Abstract:
Marsilius of Padua's theory of popular sovereignty has been up to the date widely disputed. Despite the restrictive connotations of the concept of 'weightier part' (valentior pars), the article seeks especially to point out the presence of a line of argumentation in the Defensor pacis, by means of which the universitas civium or valentior pars (insofar as they constitute the source of the legitimate political authority) are both understood in a widely inclusive sense. However, the historical projection and the political application of those theoretic concepts led in the facts to an emphasis on the unity and concentration of the legitimated power.
