The emergence of universities in the Middle Ages. Medieval Universities Famous Medieval Universities

1. The emergence of higher professional schools and universities in the Middle Ages
2. The device of medieval universities and features of their functioning
3. Privileges and Common Features of Medieval Universities
4. The process of education in medieval universities

It is known that with the development of cities in Europe in the VIII-X centuries. church and secular higher professional schools began to form, which, accumulating methodological teaching experience, became widely known. So, monastic and cathedral (or cathedral) schools, giving higher theological education, in their history go back to the early Christian tradition. The main subject of study here was Bible. On the basis of biblical texts, the monks were taught grammar and philosophy. The texts were read together, then rewritten and interpreted. The head of the monastery school was called " interpreter". They studied at monastic schools for about three years. It is clear that graduates of monastic schools became clergymen.

The philosophical and pedagogical thought of medieval Europe was reflected mainly in the works of theologians. An example would be the activities and works Pierre Abelard (1079-1142), the famous French philosopher and theologian, who at the age of 24 became a teacher at the famous highest cathedral theological school of Notre Dame in Paris. Contemporaries called Abelard Socrates of Gaul, Plato of the West and Aristotle of his era.

Determining the exact time of the emergence of universities is a controversial scientific problem. Thus, some historians consider the starting dates for the birth of universities to be educational institutions of a higher level of the Hellenistic era, the imperial Auditorium in Byzantine Constantinople (425), higher law schools in Beirut (VII century), Constantinople (VIII century) and Bologna (X century BC). ), higher theological schools in Toulouse and Rome, educational centers in Salerno and Montpellier (X century).
But the prevailing number of scientists believe that the first universities arose in the XII-XIII centuries. in the course of the independent development of authoritative theological, legal, medical and artistic schools, initially closely associated with urban communities: Bologna (1158), Oxford (1168) and Cambridge (1209), Paris (1200) (according to other sources 1215 and 1231), Naples (1224), Lisbon (1290) and etc.
It was in these universities that the main ideas of academic autonomy were formulated, and many procedures for the internal life of universities were developed. Universities were created with the active participation of the church and the state, since Church dominated the society of this period, which influenced science and education (both religious and secular).
A combination of many circumstances predetermined the emergence of universities in this period: the flourishing of trade, the emergence of a money economy, the growth of cities, the improvement of agricultural production, the growth of the welfare of the population and, as a result, the focus of citizens on obtaining knowledge and practical training, etc.
In pedagogical and historical literature, the term " university» is most often associated with the universality of the content of education. However, in the XII-XIV centuries. word university used to refer to some collections of persons with common interests and independent legal status: for example, indicated a specific group, in particular, interethnic corporation teachers - licentiates, masters, doctors, professors - and students ( scholars), united in the interests of enlightenment and the development of true and unified Christian knowledge.
The highest ecclesiastical or secular authorities (imperial or royal) endowed universities with many privileges: self-government based on statutes, rector's jurisdiction, tax exemption, guarantee of personal security for professors and students and etc.
The main privilege of universities was considered the right to award academic degrees who were recognized throughout the Christian world. The guarantor of this right was the universal, ecumenical power, which issued to the university a document on the foundation and rights - charter. Not to recognize the usefulness of a university degree or licenses (Licentiaubiquedocendi), which gave the right to teach everywhere, meant to challenge this authority . This power was primarily papacy, but privileges could issue emperors And kings, although universities became full-fledged only after they acquired papal charter. This is what universities, called differently studiogenerale – "general schools" or higher schools, differed from studiumparticulare- local urban schools or religious schools of an advanced level (monastic or cathedral), which did not have privileges and the right to award academic degrees.

The universities themselves wanted to descend from the legendary kings. So, it was believed that the University of Paris was founded by Charlemagne, Cambridge - King Arthur, and Oxford - Alfred the Great.

Students from different countries united in universities in "nation» or community. Later in medieval universities appeared faculties or colleges(from lat. collegium- partnership, society) as educational and structural units, where a range of scientific disciplines is taught in a particular specialty, as well as corporations of students and professors of these units. Representatives of nations and faculties - deans(from lat. dekanus– foreman - in the Middle Ages, an official in the monastery, who helped manage ten communities, and then the head of the faculty) chose the official head of the university - rector(from lat. rector– steward). The rector had temporary powers and was usually elected for one year. At rector were supervisory and academic councils elected from professors and masters. Represented the interests of the church at the university chancellor(from lat. cancellarius– gatekeeper, head of office) who approved the decisions on the award of academic degrees and verdicts rector's court.
Admission to students on the principle of meeting educational requirements distinguished universities from other medieval corporations, in which social origin played a decisive role in admission.
In some universities, the right to elect professors (since the 14th century) passed to the city, which opened paid departments at the universities. Thus, the towns of Oxford and Cambridge gradually lost their independent role and became in fact appendages of the respective universities.

From the very beginning of their activities, European universities have differed in their focus, powers and internal structure. So, University of Bologna always had predominantly secular orientation and enough important student guild, which determined the internal policy, the content of the courses taught and the choice of professors for conducting classes.
University of Paris had a clear theological orientation, and the master's guild influenced the internal university life.
Cambridge university still largely retains its traditional features: it is structurally represented by a set of independent colleges, each of which trains 300-400 people in different specialties.
Over time, specialization has increased in individual universities: Oxford University became famous for teaching canon law; universities in Italy have achieved a high level of teaching Roman law; Spanish universities have become centers of mathematics and natural sciences.
But there was much in common in the university education of the Middle Ages. In general, the university education of the Middle Ages was characterized by the following features: 1) teaching was in Latin; 2) professors and students formed self-managed corporations those who have privileges received from local and / or ecclesiastical authorities; 3) academic titles, awarded by any university enjoyed pan-European recognition; 4) the traditional set of faculties– theological, medical, legal and artistic; 5) availability of academic freedoms etc. Consequently, we can conditionally speak of the existence unified educational space already in medieval Europe.
In the XIV-XV centuries. many universities in Central Europe - Krakow (1364), Vilnius(1579) and others - were created according to the model Prague university(1348), established by the royal authority.
Note that the emergence of a network of universities in Europe was very intensive: if in the XIII century. there were 19 universities, then in the XIV century. 25 more are added to them (in Angers, Orleans, Pisa, Ferrara, Heidelberg, Cologne, Vienna, etc.), and by the end of the 16th century. There were already 63 universities.

A university with four faculties was considered complete: theological legal, medical and artistic (or Faculty of Arts). Among the faculties there was a traditional hierarchy with the priority position of the theological faculty, followed by the legal, medical and artistic, which corresponded to the importance of equivalent branches of knowledge in the society of that time.

The widespread idea that the arts department was a preparatory school for admission to other faculties is not entirely true. The statutes of the university did not directly prescribe this, although it is worth recognizing that such a tradition did exist.

The "core" of the content of education in the medieval university was "trivium" - grammar, rhetoric, dialectic And "quadrivium" - arithmetic, geometry, music and astronomy. The main attention was paid to arithmetic and geometry with astronomy, then the foundations of scholasticism were invariably covered, and from the works of Aristotle they received basic knowledge about nature, society and man. The professors were confident that the body of valuable knowledge contained in ancient writings, so the central place in content of education and teaching Aristotelian philosophy. Head of one of the most authoritative cathedral schools of the XII century. Bernard of Chartres spoke about the continuity of the content of education: We are dwarfs sitting on the shoulders of giants, we owe it to them that we can see beyond them.". The students had to acquire knowledge from the writings of Greek and Arabic scholars, and any deviation was considered heresy.
As a rule, medieval universities in their development relied on ancient traditions in professional education, but at the same time, new mechanisms of functioning were also developed. Thus, teaching at universities eventually became multistage and hierarchical, suggesting continuity and mandatory passage of the previous steps. For example, preparation bachelor arts(from lat. baccalaureus- decorated with laurel, the first academic degree) of the artistic faculty took about 2 years, Master of Arts(from lat. master-master, mentor, second degree after bachelor) - from 3 to 10 years.

At the theological faculty, training lasted about 12 years. Often students (from lat. student- diligently working, mastering knowledge) of the theological faculty were aged 25-30 years old, they themselves had already taught and held church positions. Central to theological education was the study of the Holy Scriptures and maxims» Peter Lombard(beginning of the 12th century - 1160) - a famous philosopher and theologian who taught at the Paris Cathedral School, who made the first and most authoritative until the 16th century. code of catholic theology. Completion of the course led to a degree licentiate of theology(from lat. licentiatus- admitted), giving the right to teach, followed by a degree Master of Theology.

In law faculties, law was considered in the forms of Roman (Codex Justinian) and canon or ecclesiastical law. After 4 years of study, one could become Bachelor of Laws, after 3 years licensee of law, and then master And doctor of law.
Selected works studied at medical faculties Hippocrates, Avicenna, Galeni and others. After 3-4 years of study, a bachelor of medicine had to practice for another 2 years under the guidance of a master, and then after 5-6 years he could pass an exam for the title of licentiate.
The main forms of education in medieval universities were lecture(from lat. lecture- reading), its variety Questia(from lat. questio- ask, ask questions) - a problematic presentation of the material through the consideration of options for answers to the question posed, dispute(from lat. disputare– argue, argue), aimed at the independent development of thinking, demonstrating dexterity and wit, recitations as presentations on a given topic in verse or prose.

Despite the endless variety of university statutes, the basic principles of teaching were the same everywhere. Read in the morning cursor or ordinary lectures- usually the teacher read the text of the book, then singled out the main problem and divided it into sub-questions. For evening or extraordinary lectures already other teachers (professor's assistants or the best students) explained and repeated the morning lecture or dwelled on individual questions. The ability to highlight questions (question) was considered the most important. Considerable attention was paid to the development of the ability to lead controversy, i.e. reasoned dispute when discussing any issues. Ordinary, ordinary disputes ( dispute) were carried out weekly. The events that attracted the public were the disputes " about anything" or quadlibets which were carried out according to special rules.

In the notes of that time, disputes were compared with a battle, since they often ended in real battles between the participants, as evidenced, for example, by an excerpt from the work Geoffroy of Saint Victor « The spring of philosophy» [cit. Reader of poetic works on the history of the ancient world and the Middle Ages // Compiled by A.D. Rogov, G.M. Linko - M .: Education, 1961. - p. 196.]:

Here you will see youth in a tense battle:
Arrows are carried, and the sword shines naked;
He struck a blow, he demolished, defeated in a fight,
Here he who slew won, there he who was slain fell...

Most of the acts of university life were theatrical, and once a year carnivals, which allowed for extraordinary behavior of students, but in officially permitted forms and in a strictly limited period of time. In a circular from the University of Paris (dated March 12, 1444), the meaning of this action is formulated as follows: “ Stupidity, which is our second nature and seems to be innate to man, could at least once a year outlive itself. Barrels of wine will burst if you do not let air into them from time to time. All of us, people, are poorly made barrels that will burst from the wine of wisdom if this wine is in continuous fermentation of reverence and fear of God. You need to give it air so that it does not spoil. Therefore, on certain days we allow ourselves buffoonery (stupidity), so that later, with great zeal, we return to the service of the Lord.» .
Over time, each university rank, as well as each faculty, has its own dress, and discussions about the symbolism of its colors have become a frequent topic of university literature and disputes.

The first higher schools in Western Europe appeared in Italy. The oldest among them Salerno Medical School, the basis of which is attributed to the IX century. The school in Salerno (near Naples) had a secular character and continued the best traditions of ancient medicine.
Her fame was so great that even after the appearance of schools of lawyers and philosophers in Salerno, the city continued to be called civitas hippocratica(city of Hippocrates).

By order of the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire (1212-1250), she - the only one in the country - was given the right to confer the title of doctor, without a license from this school it was forbidden to practice medicine.

In 1213 the Salerno school was transformed into a university. Education in Salerno lasted five years, followed by a mandatory medical practice for one year. From all over Europe, those suffering from healing and knowledge flocked to Salerno.

The Salerno school had a great positive impact on the medicine of medieval Europe. It was the center from which ideas far from scholasticism spread. The best work of the Salerno Medical School in its entire thousand-year history was a short poem "Salerno code of health" ("Regimen sanitatis Salernitanum"). Its author is Arnold of Villanova (Arnaldo de Villanova, 1235-1311), an illustrious scientist, physician and chemist of the Middle Ages, later a master of the University of Montpellier.

The poem is dedicated to dietetics and disease prevention. It also provides some information about the structure of the human body (for example, the number of bones, teeth, and large blood vessels). In colorful form, Arnold described four temperaments in people.
The work of Arnold of Villanova, first published in 1480, was translated into many European languages ​​and reprinted more than 300 times.

The Emergence of Universities in Medieval Europe

In the Middle Ages, communities of people of the same profession (merchants, artisans, etc.) were called university(lat. set). By analogy with them, corporations of teachers and students began to be called this way - universitas magistrourn et scolarium.
Thus the term university was born. The formation of universities in medieval Western Europe is closely connected with the growth of cities, the development of crafts and trade, the needs of economic life and culture.

In 1158 the legal school in Bologna (Italy) received the status of a university. Then the university status was given to schools in Oxford and Cambridge (Britain, 1209), Paris (France, 1215), Salamanca (Spain, 1218), Padua (Italy, 1222), Naples (Italy, 1224), Montpellier (France, 1289) , Lisbon (Portugal, 1290), Prague (Czech Republic, 1348), Krakow (Poland, 1364), Vienna (Austria, 1365), Heidelberg (Germany, 1386) (Fig. 81), Cologne (Germany, 1388), Leipzig ( Germany, 1409) and others.

As a rule, medieval universities had four faculties: one preparatory and three main ones. Term faculty(lat. facultas- ability, skill, talent) was introduced in 1232 by Pope Gregory IX to designate various specialties at the University of Paris, opened by church authorities, who thus sought to establish their influence on the training of scientists.

How the medieval university was organized

Mandatory for all students was the preparatory (or artistic) faculty (from Latin artes - arts), where seven liberal arts were taught ( septem artes liberales).
After mastering the program trivium(grammar, rhetoric, dialectic) and passing the relevant exams, the student was awarded the degree of Bachelor of Arts.
After taking the course quadrivium(arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music theory) the student received a master of arts degree and the right to continue his studies at one of the main faculties:
theological, medical or legal, after which the student was awarded a master's (doctoral) degree in accordance with the profile of the faculty.

The word student comes from the Latin students- to study. Students were called all university students who; as a rule, they were mature people with a very high position in society: archdeacons, prelates, secular feudal lords. The terms of study and the age of students were usually not limited. Medieval universities were multinational educational institutions, where students united in fraternities.

The number of students was small and rarely exceeded 10 within one specialty. dean(from lat. decem - ten). The head of the university was rector magnificis-simus(lat. rector - manager).
Both of these posts were held by persons who had a high spiritual dignity. In ecclesiastical universities, they were appointed and paid by ecclesiastical authorities, and in universities founded by decree of the king, by royal authority.

The term professor (lat. professor- an expert publicly announced by the teacher) came from ancient Rome. In the medieval universities of Europe (from about the 15th-16th centuries), professors began to be called teachers-masters (lat. magistri) and doctors (lag. doctores).

Studying at a medieval university

As already noted, the language of medieval scholarship in Western Europe was Latin. The book in the Middle Ages was a rarity and was very expensive. Its sheets were made of parchment - animal skin treated in a special way.
Monk scribes worked on each book for several years. The most valuable and rare books were attached by chains to the shelves or pulpit. Suffice it to say that in the XV century. the medical faculty of the University of Paris had only 12 books.

Teaching in medieval universities was dogmatic. Church-reviewed works by Galen, Hippocrates, and Ibn Sina were memorized.
Practical classes, as a rule, were not.

The students' ideas about the human structure were very superficial. The Church forbade the "shedding of blood" and the dissection of human corpses.

The first autopsies of the dead in Western Europe began to be carried out in the most progressive universities (Salerno and Montpellier) with the special permission of the monarchs only in the XIII-XIV centuries.
So, in 1238, Frederick II allowed the Faculty of Medicine in Salerno to open one (!) corpse in five years. In 1376, Louis, Duke of Anjou and ruler of Languedoc, ordered his court to give the University of Montpellier one corpse a year.

The University of Montpellier was one of the most progressive in medieval Europe. Evidence of this is the mandatory medical practice outside the city.
So, in 1240, students were certified only after working in a hospital for six months, in 1309 an 8-month practice outside Montpellier was already required. There is also evidence that the students of Montpellier already in the XIII century. attended the operations of their master teachers and learned by "listening and seeing".

However, in the vast majority of medieval universities, surgery was not taught and was not included in the number of medical disciplines. Bath attendants, barbers and surgeons, who did not have a university education and were not recognized as doctors, were engaged in it. The first changes in attitude to surgery were outlined after the distribution of translations of Arabic manuscripts in Western Europe, as well as in connection with the Crusades.

The first textbook on anatomy in Western Europe was compiled in 1316 by the master of the University of Bologna Mondino de Luzzi(Mondino de Luzzi, 1275-1326). His work was based on autopsies of only two corpses, which, in view of the extreme rarity of this event, were carried out very carefully, over several weeks.
Much of this book is borrowed from Galen's On the Purpose of the Parts of the Human Body. According to the textbook Mondino de Luzzi studied anatomy Andreas Vesalius, who later became the founder of scientific anatomy.

One of the outstanding students of the universities in Bologna and Montpellier was Guy de Chauliac(Guy de Chauliac, c. 1300-1368). His compilation work Collectorium artis chirurgicalis medicinae("Review of the Surgical Art of Medicine", 1363) is a surgical encyclopedia of the time. Until the 17th century, it was the most widely used surgical textbook in Western Europe.

However, in general, medieval science and education in Western Europe were scholastic in nature. The cult of quotations, mechanical memorization of scientific texts, disregard for practical experience dominated:

Disputes are conducted with words, Systems are created from words, We must trust words, One cannot change an iota in words ... Goethe. "Faust"

Famous French cartoonist Honore Daumier(1808-1879) superbly presented the furious argument of scholastic doctors: while each of them, turning his back on the patient, proves the correctness of his quote, death takes the patient away. So it was in reality - the medieval scholastic medicine of Western Europe in many respects stood with its back to the sick.

Compilation based on the book: T.S. Sorokina, "History of Medicine"

The development of medieval cities, as well as other changes that took place in the life of society, was always accompanied by changes in education. If during the early Middle Ages it was received mainly in monasteries, then later schools began to open in which law, philosophy, medicine were studied, students read the works of many Arabic, Greek authors, etc.

History of occurrence

The word "university" in translation from Latin means "set", or "association". I must say that today, as in the old days, it has not lost its significance. Medieval universities and schools were communities of teachers and students. They were organized for one purpose: to give and receive education. Medieval universities lived by certain rules. Only they could award academic degrees, gave graduates the right to teach. This was the case throughout Christian Europe. Medieval universities received a similar right from those who founded them - popes, emperors or kings, that is, those who at that time had the highest power. The foundation of such educational institutions is attributed to the most famous monarchs. It is believed, for example, that Alfred the Great founded, and Paris - Charlemagne.

The head was usually the rector. His position was elective. Just as in our time, medieval universities were divided into faculties. Each was headed by a dean. After listening to a certain number of courses, students became bachelors, and then masters and received the right to teach. At the same time, they could continue their education, but already at one of the faculties considered “highest” in the specialties of medicine, law or theology.

The way the medieval university was organized is practically no different from the modern way of getting an education. They were open to everyone. And although children from rich families predominated among the students, there were also many people from the poor class. True, many years passed from the moment of admission to medieval universities to the receipt of the highest degree of doctor, and therefore very few went this way to the end, but the academic degree provided the lucky ones with both honor and opportunities for a quick career.

students

Many young people in search of the best teachers moved from one city to another and even left for a neighboring European country. I must say that ignorance of languages ​​did not bother them at all. European medieval universities taught in Latin, which was considered the language of science and the church. Many students sometimes led the life of a wanderer, and therefore received the nickname "vaganta" - "wandering". Among them were excellent poets, whose works still arouse great interest among contemporaries.

The students' daily routine was simple: lectures in the mornings, and repetition of the studied material in the evenings. Along with the constant training of memory in the universities of the Middle Ages, great attention was paid to the ability to argue. This skill was practiced during daily debates.

student life

However, the life of those who had the good fortune to enroll in medieval universities was formed not only from classes. There was time for both solemn ceremonies and noisy feasts. The then students were very fond of their educational institutions, here they spent the best years of their lives, gaining knowledge and finding protection from strangers. They called them "alma mater".

Students usually gathered in small groups according to nations or communities, bringing together students from a wide variety of regions. Together they could rent an apartment, although many lived in colleges - colleges. The latter, too, as a rule, were formed according to nationalities: representatives from one community gathered in each.

University Science in Europe

Scholasticism began its formation in the eleventh century. Its most important feature was considered to be boundless belief in the power of reason in the knowledge of the world. However, over time in the Middle Ages, university science became a dogma, the provisions of which were considered final and infallible. In the 14-15 centuries. scholasticism, which used only logic and completely denied any experiment, began to turn into an obvious brake on the development of natural scientific thought in Western Europe. Almost completely the formation of medieval universities was then in the hands of the Dominican orders. The educational system of that time had a rather strong influence on the evolution of the formation of Western European civilization.

Only centuries later, the medieval universities of Western Europe began to contribute to the growth of public self-awareness, the progress of scientific thought and the freedom of the individual.

legality

To qualify as an educational institution, an institution had to have a papal bull approving its establishment. By such a decree, the pontiff removed the institution from the control of secular or local church authorities, legitimizing the existence of this university. The rights of the educational institution were also confirmed by the privileges received. These were special documents signed either by popes or by royalty. Privileges secured the autonomy of this educational institution - a form of government, permission to have its own court, as well as the right to grant academic degrees and exempt students from military service. Thus, medieval universities became a completely independent organization. Professors, students and employees of the educational institution, in a word, all, were no longer subordinate to the city authorities, but exclusively to the elected rector and deans. And if the students committed some misconduct, then the leadership of this locality could only ask them to condemn or punish the guilty.

Graduates

Medieval universities made it possible to get a good education. Many well-known figures studied there. The graduates of these educational institutions were Duns Scott, Peter Lombard and William of Ockham, Thomas Aquinas and many others.

As a rule, a great career awaited those who graduated from such an institution. After all, on the one hand, medieval schools and universities were in active contact with the church, and on the other hand, along with the expansion of the administrative apparatus of various cities, the need for educated and literate people also increased. Many yesterday's students worked as notaries, prosecutors, scribes, judges or lawyers.

Structural subdivision

There was no separation of higher and secondary education, so the structure of the medieval university included both senior and junior faculties. After 15-16-year-old young people were deeply taught Latin in elementary school, they were transferred to the preparatory level. Here they studied the "seven liberal arts" in two cycles. These were the "trivium" (grammar, as well as rhetoric and dialectics) and the "quadrium" (arithmetic, music, astronomy and geometry). But only after studying the course of philosophy, the student had the right to enter the senior faculty in law, medicine or theology.

Learning principle

Even today, modern universities use the traditions of medieval universities. The curricula that have survived to this day were drawn up for a year, which in those days was divided not into two semesters, but into two unequal parts. The large ordinary period lasted from October to Easter, and the small one - until the end of June. The division of the academic year into semesters appeared only towards the end of the Middle Ages in some German universities.

There were three main forms of teaching. The lectio, or lectures, were the complete and systematic exposition, at fixed hours, of a particular academic subject according to a predetermined statute or charter of a given university. They were divided into ordinary, or compulsory, courses and extraordinary, or additional. Teachers were classified according to the same principle.

For example, obligatory lectures were usually scheduled for the morning hours - from dawn until nine in the morning. This time was considered more convenient and designed for the fresh forces of students. In turn, extraordinary lectures were read to the audience in the afternoon hours. They started at 6pm and ended at 10pm. The lesson lasted one or two hours.

Traditions of medieval universities

The main task of teachers of medieval universities was to compare different versions of texts and give the necessary explanations along the way. The statutes forbade students from demanding repetition of material or even slow reading. They had to come to lectures with books, which were very expensive in those days, so the students rented them.

Already since the eighteenth century, universities began to accumulate manuscripts, copying them and creating their own sample texts. Audiences did not exist for a long time. The first medieval university, in which professors began to arrange school premises - Bologna - already from the fourteenth century began to create rooms for lectures to accommodate it.

And before that, students were grouped in one place. For example, in Paris it was the Avenue Foir, or Straw Street, called by this name because the listeners sat on the floor, on the straw at the feet of their teacher. Later, semblances of desks began to appear - long tables at which up to twenty people could fit. Chairs began to arrange on a hill.

Grading

After completing their studies at a medieval university, students passed the examination, which was taken by several masters from each nation. The dean supervised the examiners. The student had to prove that he had read all the recommended books and managed to participate in the amount of disputes required by the statutes. The commission was also interested in the behavior of the graduate. After the successful passage of these stages, the student was admitted to a public debate, in which he had to answer all the questions. As a result, he was awarded the first bachelor's degree. He had to assist a master for two academic years in order to qualify to teach. And six months later, he was also awarded a master's degree. The graduate was supposed to give a lecture, take an oath and arrange a feast.

The history of the oldest universities dates back to the twelfth century. It was then that such educational institutions as Bologna in Italy and Paris in France were born. In the thirteenth century there are in England, Montpellier in Toulouse, and already in the fourteenth the first universities appeared in the Czech Republic and Germany, Austria and Poland. Each educational institution had its own traditions and privileges. By the end of the fifteenth century, there were about a hundred universities in Europe, which were structured into three types, depending on where the teachers received their salaries from. The first was in Bologna. Here, students themselves hired and paid for teachers. The second type of university was in Paris, where teachers were funded by the church. Oxford and Cambridge were supported by both the crown and the state. It must be said that it was this fact that helped them survive the dissolution of the monasteries in 1538 and the subsequent removal of the main English Catholic institutions.

All three types of structures had their own characteristics. For example, in Bologna, for example, students controlled almost everything, and this fact often gave teachers great inconvenience. In Paris it was the opposite. Precisely because the teachers were paid by the church, the main subject at this university was theology. But in Bologna, students chose more secular studies. Here the main subject was the law.

Universities arose in the Middle Ages. It is a mistake to say that the university as a form of educational institution existed earlier. There were magnificent Confucian schools of the “semicircular pool school” back in the time of the Tang empire, the Pandidakterion high school in Constantinople operated from the 9th century, and the Al-Karaouin school in Morocco has been operating from the 9th century to the present day, but all this is by nature not universities. This does not detract from their glory and dignity at all, but the university is something very specific.

1. How Universities Arise

Universities arose in the 11th century, when the West entered a period of amazing growth, when the Middle Ages in its classical sense, with all the attributes of a feudal society, set in. The beginning of this period is marked by the Gregorian reform and the strengthening of the position of the papacy. Then there is the rise of cities, the assertion of senior relations. It is against the backdrop of these processes that university corporations emerge.

No one founded the first universities, they arise on their own. Therefore, the statements “Philip Augustus founded the University of Paris in 1200” or “Frederick Barbarossa founded the University of Bologna” are fundamentally wrong. These schools arose on their own, having acquired the only conceivable then and very convenient form of mutual oath ( conjuratio), which quickly became known as university- a community of equal people who brought each other a mutual oath, which possessed what would later be called a legal entity. Universitas- this is not only an association of masters and students, any city commune, any corporation of artisans was university. Subsequently, at the beginning of the XIII century, this term began to be used only in relation to educational organizations.

We cannot talk about the existence of universities in the 11th and 12th centuries, but rather about pre-university formations, studios, training centers. This is a very important, interesting, rich in traditions era. At this time, the reception of Roman law was made, canon law was created, and rational theology was born.

2. The life of a new type of intellectual

In previous periods, intellectuals lived either at the court of a prince, emperor, king, or, more often, in monasteries. Intellectuals of a new type lived in the city and taught to all comers, who were becoming more and more. It is no coincidence that the science that arose was called school science, or scholasticism. The thinkers of that era took the formal logic of Aristotle and applied it to new areas of knowledge. A system was created that sets the algorithm of actions in cases where the opinions of authorities on a particular issue differed. This was extremely important, since nothing was done in the Middle Ages without recourse to authorities.

The intellectual of the new formation was not a practitioner, but a specialist in the field of thinking. It was not necessary to know Roman law well in order to judge the peasants in the English Manor: society lived according to other laws. Wounds and fractures were better treated not by a connoisseur of Hippocrates and Galen, but by a poorly educated barber surgeon. A highly learned theologian could not captivate his flock with a passionate sermon, as did a simple Franciscan monk. But a person who took a university course was able to think logically - this gave him the opportunity to formulate a problem and cope with any task. Since this period, the transformation of the world has gone by leaps and bounds.

3. Formation of university corporations

Universities arose at the beginning of the 13th century. Paris, Bologna, Montpellier, Oxford are the places where they arose on their own. What is a corporation and affiliation? The German scientist Exle gave a very good definition: "a corporation is a community of the living and the dead." The first university charter of 1215 in Paris gives a very large place to the regulations for the funeral of masters and students, clearly prescribing what and how each member of the corporation should do.

This logic is very clear. What is the most important thing in the life of a medieval person? Death and how he will leave this life. The further existence of his soul depends on this. If he dies in a foreign land, who will take care of a righteous death? These are the people who took the mutual oath. They took a mutual oath to live in peace, not to conflict. And for this it was necessary to determine the order of lectures, exams, rules of conduct, uniforms (what is now called a dress code). And, most importantly, to guarantee mutual assistance. Thus, an organizational form was developed, which quickly began to be replicated. Secular or ecclesiastical authorities simply took the ready-made form of charter and opened new universities.

The status of university corporations was based on independence from the local secular authorities, representatives of the king and, most importantly, from the local spiritual authorities. Initially, the bishop controlled the teaching, issuing permission to teach ( licentia docendi). After the emergence of the university, the bishop's chancellor continued, with the permission of the Pope, to issue permits in a new form - licentia ubique docendi, that is, the right to teach everywhere in Christendom. This right was given only after an examination conducted by a corporation of equal people. It was she who decided whether the applicant was worthy to enter the corporation or not worthy, whether he was worthy of conferring the title of bachelor, master, doctor or not worthy. And the chancellor only agreed with this decision and issued permission. This can be called the basis of Western European intellectualism.

Undoubtedly, European intellectualism as an autonomous corporation exists with the permission of the authorities. If there is no charter issued by the Pope (less often by the emperor, sometimes by the king who tried to make himself independent of the emperor), then there is no university.

4. Social magic

I like to ask: “Tell me, please, who was Thomas Aquinas by social origin?”. And, as a rule, people cannot answer this question, although his father was an earl. Who was the origin of Jean Gerson? His parents were peasants, and of rather low status. Who was Erasmus of Rotterdam? He was illegitimate, his father is a priest. This is important: entering the world of people of knowledge, a person, as it were, broke with his former environment (although origin was always extremely important for medieval society), acquiring a new social status. The French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu called this moment social magic: there was one person, but there was another. From my point of view, the ability to award degrees is the most important thing that constitutes the essence of the university corporation. This ability was perfectly conveyed by Soviet folklore: "You may not be a scientist, but you must be a candidate."

5. University logic

Over the years, the situation changed: the independence of the university weakened, the role of secular authorities became stronger, but the universities still had great authority, which allowed them to act as advisers to monarchs. What we call university culture is rapidly forming: a special type of thinking, folklore, habits, discursive practices that are characteristic of university people. This type of culture survived the Middle Ages and set a certain type of communication for the universities of modern times. Thus, the indispensable medieval rampage of students is inherited by the German universities of the Enlightenment. Students- burshi they were simply obliged to behave defiantly towards the philistine townsfolk. As you know, M. V. Lomonosov mastered the manners of the Bursh so well that only a miracle saved him from serious troubles in Germany, and the quietest person Pierre Bezukhov ties the bear to the quarter, demonstrating his involvement in the German traditions of university culture. A similar code of behavior is miraculously reproduced in other eras and in other regions.

The logic of the corporation, which asserted that “our degrees are our inalienable right, no one can take them away from us,” was also characteristic of Soviet scientists. It was this that became an important argument for the refusal of the Academy of Sciences to deprive Academician Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov of his scientific title.

This logic is inherent in both modern universities and academies. To undertake their reform without understanding their medieval nature is rather strange. This does not mean the preservation of the archaic principle. But successive university reformers such as Wilhelm von Humboldt and John Newman looked to the origins of university autonomy and corporatism.

6. The spread of the university form to the world

Universities have spread all over the world - this can be seen as European expansion. If we compare with this other social and political institutions exported by Europe (European parliamentarism, freedom of speech, the doctrine of human rights) and taking root far from everywhere, then the triumphal procession of universities around the world looks more than convincing. Today there is no such country where there is no university, and the best are often located outside Europe. That is, the university turned out to be a surprisingly tenacious form, invented in the great era of the XII-XIII centuries, from my point of view, in the golden age for European civilization.

7. History of the study of university culture

There is a lot of current research on the history of the university, but the most interesting things were said by the French medievalist Jacques Le Goff, his critics, his supporters in the 50s-60s of the 20th century. Interesting is the attempt to include Russian universities in the context of European history - these are the works of A. Yu. Andreev on the transfer of the university idea to Russia, the works of E. A. Vishlenkova and her co-authors, which show from the inside how university traditions took root and formed in Russia.

Promising will be research on the history of universities, which, unfortunately, we do not have. But the last generalizing work in Russian on the history of European universities was published in 1896 (albeit republished in 2012). It remains to be hoped that the situation will change soon: the history of medieval universities is in demand in our country today more than ever.

Andreev A. Yu. Russian universities of the XVIII - first half of the XIX century in the context of the university history of Europe M., 2009.

Vishlenkova E.A., Galiullina R.Kh., Ilyina K.A. Russian professors: university corporatism or professional solidarity. M., 2012.

De Libera A. Medieval thinking. M., 2004.

Le Goff J. Intellectuals in the Middle Ages. SPB, 2003.

Suvorov N. S. Medieval universities, M., 1896, 2nd ed. M., 2012.

Introduction

The early Middle Ages are sometimes referred to as the "Dark Ages". The transition from antiquity to the Middle Ages was accompanied in Western Europe by a deep decline in culture. Not only the barbarian invasions that destroyed the Western Roman Empire led to the destruction of the cultural values ​​of antiquity. No less destructive than the blows of the Visigoths, Vandals and Lombards was the hostile attitude of the Church for the ancient cultural heritage. Pope Gregory I waged an open war against culture. He forbade the reading of books by ancient authors and the study of mathematics, accusing the latter of being associated with magic. The most important area of ​​culture - education - was going through especially difficult times. Once Gregory I proclaimed: “Ignorance is the mother of true piety.”*2

Truly ignorance reigned in Western Europe in the 5th-10th centuries. It was almost impossible to find literate people not only among the peasants, but also among the nobility. Many knights put a simple cross instead of a signature. Theodoric of Ostgoth, unable to write, used to sign a tablet on which his name was carved. Until the end of his life, he could not learn to write the founder of the Frankish state, the famous Charlemagne. But the emperor was clearly not indifferent to knowledge. Already in adulthood, he resorted to the services of teachers. Having begun to study the art of writing shortly before his death, Karl carefully kept waxed boards and sheets of parchment under his pillow, and in his spare time he diligently learned to draw letters. The sovereign patronized scientists. Charles issued a decree on the establishment of schools at the monasteries, and then - the capitulary on education, where the compulsory education of free children was prescribed. This was not carried out due to the lack of a sufficient number of literate people. A special school was organized at the court, where people were trained to govern the state. Karl invited educated people from all over Europe and placed them in high state and church positions. Many of them made up a scientific circle, called the Academy after the name of the philosophical school of the ancient Greek philosopher Plato. This academy was something between a meeting of friends and a learned community, where philosophical and theological questions were discussed in free conversation, at a feast, Latin verses were composed and read.

Members of the academy bore special nicknames, which clearly manifested the combination of ancient and Christian ideas in the views of Charles and his entourage. Charles himself had the nickname David, in honor of the biblical king David, the prototype of all God-loving monks.

By his order, a cathedral was erected in Aachen. He ordered to compose a grammar of the Frankish language, and to collect Germanic songs. His court in Aachen became the center of education. In a specially created school, the famous scientist and writer Alcuin (Flakk Albin, c. 735-804, Anglo-Saxon scientist, author of theological treatises, textbooks on philosophy, mathematics, etc.; figure in the Carolingian Renaissance, adviser to Charlemagne, abbot of the Tours monastery), who taught the sons of Charles himself and the children of his entourage. A few educated people came to Aachen from all over illiterate Europe. Following the example of antiquity, the society of scientists gathered at the court began to be called the Academy. Alcuin became abbot of the richest monastery of St. Martin in the city of Tours, where he also founded a school, many of whose students later became famous teachers of monastic and church schools in France.

The cultural upsurge that occurred during the reign of Charlemagne and his successors was called the "Carolingian Renaissance". However, it was short-lived. Soon cultural life again concentrated in the monasteries.

Monastic and church schools were the very first educational institutions of the Middle Ages. And although the Christian Church retained only selective remnants of ancient education it needed (primarily Latin), it was in them that the cultural tradition continued, linking different eras.

But time passed. Growing cities and growing states needed more and more educated people. Judges and officials, doctors and teachers were needed.

The time has come for the formation of higher schools - universities.

medieval universities

In the XII century, the world's first higher schools - universities - began to appear in Europe. Some universities, for example, in Seville, Paris, Toulouse, Naples, Cambridge, Oxford, Valencia, Bologna were founded in the XII - XIII centuries. The rest, for example, in Uppsala, Copenhagen, Rostock, Orleans were founded later - in the XIV - XV centuries.

Let's imagine that we are in the auditorium of a medieval university. It resembles the auditorium of a university today: in the same way, benches are arranged in stepped rows, below there is a massive oak pulpit, behind which stands a professor lecturing. Some students listen intently and from time to time write something with lead on waxed boards. Others whisper or, tired, doze off. The diversity of the audience is striking: a variety of camisoles, raincoats, berets. Seventeen-year-old youths and men beginning to go bald are visible. Looking closely, you can see people of different nationalities: Spaniards, Germans, French, British.

Strange: listeners speak different languages, and yet understand everything. Why? But the fact is that for all European (especially Western European) countries, the language of science, as well as worship, was Latin. Thousands of schoolchildren were required to learn Latin at that time. Many could not stand it and ran away from cramming and beatings. But for those who still endured, Latin became a familiar and understandable language, and therefore the lecture in Latin was understandable to listeners from different countries.

On the professorial chair, which was supported by a triangular music stand, lay a huge book. The word "lecture" means "reading". Indeed, a medieval professor read a book, sometimes interrupting the reading with explanations. The content of this book students had to perceive by ear, learn by memory. The fact is that books in those days were handwritten and were very expensive. And not everyone could afford to buy it.

Thousands of people flocked to the city where the famous scientist appeared. For example, at the end of the 11th century in the city of Bologna, where Irnerius, an expert on Roman law, appeared, a school of legal knowledge arose. Gradually, this school became the University of Bologna. It was the same with Salerno, another Italian city that became famous as the main university center of medical science. Opened in the 12th century, the University of Paris won recognition as the main center of theology. Following several higher schools of the XII century. most medieval universities arose in the 13th and 14th centuries. in England, France, Spain, Portugal, Czech Republic, Poland and Germany.

It was often difficult for a foreign student to negotiate with the locals. Sellers, innkeepers and innkeepers shortchanged the aliens, and the guards and judges looked at it through their fingers and even ... subjected students to unfair punishments!

The struggle for the protection of their rights forced students and teachers to unite. So, outraged by insults and harassment, students and professors left Bologna for 10 years, and the city immediately lost not only fame, but also the income that the university brought to it. The solemn return of the university followed only after the city recognized its full independence. This meant that the professors, students and employees of the university were not subordinate to the city authorities, but to the elected deans of the faculties and the rector.

Over time, faculties appeared in the medieval university: legal, medical, theological. But the training began with the “preparatory” faculty, where the so-called “seven liberal arts” were taught. And since in Latin art is “artes”, the faculty was also called artistic. Students - "artists" first studied grammar. then rhetoric, dialectics (which meant logic); only after that did they move on to arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy. The “artists” were young people, and according to the university regulations, they could be flogged, like schoolchildren, while older students were not subjected to such punishments.

Medieval science was called scholastic (literally - school). the essence of this science and its main flaw was expressed by an old proverb: “Philosophy is the servant of theology.” And not only philosophy, but also all the sciences of that time had to strengthen the truths of religion, blind trust in the teachings of the church with each of their conclusions, with each of their words.

Disputes occupied an important place in the academic life of the medieval university. At the so-called master's disputes, the master who taught the students skillfully drew them into the dispute. Offering to confirm or dispute the theses put forward by him, he forced students to mentally compare these theses with the opinions of the "fathers of the church", with the decisions of church councils and papal messages. During the dispute, each thesis was opposed by the opponent's counterthesis. The offensive tactic is to lead the enemy to such a forced confession, which either contradicted his own statement, or diverged from the unshakable church truths, which was tantamount to accusation of heresy.

But even in the Middle Ages there were people of bold thought who did not want to repeat the same church truths day after day. They sought to break free from the shackles of scholasticism, to open up a wider scope for science.

In the 12th century, the young scientist Peter Abelard spoke out against the professor of the University of Paris, Guillaume Champeau. In the heated disputes that ensued, the professor could not manage to get the better of his young rival. Champaud demanded that Abelard be expelled from Paris. But this did not stop Abelard. He settled in the suburbs of Paris and continued to follow the professor's every word. After each lecture in the cold and rain, in winter and autumn, tireless students covered at least 30 km in a day, made their way from Paris to the suburbs and back to tell Abelard everything that Champeau had said and put the latter in a dead end in front of Abelard's new objections. This dispute, which lasted for months, ended in a brilliant victory for Abelard. The gray-haired professor not only recognized the correctness of the young opponent, but also considered it necessary to transfer his department to him.

Abelard was not satisfied with the opinion of the scholastics, who believed that "faith precedes understanding." He argued that "it is possible to believe only in such a truth, which becomes understandable to the mind." Thus, faith in incomprehensible, meaningless and fantastic things was rejected. Abelard taught that "through doubt we investigate, and through investigation we come to know the truth."

In the bold teaching of Abelard, the church saw a dangerous threat, since the unshakable truths of the church, the so-called dogmas, would not stand the test of doubt and criticism.

Abelard has come a long way. Physically crippled by his enemies, expelled from Paris, he ended up in a remote monastery. At the end of his life, he was condemned by a church council as a heretic, and the threat of execution constantly hung over him.

But since the time of Abelard, the audiences of medieval universities have increasingly become the arena of the struggle for reason and science.

Since the 13th century, the school has acted as a university. Universitas is a typical product of the Middle Ages. If the ancient analogues, which medieval schools imitated and in some way updated them, were the model of schools, then the university did not have its own prototype. Such corporate formations and free associations of students and mentors with their privileges, established programs, diplomas, titles, antiquity has not seen either in the west or in the east.

The term “university” itself did not originally indicate a center of education, rather, a corporate association, or, in modern terms, it was a kind of “syndicate” protecting the interests of a certain category of people. Paris is a model of organization that other universities have more or less followed. In Paris, the "universitas magistroom et scolarum", the combined corporation of masters and students, prevailed. In the 12th century, the Notre Dame Cathedral School, which gathered under its shadow students from all over Europe, was noted for its special superiority, and soon became the object of attention of the Roman Curia. Autonomization proceeded under the direct supervision of the king, the bishop and his chancellor. A fact worth mentioning is that the desire for freedom of teaching, as opposed to the pressure of local authorities, found tangible support in the form of papal patronage.

2. University and its mitigating effects

Two effects accompanied the activities of universities. The first is the birth of a certain class of scientists, priests and lay people, to whom the church entrusted the mission of teaching the truths of revelation. The historical significance of this phenomenon lies in the fact that even today the official doctrine of the Church should and can be entrusted only to church hierarchs. Masters were officially allowed to discuss matters of faith. Saint Thomas, Albertus Magnus and Bonaventure would later be called "Doctors of the Church". Along with the traditional two powers - ecclesiastical and secular - a third appeared - the power of intellectuals, whose influence on social life became more and more tangible over time.

The second effect is associated with the opening of the University of Paris, where students and teachers of all classes flocked. University society from the very beginning did not know caste distinctions; rather, it formed a new caste of heterogeneous social elements. And, if in subsequent eras the university acquires aristocratic features, the medieval one was originally “folk”, in the sense that the children of peasants and artisans through a system of privileges (in the form of low tuition prices and free housing) became students, taking on the burden of the most severe obligations inevitable on this thorny path. Goliards and clerks constituted, as it were, a world in itself. Their "nobility" was no longer determined by their class origin, but hung over the accumulated cultural baggage. A new meaning of the concept of “nobility” and “refinement” appeared in the meaning of the aristocracy of the mind and behavior, the subtlety of the psyche and the refinement of taste. Boccaccio will rightly speak out on this matter: “not the one who, after a long study in Paris, is ready to sell his knowledge on trifles, as many do, is educated, but the one who knows how to inquire into the causes of everything at the very source”

General characteristics of the University of Paris

All classes were conducted in Latin, so the Germans, French, Spaniards could listen to the Italian professor with no less success than his compatriots. Students also communicated in Latin with each other. However, in everyday life, "strangers" were forced to enter into communication with local bakers, brewers, tavern owners and landlords. The latter, of course, did not know Latin and were not averse to cheating and deceiving a foreign scholar. Since the students could not count on the help of the city court in numerous conflicts with local residents, they, together with teachers, united in a union, which was called the “university”. The University of Paris included about 7 thousand teachers and students, and in addition to them were members of the union - booksellers, copyists of manuscripts, manufacturers of parchment, quills, ink powder, pharmacists, etc. In a long struggle with the city authorities, which went on with varying success (sometimes teachers and students left the hated city and moved to another place), the university achieved self-government: now it had elected leaders and its own court. The University of Paris was granted independence from secular authorities in 1200. charter of King Philip II Augustus.

The life of schoolchildren from poor families was not easy. Here is how Chaucer describes it:

Having interrupted hard work on logic,

A Parisian student trudged along next to us.

Hardly a poorer beggar would be found ...

Need and hunger accustomed steadfastly,

He put the log at the head of the bed.

He is sweeter to have twenty books,

Than an expensive dress, a lute, food ... * 5

But the students were not discouraged. They knew how to enjoy life, their youth, to have fun from the heart. This is especially true for vagants - wandering schoolchildren moving from city to city in search of knowledgeable teachers or an opportunity to earn extra money. Often they did not want to bother with their studies, they sang with pleasure the vagants at their feasts:

Let's drop all wisdom

Side teaching!

Enjoy in youth

Our appointment.*6

The teachers of the university created an association in subjects - faculties. They were headed by deans. Teachers and students elected the rector - the head of the university. Medieval high school usually had three faculties: law, philosophy (theology) and medicine. But if the preparation of a future lawyer or physician took five or six years, then the future philosopher - theologian - as much as 15.

However, before entering one of the three faculties, the student had to graduate from the preparatory - artistic - faculty (they studied the "seven liberal arts"; from the Latin "artis" - "art"). In the classroom, students listened to and recorded lectures (in Latin - “reading”) of professors and masters. The erudition of the teacher was manifested in his ability to explain what he read, to connect it with the content of other books, to reveal the meaning of terms and scientific concepts. In addition to lectures, debates were held - disputes on issues raised in advance. Hot in heat, sometimes they turned into hand-to-hand fights between the participants.

In the 14th - 15th centuries. there are so-called colleges (hence - colleges). At first, this was the name of the student hostel. Over time, they also began to hold lectures and debates. College. Which was founded by Robert de Sorbon, the confessor of the French king - Sorbonne - gradually grew and gave its name to the entire University of Paris.

PRAGUE UNIVERSITY was the largest school of the Middle Ages. At the beginning of the 15th century, students in Europe attended 65 universities, and at the end of the century - already 79. * 7 The most famous among them were: Paris, Bologna, Cambridge, Oxford, Prague, Kakovo. Many of them exist to this day, deservedly proud of their rich history and carefully preserve ancient traditions.

13th century: The University of Paris and its translations.

A) Dominicans and Franciscans

Medieval schools were often taught by people of different nationalities. Some of these schools, organized on a more or less international basis, fell into decay and ceased to exist. Others have become universities.

In the course of time, however, some centers of scholarship, which had faculties of theology, law, and medicine, became universities in a different sense: they had charters, statutes, and established forms of government, and their professors had the right to teach everywhere. The University of Paris grew out of the cathedral school of Notre Dame, and although the date of its founding is often given as 1215, when its statutes were approved by the papal legate Robert de Courcon, it is clear that these statutes existed before. The University of Paris has developed a system of colleges controlled by doctors or professors. In the thirteenth century, the University of Paris was undoubtedly at the forefront of theology and speculative philosophy. An important event in the life of this university was the establishment of educational institutions created by new monastic orders. The Order of Preachers, commonly known as the Dominican, showed an understandable interest in the study of theology. But St. Francis of Assisi, with his commitment to the literal following of Christ and the apostles on the path of poverty, did not even think of his followers owning educational institutions and libraries and teaching at universities. * 8 However, the transformation of the original community of followers, or fellows of this saint into an organized community, by members which the priests were, made it necessary to take care of the study. In addition, the Holy See was quick to appreciate the potential of the new fervent mendicant orders. In particular, Gregory IX, who during his time as a cardinal took care of the development of education among the Franciscans, did everything possible to introduce the Dominicans and Franciscans into the life of the University of Paris and strengthen their positions there. In 1217, the Dominicans settled at the University of Paris, and in 1229 received a chair of theology there. In the same year, the Franciscans, who settled in Paris a little later, also received a chair, and their first professor was the Englishman Alexander of Gaels.

The penetration of monastic orders into the University of Paris did not occur without serious opposition from the clergy. From the point of view of the orders, this opposition was undoubtedly an expression of prejudice and a desire to protect their legal property rights. From the point of view of their opponents, the monks claimed unjustified benefits and privileges. Opposition to monastic orders lasted quite a long time, sometimes turning into attacks on monastic life itself. But the Dominicans and Franciscans enjoyed the protection of the Holy See, and although the opposition they encountered was strong, it was nevertheless overcome. Famous philosophers of the XIII century in the vast majority were members of monastic orders.

The training course was designed for a long time. However, in those days younger students came to the university than today. * 9 So in the 13th century in Paris, students first studied for six years at the Faculty of Arts. During this period, a student could become a "bachelor" and help in secondary roles in teaching others. But he could not start teaching until he was twenty years old. The content of the training course was "free arts"; Literature was practically not studied, but much attention was paid to grammar. Logic was, of course, mainly the logic of Aristotle, although Porfiry's "Introduction" was also studied.

As already mentioned, the course of theology was taught at first for eight years, but tended to lengthen. After completing the course at the Faculty of Arts and several years of teaching, the student devoted four years to the study of the Bible and two to the study of the "Sentences" of Peter Lombard. After that, he could become a bachelor and lecture on the Bible for two years, and for one year on the Maxims. He received a master's or doctoral degree after another four to five years.

Some students, of course, withstood such a long study in the hope of moving up the church ladder. However, the curriculum itself was clearly oriented toward teaching, toward graduating teachers or professors. And since the study of the "art" prepared for the study of higher sciences and theology, which was considered the queen of all sciences, obtaining a master's or doctoral degree in theology, giving the right to teach, was naturally seen as the pinnacle of an academic career. From this it is easy to understand why the most prominent thinkers of the Middle Ages were theologians.

B) Prohibition of Aristotle at the Faculty of Arts

The increase in knowledge about Aristotelianism had a huge impact on the intellectual life of the 13th century. Thanks to translations, Aristotle was transformed from a more or less pure logician into a creator of an all-encompassing system. Since this system obviously owed nothing to Christianity, it became, one might say, the embodiment of philosophy, and its author was known as the Philosopher. It is only natural that Aristotle was read in the light of commentaries and studies written by Islamic and Jewish thinkers.

In 1210, the local Council in Paris, under threat of excommunication, prohibited the use of Aristotle's works on the Natural Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts, whether publicly or privately. In 1215, shortly before, the approved charter of the University of Paris forbade professors of the Faculty of Arts to lecture on the writings of Aristotle on metaphysics and the philosophy of nature, or on their expositions. In 1231, Pope Gregory IX issued a bull in which he stated that writings banned in 1210 should not be used in Paris until they were cleared of all suspicious places.

In 1245, Innocent IV extended the prohibitions of 1210 and 1215. To the university in Toulouse, which used to be so proud of its freedom. But it is clear that in Paris these laws were observed for some time. However, starting from about 1255, lectures were given in Paris on all known writings of Aristotle - a fact all the more surprising because in 1263 Urban IV confirmed the bull of Gregory IX in regard to supporting the prohibitions of 1210. This fact was explained by different; in particular, it has been suggested that the pope reissued the bull of his predecessor, without paying attention to the fact that this means a repetition of the prohibition of 1210. It sounds strange. But the confirmation of the prohibition is strange in itself, since Urban IV must have known perfectly well that William of Meerbecke was translating Aristotle in his own curia. Be that as it may, in 1263 lectures on Aristotle in Paris were given freely.

The whole point was that Aristotle's philosophy as a whole seemed to be a comprehensive naturalistic system and that, in particular, some of Aristotle's theories were incompatible with Christian theology. In other words, Aristotelianism was perceived by some minds as a potential threat to the Christian faith. Professors of theology could be trusted to correct all errors or misconceptions. The teachers of the Faculty of Arts were not to be allowed to inculcate certain doctrines or sow doubts in their young pupils. This seems to be the most plausible explanation.*10

The greatness and weakness of university politics

With the departure of many Englishmen during the Hundred Years' War and numerous Germans during the Great Schism, the University of Paris has become increasingly French in composition. At least since the reign of Philip the Fair, he has played a significant political role. Charles V called him the eldest daughter of the King. * 11 The university is officially represented in the national cathedrals of the French Church, in the assembly of the States General. He acts as an intermediary during the struggle of the court and the Parisians, led by Étienne Marcel, during the uprising of the Mayotins; the signature of the representative of the university is under the contract in Troyes.

The prestige of the university is huge. It is explained not only by the number of students and teachers, but also by all the masters who graduated from it, who occupy primary positions throughout France and abroad, maintaining close ties with the university.

At the same time, he is associated with the papacy. In addition, all the Avignon popes are French, they clearly patronize the university, bind it to themselves with generous gifts. Every year, a scroll with the names of mayors is sent to the Avignon Palace, for which the university graciously asks the pope for feeding or church benefice. If he was the eldest daughter of the King, then he was also the first school of the Church and played the role of international arbiter in theological matters.*12

The schism shook this balance. At first, the university sided with the Avignon pope, but then, tired of the ever-growing extortion of the pope, caring about restoring the unity of the church, the university leaves the decision to the king of France, while he tirelessly calls for a conciliar reunion in order to end the schism by abdicating rival high priests. At the same time, the university defends the supremacy of the Council over the pope, the relative independence of the national church from the Holy See, i.e. Gallicanism. But if the first demand raised the prestige of the university in Christendom, the second led to a chill in relations with the papacy and to the growing influence of the monarchy over it.

It seemed to be a complete success. The Cathedral of Constance, where the university played a leading role, sanctifies this triumph. By the way, the curious positions of some of the university masters are noticeable on it. The English masters take the side of the papacy on the issue of beneficiation. They think about their own interests, and they were better served by this party.

In those days, a purely French crisis broke out, which undermined the position of the Paris University.

After the uprising, Paris becomes the capital of the English king. Of course, the university did not immediately go over to the side of the Burgundians, and those who switched were part of it. The duke relied on mendicant orders with which the university traditionally did not get along. The university condemned and prosecuted Jean Petit, an apologist for the assassination of the Duke of Orleans. At the time of the capture of the city by the British, many masters left Paris. But those who remained in Paris became burgundy and submitted to the will of the British. The most famous episode of this English period of the University of Paris was his actions against Joan of Arc. In declaring its hostility towards her, the university wanted not only to please its foreign master. Here he followed popular opinion, which was extremely hostile to the Maid of Orleans. It is known that the university led the process against the Virgin and with undisguised satisfaction reported her condemnation to the English king.

The ashes of the fire in Rouen tarnish the prestige of the university. Having recaptured Paris, Charles VII, and after him Louis XI, are distrustful of the “collaborionist”, although the university stood on the side of their Gallican policy and strongly supported the pragmatic sanction.

In 1437, the king deprives the university of tax privileges and forces it to contribute to increased taxes in order to recapture Montero. In 1445, his judicial privilege was taken away from him, he became subject to the decisions of parliament. The king supports the reorganization of the university, carried out by the papal legate, Cardinal d'Etouteville, in 1452. In 1470, Louis XI obliges the masters and students from Burgundy to swear allegiance to him. Finally, in 1499, the university loses its right to strike. From now on, he is in the hands of the king.

What happened to the spirit of education during all these battles? Education has undergone a twofold evolution, which will allow us to better understand the relationship between scholasticism and humanism, to discern the nuances in this opposition, to trace the passing of the torch of reason in the transition from one period to another.

Output

So, we know that until the 13th century, when the formation of universities began, the schools were: monastic (at abbeys), episcopal (at cathedrals), and court (“palacium”). Schools attached to monasteries and abbeys during the period of the barbarian invasions were something of a refuge and repositories of monuments of classical culture, places of making lists; Episcopal schools were the site of predominantly elementary education. However, court life brought the greatest revival into cultural life. So, the director of one of these schools was Alcuin of York (730-804), adviser to King Charlemagne on culture and education. A three-stage training was organized:

reading, writing, elementary concepts of vernacular Latin, a general understanding of the Bible and liturgical texts;

the study of the seven liberal arts (first the trio of grammar, rhetoric and dialectics, then the quartet of arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music;

in-depth study of Scripture.

Alcuin boldly formulated the spirit of his innovations: “So new Athens will grow on the land of the Franks, even more brilliant than in antiquity, for our Athens is fertilized by Christ’s teaching, and therefore will surpass the Academy in wisdom.” * 13

Whether he was fully capable of realizing his program or not, his merit in writing and preparing textbooks on each of the seven liberal arts is beyond any doubt.

Only Scot Eriugena restored dialectics and philosophy in the second generation in their rights through the inclusion of liberal arts in the context of theology. From forms of erudition, they turned into a tool for research, comprehension and development of Christian truths in general. In this sense, the term “first scholasticism” is acceptable, delineating the period from Scotus Eriugena to Anselm, from the philosophers of the Sharts and St. Victor schools to Abelard.

University of Paris

So the seven liberal arts were included in the context of theology. Theology has separated itself into a separate faculty of the University of Paris. The University of Paris is the largest university of the Middle Ages. The university is a united corporation of masters and students. The University of Paris had a faculty of theology and arts, with the latter serving as a preparation for the former. The universal language is Latin. In the 13th century, he played an important role in politics. The second name is Sorbonne.

In 1970 it was reorganized into an independent network of universities. By 1985, there were 230 thousand students.

Footnotes

*1 - Encyclopedia: "World History". Volume 1. Ch. Editor Maria Aksyonova. Moscow "Avant +" 1997. Page 350

*2 - Encyclopedia: "World History." Volume 1. Ch. Editor Maria Aksyonova. Moscow "Avant +" 1997. Page 351

*3 - Encyclopedia: "World History". Volume 1. Ch. Editor Maria Aksyonova. Moscow "Avant +" 1997. Page 351

*4 - Western philosophy. "From the origins to the present: the Middle Ages." Giovanni Reale and Dario Antiseri. LLP TK "Petropolis" St. Petersburg 1995. Page 87

*5 - Encyclopedia: "World History". Volume 1. Ch. Editor Maria Aksyonova. Moscow "Avant +" 1997. Page 352

*6 - Encyclopedia: "World History". Volume 1. Ch. Editor Maria Aksyonova. Moscow "Avant +" 1997. Page 352

*7 - Encyclopedia: "World History". Volume 1. Ch. Editor Maria Aksyonova. Moscow "Avant +" 1997. Page 352

*8 - "History of Medieval Philosophy". Frederick Copston. "Enigma" Moscow 1997. Page 182

*9 - "History of Medieval Philosophy". Frederick Copston. "Enigma" Moscow 1997. Page 183

*10 - "History of Medieval Philosophy". Frederick Copston. "Enigma" Moscow 1997. Page 187-188

*11 - "Intellectuals in the Middle Ages". Jacques Le Goff. Allergo - Press. Dolgoprudny 1997. Page 185

*12 - "Intellectuals in the Middle Ages". Jacques Le Goff. Allergo - Press. Dolgoprudny 1997. Page 186

*13 - Western philosophy. "From the origins to the present: the Middle Ages." Giovanni Reale and Dario Antiseri. LLP TK "Petropolis" St. Petersburg 1995. Page 87

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Western philosophy. "From the origins to the present: the Middle Ages." Giovanni Reale and Dario Antiseri. LLP TK "Petropolis" St. Petersburg 1995.

"History of Medieval Philosophy". Frederick Copston. "Enigma" Moscow 1997.

"Intellectuals in the Middle Ages". Jacques Le Goff. Allergo - Press. Dolgoprudny 1997.

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