Gravi de pugna

Gravi de pugna is a forged letter written in the name of Augustine of Hippo which asserts that the morally superior side is always superior in battle and therefore that wars are proven to be just wars by their military success. The letter was widely accepted as authentic, and reassured soldiers that God was on their side.

Ideology

"You are concerned with whether you will prevail in battle: I don't wish you to doubt... when you are fighting God will look down from heaven, and discern which side is just and give that side the victory"

Gravi de pugna, translated by David A. Lenihan.^[1]

Gravi de pugna is best known for its simple assertion that God will assure that the morally superior side will win military battles,^[2]^[3] and conversely, that victory itself validates that the use of force was appropriate.^[4]^[a] Udo Heyn claims this was a Germanic notion,^[4]^[b] and Phillip Wynn reports that it had long been believed in pagan antiquity by the time of this letter.^[5] This understanding was, in fact, utterly rejected by Augustine.^[5] Kelly DeVries regards the theology of Gravi de pugna as shallow and considers it to raise problems of theodicy and legitimacy as soon as the first Christian army loses.^[6]

Gravi also urges prayer for victory before battle, which was also rejected by Augustine, who found such prayers inappropriate.^[5]

History

Gravi de pugna was written in the fifth century.^[4] The letter was widely accepted as authentic from its introduction through the medieval era,^[2]^[3] and was the most frequently cited text in this period on holy war.^[7] It was invoked to justify numerous wars, including by Hincmar of Reims, Rabanus Maurus, Sedulius Scottus, Ivo of Chartres, and Bernard of Clairvaux^[8] It was also recited at the Siege of Lisbon in 1147 CE.^[6] Gravi imbued the Crusaders with confidence that God was on their side, squelching all moral concerns and leading to behavior that did not comply with then-accepted rules of war.^[9]

The work lost influence with the renaissance of the 12th century, which developed more sophisticated jurisprudence and moral reasoning,^[10] At the same time, Augustine's own opinions on just wars, which had been largely unknown, were studied by the decretists and through them, Aquinas as well.^[11]^[12] The authenticity of Gravi de Pugna was not conclusively rejected until Erasmus.^[13] Although it is regarded by contemporary scholars as "obviously un-Augustinian",^[14] it is now widely recognized that Gravi de pugna has inaccurately influenced scholars of Augustine's views on war even up through modern times.^[15]^[7]

Published editions

Migne, Jacques Paul (ed.). "Epistle 13 (b)". Patrologia Latina. Vol. 33. col. 1098. Dilectissimo et spectabili viro Bonifacio, Augustinus episcopus. Gravi de pugna conquereris: dubites nolo, utile tibi tuisque dabo consilium: arripe manibus arma; oratio aures pulset Auctoris: quia quando pugnatur, Deus apertis cœlis prospectat, et partem quam inspicit justam, ibi dat palmam.

Notes

^ This is a form of the just-world fallacy.
^ See Trial by combat § Origins, which also ascribes Germanic origins to that practice.

Citations

^ Lenihan 1988, p. 58-59.
^ ^a ^b Lenihan 1988.
^ ^a ^b Russell 1977.
^ ^a ^b ^c Heyn 1997, p. 19.
^ ^a ^b ^c Wynn 2013, p. 302.
^ ^a ^b DeVries 1999, p. 87.
^ ^a ^b Cowdrey 2003, p. 178.
^ Russell 1977, p. 29,37,38.
^ Chan 2016, p. 17.
^ Russell 1977, p. 27.
^ Lenihan 1996, p. 76-77.
^ Cowdrey 2014, pp. 23–24.
^ Lenihan 1988, p. 37-38.
^ Lenihan 1988, p. 59.
^ Lenihan 1988, p. 38.

References

Chan, David (2016). "The Moral Problem of War". Beyond Just War: A Virtue Ethics Approach. Palgrave Macmillan UK. pp. 8–29. doi:10.1057/9781137263414_2. ISBN 978-1-349-99986-6.
Cowdrey, H.E.J. (2003). "Christianity and the morality of warfare during the first century of crusading". In Bull, M.G.; Housley, N.; Edbury, P.W.; Phillips, J.P. (eds.). The Experience of Crusading. Vol. 1. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81168-2.
Cowdrey, H. E. J. (2014). "New Dimensions of Reform. War as a Path to Salvation". Jerusalem the Golden. Outremer. Vol. 3. Turnhout: Brepols Publishers. pp. 11–24. doi:10.1484/m.outremer-eb.1.102314. ISBN 978-2-503-55172-2. ISSN 2565-8794. S2CID 163912796.
DeVries, Kelly (1999). "God and defeat in medieval warfare: Some preliminary thoughts". In Kagay, D.J.; Villalon, L.J.A. (eds.). The Circle of War in the Middle Ages: Essays on Medieval Military and Naval History. Warfare in history. Boydell Press. p. 87-100. ISBN 978-0-85115-645-3. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
Heyn, Udo (1997). Peacemaking in medieval Europe: A historical & bibliographical guide. Guides to historical issues. Regina Books. ISBN 978-0-941690-71-3.
Lenihan, David A. (1988). "The Just War Theory in the Work of Saint Augustine". Augustinian Studies. 19: 37–70. doi:10.5840/augstudies1988191.
Lenihan, David A. (1996). "The Influence of Augustine's Just War: The Early Middle Ages". Augustinian Studies. 27 (1): 55–93. doi:10.5840/augstudies19962713.
Russell, Frederick H. (1977) [1975]. The Just War in the Middle Ages. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 26,28-29,37-38,56. ISBN 978-0-521-29276-4.
Wynn, Phillip (2013). "The Medieval Construction of Augustine as an Authority on War and Military Service". Augustine on War and Military Service. Fortress Press. ISBN 978-1-4514-6473-3. Retrieved 13 September 2017.