The School of Salamanca at 500: How Spanish Scholasticism Shaped British Thought

What do John Locke, modern political liberty, international law, and the Spanish scholastics have in common?

Five hundred years ago, the School of Salamanca emerged as one of Europe’s most influential intellectual movements. Its theologians and philosophers grappled with questions that remain remarkably familiar: What makes political authority legitimate? Are there universal human rights? What are the limits of state power? What is the relationship between conscience, law, and freedom?

Far from remaining confined to Catholic Spain, these ideas travelled across Europe, crossing confessional and political boundaries and helping to shape the intellectual foundations of the modern world.

To commemorate the fifth centenary of the School of Salamanca, Blackfriars welcomes an international group of scholars for an evening exploring the remarkable influence of Spanish scholasticism on British philosophy, theology, law, and political thought.

The event will also introduce Projections of Spanish Jesuit Scholasticism on British Thought: New Horizons in Politics, Law and Rights (Brill, 2023), edited by Leopoldo J. Prieto López and José Luis Cendejas Bueno, a volume examining the often-overlooked intellectual connections between Catholic scholasticism and the development of British modernity (https://brill.com/display/title/62342).

Speakers:

• Fr Reginald Lynch OP — Blackfriars, University of Oxford
• Dr Jan C. Bentz — Blackfriars, University of Oxford
• Prof. Leopoldo Prieto López — Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, Madrid
• Prof. Javier Gómez — Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, Madrid

Part of a series of academic events taking place in London, Oxford, and Edinburgh on 4–6 November 2026, with the involvement of Spanish academic and cultural institutions.

This event is free and open to all, no registration is required.

 

Venue: Blackfriars Hall - St Giles Oxford, OX1 3LY United Kingdom

Contact:
Aquinas Institute
aquinas@bfriars.ox.ac.uk