This first book of the sixth volume centers on the Revolutionary and Constitutional eras in early American history, while also carrying the story ahead into the early 19th century. How did the American founders adapt and utilize European thought in their political and legal ideas on sovereignty, state, and legislation? Because of the seismic impact of European thought (and classical traditions) on America's foremost founders, it should come as no surprise that some of the most basic documents in the emergent new Republic were significantly influenced by European writings. Subsequent studies will take up the same basic themes in American thought and events from the mid-19th century to the present period. The common denominator of legislation is seen to underlie their concepts of sovereignty and the state across a diverse range of isms such as utilitarianism, positivism, idealism, socialism, and nationalism, in the 19th century and in related neo and anti-neo forms in the 20th century. The organization and classification of these and other issues is on the whole novel and comprehensive. As various reviewers have indicated, nothing of this magnitude on the subjects at hand has ever before been attempted.

Medieval Sovereignty examines the idea of sovereignty in the Middle Ages and asks if it can be considered a fundamental element of medieval constitutional order. Francesco Maiolo analyzes the writings of Marsilius of Padua (1275/80-1342/43) and Bartolous of Saxoferrato (1314-57) and assesses their relative contributions as early proponents of popular sovereignty. Both are credited with having provided the legal justification for medieval popular government. Maiolo's cogent reconsideration of this primacy is an important addition to current medieval studies.

The power of the prince versus the rights of his subjects is one of the basic struggles in the history of law and government. In this masterful history of monarchy, conceptions of law, and due process, Kenneth Pennington addresses that struggle and opens an entirely new vista in the study of Western legal tradition. Pennington investigates legal interpretations of the monarch's power from the twelfth to the seventeenth century. Then, tracing the evolution of defendants' rights, he demonstrates that the origins of due process are not rooted in English common law as is generally assumed. It was not a sturdy Anglo-Saxon, but, most probably, a French jurist of the late thirteenth century who wrote, "A man is innocent until proven guilty." This is the first book to examine in detail the origins of our concept of due process. It also reveals a fascinating paradox: while a theory of individual rights was evolving, so, too, was the concept of the prince's "absolute power." Pennington illuminates this paradox with a clarity that will greatly interest students of political theory as well as legal historians.