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About the Talk
The maxim Quod omnes tangit ab omnibus approbari debet (often abbreviated Qot), or some variant thereof, was commonly employed in medieval political and legal writings. Translated into English as “what touches all must be approved by all,” it has ordinarily been understood by scholars to express a nascent justification of constitutionalism, democracy or popular sovereignty, or at any rate a principle underlying some system of representative government that limited the power of rulers. By contrast, I assert that Qot constituted a sort of rhetorical flourish, a cipher, that could be manipulated to suit a vast array of legal and political arguments. In support of this claim, I investigate the deployment of Qot in several of William of Ockham’s writings on the relation between the church and temporal power. Ultimately, it will become evident Ockham made it serve many purposes according to his polemical particular requirements.
About the Speaker
Cary J. Nederman is a professor of political science at Texas A&M University. His research concentrates on the history of Western political thought, with a specialization in Greek, Roman, and early European ideas up to the seventeenth century. The author or editor of more than 25 books, Nederman’s latest monographs are The Rope and the Chains: Machiavelli’s Early Thought and Its Transformations (Lexington Books/Rowman & Littlefield, 2023), The Bonds of Humanity: Cicero’s Legacies in European Social and Political Thought, c.1100-c.1550 (Penn State University Press, 2020), and Thomas Becket: An Intimate Portrait (Paulist Press, 2000). He recently co-edited The Research Handbook on the History of Political Thought (Edward Elgar, 2024). He has also published 175 journal articles and book chapters.


About the Series
In 2002, the Medieval Institute inaugurated a lecture series in honor of Robert M. and Ricki Conway. Robert Conway was a 1966 graduate of Notre Dame and trustee of the University, He was (and his wife Ricki continues to be) a long-time friend and supporter of the Medieval Institute. The annual Conway Lectures bring senior scholars of international distinction to Notre Dame each fall to speak on topics across a variety of disciplines.

Originally published at medieval.nd.edu.