Luther's criticism with a manifesto, In Defense of the Seven Sacraments, probably written and edited by More. In light of this work, Pope Leo X awarded Henry VIII ("Defender of the Faith") for his efforts in combating Luther's heresy. Martin Luther responded to Henry VIII in print, calling him "a pig, a fool and a liar." At the request of Henry VIII, More wrote a refutation: Responsio Lutherum. It was published at the end of 1523. In the Responsio, More defended the supremacy of the pope, as well as the sacrament of other ecclesiastical rites. This confrontation with Luther confirmed the conservative religious tendencies that More espoused, and from then on his work was devoid of any criticism and satire that could be seen as harmful to the authority of the church.

In parliament

More's first act in Parliament was to advocate for a reduction in taxes in favor of King Henry VII. In retaliation for this, Henry imprisoned More's father, who was released only after paying a significant ransom and Thomas More's withdrawal from public life. After the death of Henry VII in 1509, More returned to his career as a politician. In 1510 he became one of two undersheriffs of London.

At the king's court

In the 1510s, More came to the attention of King Henry VIII. In 1515, he was sent as part of an embassy to Flanders, which negotiated the trade in English wool (the famous "Utopia" begins with a reference to this embassy). In 1517, he helped pacify London, which had rebelled against foreigners. In 1518 More became a member of the Privy Council. In 1520, he was part of Henry VIII's retinue during his meeting with King Francis I of France near the city of Calais. In 1521, the prefix “Sir” was added to the name of Thomas More - he was knighted for “services to the King and England.”

In 1529, the king appointed More to the highest post in the state - Lord Chancellor. For the first time, a person from a bourgeois background became Lord Chancellor.

Apparently, it was More who was the author of the famous manifesto “In Defense of the Seven Sacraments” (Latin: Assertio septem sacramentorum, English: Defense of the Seven Sacraments), Henry VIII’s response to Martin Luther. For this manifesto, Pope Leo X granted Henry the title “Defender of the Faith” (it’s interesting that for a long time After England broke with the Catholic Church, English monarchs continued to bear this title, and English coins still bear the letters D.F.). Thomas More also wrote a response to Luther under his own name.

Conflict with the king. Arrest and execution

Particularly noteworthy is the situation with the divorce of Henry VIII, which led to More's rise, then to his fall and ultimately to his death. Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, Archbishop of York and Lord Chancellor of England, failed to obtain a divorce from Henry VIII and Queen Catherine of Aragon, resulting in his being forced to resign in 1529. The next Lord Chancellor was Sir Thomas More, who by that time was already Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Speaker of the House of Commons. Unfortunately for everyone, Henry VIII did not understand what kind of man More was. Deeply religious and well-educated in the field of canon law, More firmly stood his ground: only the Pope can dissolve a marriage consecrated by the church. Clement VII was against this divorce - Charles V of Spain, Queen Catherine's nephew, put pressure on him.

In 1532, More resigned as Lord Chancellor, citing poor health. The real reason for his departure was Henry VIII's break with Rome and the creation of the Anglican Church; More was against this. Moreover, Thomas More was so outraged by England’s departure from the “true faith” that he did not appear at the coronation of the king’s new wife, Anne Boleyn. Naturally, Henry VIII noticed this. In 1534, Elizabeth Barton, a nun from Kent, dared to publicly condemn the king's break with the Catholic Church. It turned out that the desperate nun corresponded with More, who had similar views, and if he had not come under the protection of the House of Lords, he would not have escaped prison. In the same year, Parliament passed the "Act of Supremacy", which proclaimed the king Supreme Head of the Church, and the "Act of Succession", which included the oath that all representatives of the English knighthood were required to take. The one who took the oath:

Recognized all children of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn as legitimate;
- refused to recognize any power, be it the power of secular rulers or princes of the church, except for the power of kings from the Tudor dynasty.

Thomas More, like Bishop John Fisher of Rochester, was sworn to this oath, but refused to take it because it contradicted his beliefs.

On 17 April 1534 he was imprisoned in the Tower, found guilty under the Act of Treason and beheaded on Tower Hill on 6 July 1535. Before the execution he behaved very courageously and joked.

For his devotion to Catholicism, More was canonized by the Roman Catholic Church and canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1935.

Political Views

The main cause of all vices and disasters is private property and the resulting contradictions between the interests of the individual and society, rich and poor, luxury and poverty. Private property and money give rise to crimes that cannot be stopped by any laws or sanctions.
- Utopia (ideal country) is a kind of federation of 54 cities.
- The structure and management of each of the cities are the same, but the main one is the central city of Amaurot, in which the main Senate is located. There are 6,000 families in the city; in a family - from 10 to 16 adults. - Each family is engaged in a certain craft (transition from one family to another is allowed). To work in rural areas adjacent to the city, “village families” are formed (from 40 adults), in which a city resident is required to work for at least two years.
- Officials in Utopia are elected. Every 30 families elect a phylarch (syphogrant) for a year; at the head of the 10 phylarchs is the protophylarch (tranibor). Protophylarchs are elected from among scientists. They form the city senate, headed by the prince. The prince (adem) is elected by the phylarchs of the city from candidates proposed by the people. The position of the prince is irremovable unless he is suspected of striving for tyranny. The most important affairs of the city are decided by the people's assemblies; They also elect most of the officials and hear their reports.
- In Utopia there is no private property (its author considers it the cause of all evil) and, therefore, disputes between Utopians are rare and crimes are few; therefore, Utopians do not need extensive and complex legislation.
- The Utopians strongly abhor war, as a truly brutal act. Not wanting, however, to reveal, if necessary, their inability to do it, they constantly practice military science. Usually mercenaries are used for war.
- The Utopians recognize as a completely just cause for war the case when any people, possessing in vain and in vain a territory that they do not use themselves, still refuses to use and possess it to others, who, according to the law of nature, must feed from it.
- In Utopia there is an institution of slavery. According to More, in this ideal country there are and should be slaves (a powerless category of the population), ensuring the possibility of implementing the principle “from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs” for every free citizen.

Thomas More in culture

The play Sir Thomas More was written in 1592. Its authorship is attributed to a group of playwrights, including Henry Chettle, Anthony Mundy, Thomas Heywood and William Shakespeare (preserved partly due to censorship).

The film A Man for All Seasons was made about Thomas More in 1966. This film won two Moscow Film Festival awards, six Oscar awards, seven BAFTA awards and many other awards. The role of Sir Thomas More was played by English actor Paul Scofield.

The film's title is taken from Robert Whittington, More's contemporary, who wrote about it in 1520:

More is a man of angelic intelligence and outstanding learning. I don't know anyone equal to him. Where else is there a man of such nobility, such modesty, such friendliness? When the time is right, he is surprisingly cheerful and cheerful, when the time is right, he is just as sadly serious. A man for all times.

In the British-Irish-Canadian historical television series The Tudors, the role of Thomas More is played by British actor Jeremy Northam.

The biography of Thomas More and his relationship with King Henry VIII formed the basis for the novels Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies by English writer Hilary Mantel, as well as the BBC miniseries Wolf Hall based on them.

Thomas More - an English humanist writer, statesman - was born in London on February 7, 1478. His father was a famous lawyer, famous for his integrity. The place where More received his initial education was the grammar school of St. Antonia. At the age of 13 he was sent to the house of the Archbishop of Canterbury as a page. Having received during 1490-1494. education at Oxford, continued his studies: his father insisted that his son delve into the study of legal sciences at London law schools. During the same period, More studied classical languages, the works of ancient authors, and became close to Oxford humanists, in particular, Erasmus of Rotterdam. It was More who was dedicated to the famous “Praise of Folly” by this outstanding humanist of the Renaissance.

Most likely, Thomas More was not too interested in a career as a lawyer. While still studying law, he decided to settle near a monastery and take monastic vows. However, in the end, More set out to serve his country in a different way, although until his death he led a very abstinent lifestyle, observed fasts, and constantly prayed.

Around 1502, More began working as a lawyer and teaching law, and in 1504 he was elected to parliament. Having advocated a reduction in fees for Henry VII, he fell into disgrace and had to withdraw from public activities. More returned to politics in 1509, when Henry VII died. In 1510, More was again elected to parliament, which was convened by Henry VIII. In the same year, he was appointed to the position of junior sheriff of the capital, assistant city judge of the capital.

The tenth years are marked in More's biography by attracting the favorable attention of the king. In 1515 he was sent to Flanders, where he traveled with the embassy. While in a foreign land, More begins work on the first book of an outstanding work that became the foundation for utopian socialism. He finished it when he returned to his homeland, and the second book of “Utopia” was created much earlier. The complete work, which appeared in 1516, was appreciated by the monarch.

"Utopia" was not More's first literary experience: in 1510 he translated it into English language biography of the scientist Pico della Mirandola. In parallel with Utopia, More most likely worked on The History of Richard III, which could not be completed, which did not prevent it from being considered one of the best works of national literature of the Renaissance.

After the publication of Utopia, the career of a statesman took off at an even faster pace. In 1518, T. More was one of the members of the secret royal council, and since 1521 - a member of the highest judicial institution, the so-called. Star Chamber. In the same year he becomes sir, receiving a knighthood along with large land plots. During 1525-1527. More is Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and, from 1529, Lord Chancellor. His appointment was unprecedented, because... More did not belong to the highest circles by origin.

In 1532, More retired for the officially stated reason of poor health, but in fact his resignation was caused by disagreement with the position of Henry VIII regarding the Catholic Church and his creation of the Anglican Church. Thomas More, who proclaimed her the head of the king, did not admit to signing the “Act of Supremacy” for himself. In 1534 he was imprisoned in the Tower, and on July 6, 1535 he was executed in London.

In the 19th century The Catholic Church ranked him as blessed in the 20th century. - to the ranks of saints. However, Thomas More entered the national and world history, first of all, as a humanist, thinker and outstanding writer.

Thomas More was born into the family of a famous London lawyer, a royal judge. After two years of study at Oxford University, Thomas More, at the insistence of his father, graduated from law school and became a lawyer. Over time, More gained fame and was elected to the English Parliament.

At the beginning of the 16th century, Thomas More became close to the circle of humanists John Colet, in which he met Erasmus of Rotterdam. Subsequently, More and Erasmus had a close friendship.

Under the influence of his humanist friends, the worldview of Thomas More himself was formed - he began to study the works of ancient thinkers, having learned Greek, he began translating ancient literature.

Without abandoning literary works, he continued his political activities - he was the sheriff of London, chairman of the House of Commons of the English parliament, and received a knighthood. In 1529, More took the highest government position in England - he became Lord Chancellor.

But in the early 30s of the 16th century, More's position changed dramatically. The English king Henry VIII decided to carry out church reform in the country and become the head of the church. Thomas More refused to swear allegiance to the king as the new head of the church, left the post of Lord Chancellor, but was accused of high treason and in 1532 imprisoned in the Tower. Three years later, Thomas More was executed.

Thomas More entered the history of philosophical thought primarily as the author of a book that became a kind of triumph of humanistic thought. More wrote it in 1515–1516. and already in 1516, with the active assistance of Erasmus of Rotterdam, the first edition was published entitled “A very useful, as well as entertaining, truly golden book about the best structure of the state and about the new island of Utopia.” Already during his lifetime, this work, briefly called “Utopia,” brought More worldwide fame. The word “Utopia” itself was coined by Thomas More, who composed it from two Greek words: “ou” “not” and “topos” - “place”. Literally, “Utopia” means “a place that does not exist” and it is not for nothing that More himself translated the word “Utopia” as “Nowhere”.

More's book tells about a certain island called Utopia, whose inhabitants lead an ideal lifestyle and have established an ideal political system. The very name of the island emphasizes that we are talking about phenomena that do not and, most likely, cannot exist in the real world.

The book is written in the form of conversations between the traveler-philosopher Raphael Hythloday, Thomas More himself and the Dutch humanist Peter Aegidius. The narrative consists of two parts. In the first part, Raphael Hythloday expresses his critical opinion about the modern situation in England that he saw. In the second, written, by the way, earlier than the first, Raphael Hythloday outlines the Utopian way of life to his interlocutors.

It has long been noticed, and the author himself does not hide this, that “Utopia” was conceived and written as a kind of continuation of Plato’s “Republic” - like Plato, the work of Thomas More gives a description of an ideal society, as it was imagined by humanists of the 16th century. Therefore, it is quite understandable that in “Utopia” one can find a certain synthesis of the religious-philosophical and socio-political views of Plato, the Stoics, the Epicureans with the teachings of the humanists themselves and, above all, with the “philosophy of Christ”.

Just like Plato, More sees the main principle of life in an ideal society in one thing - society should be built on the principle of justice, which is unattainable in the real world. Raphael Hythloday denounced his contemporaries: “Unless you consider it fair when all the best goes to the worst people, or you consider it successful when everything is distributed among very few, and even they do not live prosperously, while others are completely unhappy.”

The Utopians managed to create a state built on the principles of justice. And it is not for nothing that Hythloday describes with admiration “the wisest and holiest institutions of the Utopians, who very successfully govern the state with the help of very few laws; and virtue is valued there, and with equality there is enough for everyone.”

How is it possible for a just society to exist? More turns to the ideas of Plato and through the mouth of his hero declares: “For social well-being there is one and only way - to declare equality in everything.” Equality is assumed in all spheres - economic, social, political, spiritual, etc. But first of all, in the property sphere, private property is abolished in Utopia.

It is the absence of private property, in his opinion, that creates the conditions for the birth of a society of universal justice: “Here, where everything belongs to everyone, no one has any doubt that not a single individual will need anything if only he takes care of it.” so that the public granaries will be full." Moreover, “because there is no stingy distribution of goods here, there is not a single poor person, not a single beggar.” And - “although no one has anything there, everyone is nevertheless rich.”

In the same row stands More's thesis about the dangers of money - money in Utopia is also abolished and, therefore, all the negative aspects generated by money have disappeared: the thirst for profit, stinginess, the desire for luxury, etc.

However, the elimination of private property and money is not an end in itself for Thomas More - it is just a means to ensure that social conditions of life provide an opportunity for the development of the human personality. Moreover, the very fact of the Utopians’ voluntary agreement to live without private property and money is associated primarily with the high moral qualities of the island’s inhabitants.

Raphael Hythloday describes the Utopians in full accordance with the ideals of a harmoniously developed personality that inspired the thinkers of the Renaissance. All Utopians are highly educated, cultured people who know how and love to work, combining physical labor with mental labor. Being most seriously concerned with the ideas of the public good, they do not forget to engage in their own physical and spiritual development.

In Utopia, according to Thomas More, complete religious tolerance reigns. On the island itself, several religions coexist peacefully, while no one has the right to argue on religious issues, because this is regarded as a state crime. The peaceful coexistence of different religious communities is due to the fact that faith in the One God, which the Utopians call Mithra, is gradually spreading on the island.

In this sense, More was undoubtedly influenced by the teaching of Marsilio Ficino about “universal religion.” But at the same time, Thomas More goes further than Ficino, for he directly connects the idea of ​​the One God with the pantheistic idea of ​​the Divine nature: “Despite the fact that in Utopia not everyone has the same religion, all its types, despite their diversity and multitude , in unequal paths, as it were, flock to a single goal - to the veneration of the Divine nature." And pantheism is expressed by More with the greatest force of all previous humanists.

The religious beliefs of the Utopians are harmoniously combined with their excellent knowledge of secular sciences, primarily philosophy: “...They never talk about happiness, so as not to combine with it some principles taken about religion, as well as philosophy, using the arguments of reason, without this, they believe that the study of true happiness itself will be weak and powerless." And in a surprising way philosophical teachings Utopians are exactly similar to the teachings of humanists, although, as you know, the island of Utopia is in no way connected with another land.

The religious and philosophical views of the Utopians, combined with the principles of equality, create conditions for high level development of moral principles on the island. Talking about the virtues of the inhabitants of Utopia, Thomas More, through the mouth of Raphael Hythloday, again sets out a humanistic “apology for pleasure.” Indeed, in the understanding of humanists, human virtues themselves were directly related to spiritual and bodily pleasures.

In essence, Utopia is a humanistic image of a perfect community. This image harmoniously combines the triumph of the individual with public interests, for society itself was created in order to allow human talents to flourish. At the same time, everyone understands Utopia perfectly well - his well-being and spiritual freedom are directly related to the social system of universal justice that is established on Utopia.

The very image of a utopian community, where private property, monetary circulation, privileges, luxury production, etc. were abolished, became a kind of culmination of humanistic dreams of an “ideal state.”

MORE, THOMAS(More, Thomas) (1478–1535), also called St. Thomas More, English statesman, writer and martyr, famous most of all for his Utopia, which describes an ideal state. Born in London on 6 February 1478 (possibly 7 February 1477), his father John More (c. 1450–1530) was a renowned lawyer, a judge of the king's bench, and ennobled in the reign of Edward IV (d. 1483). More studied at the best school in London at that time, St. Anthony, at the age of 12, entered as a page (this was then a common practice in England) in the house of Cardinal Morton, Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Chancellor. The great respect that More had for his patron cardinal subsequently found expression in his writings Utopia (Utopia) And History of Richard III. Indeed, it is difficult to overestimate Morton’s role in the upbringing and education of the young man. Morton fully appreciated the talents of the young page, and it was probably under his influence that approx. 1492 More entered Canterbury College, Oxford University. More stayed here for about two years, but was forced to interrupt his studies because his father insisted that his son continue his work. At first, Thomas was assigned to New Inn (one of the London law firms), and in February 1496 he was admitted to Lincoln's Inn, which had a higher status.

At Oxford, More met W. Grotsin, T. Linacre and J. Colet, who played an important role in the revival of classical education, which then began to spread in England. While studying jurisprudence in London, More also deepened his knowledge of Latin and Greek. His first publication dates back to this time: two Latin poems, respectively at the beginning and end of J. Holt’s school grammar textbook. Strongly influenced by Colet, More was for some time inclined to devote himself to church service. However, after spending about four years (probably from 1500 to 1504) in a Carthusian monastery in London, he nevertheless decided to remain in the world. Nevertheless, More never abandoned the habits acquired in the monastery: early awakening, long prayers, fasting, wearing a hair shirt, self-flagellation. In 1504 he married Jane Coult of Netherhall (Essex), and they had four children - Margaret, Elizabeth, Cecily and John. When Jane died in 1511, More, not wanting the children to be left without a mother, almost immediately married the widow Alice Middleton, who was 7 years older than him.