Marsilius of Padua 477contracting partners and were increasingly expected to
occur in a public ritual. Clandestine marriages were
unacceptable, but if they occurred, they were valid, if
there had been mutual consent and especially if there had
been a physical consummation. Always at the core of
ideas and doctrines about marriage was its absolute link
with procreation and mutual consent.
EASTERN ORTHODOX CONCEPTS AND PRACTICESFollowing more closely the traditions of Roman law,
marriage was considered by the EASTERN Orthodox
Church to be a lifelong union between man and woman
instituted and recognized by divine and human law.
Marriage was regulated and fostered by ecclesiastical
law and by imperial legislation. Divorce was possible,
but remarriage, even after the death of a partner, was
strongly discouraged. The Orthodox Church worked
more closely and explicitly with the imperial law than
did Western Christianity to regulate aspects of marriage
such as contractual obligations, dowry, and public rit-
ual. JUSTINIAN’s legal collection, the CORPUS IURIS CIVILIS,
emphasized consent as the principal quality of a licit
and valid marriage.
ISLAMIn ISLAMthe HADITHor traditional thought of Muham-
mad forbade CELIBACYand even self-denial. Temporary
marriages were controversial. They were permissible in
the thought of some, especially in the Shia tradition, but
not in others. There were rules on the number of wives
one could have, consanguity, affinity, religion, and social
status and rank. One could not marry an unbeliever,
though males were able to marry non-Muslim women.
The husband had complete sexual rights over the wife
and the wife had the right to financial support. Divorce
or talaqwas permissible when done with the correct rit-
uals. Muhammad’s own marital life was the basis for
much of this.
JUDAISMMarriage was considered a social institution integral to
the divine plan and was viewed as a command, a sacred
bond, and even a means of personal fulfillment. It was to
be the norm and was considered the ideal way of life.
Besides being viewed as a contract between two parties, it
was deemed a sacrament. There were strict rules about
remarrying and divorce was possible. In the Middle Ages
it could be performed anywhere, but was usually done in
the courtyard of a SYNAGOGUE. From the 15th century, a
rabbi was usually present to witness and bless the vows.
There were various prenuptial financial agreements and
arrangements.
See alsoCONTRACEPTION AND ABORTION; FAMILY AND
KINSHIP; LOVE; SEXUALITY AND SEXUAL ATTITUDES.
Further reading: Christopher N. L. Brooke, The
Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Clarendon Press,
1994); Neil Cartlidge, Medieval Marriage: Literary
Approaches, 1100–1300(Cambridge: D. S. Brewer, 1997);
Georges Duby, Medieval Marriage: Two Models from
Twelfth-Century France,trans. Elborg Forster (Baltimore:
Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); R. H. Helmholz,
Marriage Litigation in Medieval England(London: Cam-
bridge University Press, 1974); Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Chap-
ters on Marriage and Divorce: Responses of Ibn Hanbal and
Ibn Rahwayh,trans. Susan Spectorsky (Austin: University
of Texas Press, 1993); P. L. Reynolds, Marriage in the
Western Church: The Christianization of Marriage during
the Patristic and Early Medieval Periods(Leiden: E. J. Brill,
1994); Julius Kirshner, Pursuing Honor While Avoiding
Sin: The Monte delle Doti of Florence(Milan: A. Giuffrè,
1978); Anthony Molho, Marriage Alliance in Late
Medieval Florence(Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University
Press, 1994).Marshal, William SeeWILLIAM THEMARSHAL.Marsilius of Padua (Marsiglio da Padova, Marsilio,
Marsilius de Mainardino) (1275/80–1343) Italian antipa-
pal political theorist
The son of a notary of the University of PADUA, Marsilius
belonged to a circle of magistrates who played an impor-
tant role in the city of Padua in the late 13th and early
14th centuries. A member of the GHIBELLINEfaction, he
joined the emperor’s faction and service. In 1313, he was
master of arts and rector of the University of PARISand
practiced MEDICINEthere from 1320. In Paris he became
friendly with John of Jandun (1286–1328), a master of
arts, already notorious for ideas described as heterodox
Aristotelianism.
Marsilius fled to the court of the emperor Louis of
Bavaria (r. 1328–47) after the publication of his
Defender of Peacein 1324 and was excommunicated by
Pope JOHNXXII. At the imperial court in Munich, he
met WILLIAM OF OCKHAM and a group of SPIRITUAL
FRANCISCANSwho had fled there because of a dispute
over mendicant poverty. His books Defender of Peace,
and Defensor minor,and other tracts revealed him to be
devoted to the imperial cause and a convinced opponent
of the papal pretensions to secular power. Marsilius
wanted to restore the autonomy and independence
of the HOLYROMANEMPIREas in the best interests of
society and CHRISTENDOM.IDEAS AND BELIEFS
Inspired by the ideas of Aristotle’s Politics, Marsilius
defined a civil community as a perfect form of political
organization. The totality of citizens accepted legislative
authority by its preponderant or majority part expressed
by means of a vote. Such an assembly of the people, as in
some of the Italian cities, ratified laws and conferred on
them their coercive force.