Written c. 1567 (though unpublished until 1603), this is the work of an extraordinary scholar, a radical and polemicist, rival of many of the leading intellectual and political figures of his day. According to François Hotman’s distinguished biographer Donald Kelley the Antitribonian ‘is, or should be, a landmark in the history of social and historical thought’. It is also a landmark in the history of legal thought. The present edition is the first to evaluate Hotman’s text in the context of the history of Roman law from the time of the sixth-century Byzantine Emperor Justinian I to the Germany of the Enlightenment.

This book outlines the history of the Black International, a secret organisation, directly linked to the Vatican, which brought together the leaders of the Catholic committees in nine European countries. The organisation tried to stem the tide of liberalism, socialism and nationalism that threatened the Catholic Church at the end of the 19th century. The story of the origins, workings and ending of this International at times seems like a detective story. The book offers an extensive discussion of the influence of this organisation on the press policy and the international position of the Vatican. It also explores its impact on the development of militant Catholicism and, through its after-effects in the Union of Fribourg (1884-1891) on the emergence of social Catholicism in Europe. L'Internationale noire était une association secrète qui groupait les chefs de file des comités catholiques de neuf pays européens. Elle essaya de faire front contre les trois courants qui menaçaient l'Eglise catholique à la fin du XIXe siècle: le liberalisme, le socialisme et le nationalisme. Cette Internationale noire dépendait directement du Vatican. Analysant l'histoire de la naissance, du fonctionnement et de la dissolution de cette organisation secrète, le présent ouvrage ressemble quelquefois à un roman policier. Il accorde également une grande attention à l'influence exercée par ce réseau sur la politique de presse et sur la politique internationale du Vatican. Enfin, il évalue son impact sur le développement du catholicisme militant puis, à travers son prolongement dans l'Union de Fribourg (1884-1891), sur la percée du catholicisme social en Europe.