Historian and author Jeb Smith joins Deacon Mark Campbell to challenge the conventional narrative that democracy equals freedom, making the case that medieval Catholic kingship preserved self-governance and liberty for centuries in ways modern democracy has failed to achieve. Drawing from his new book Missing Monarchy: Correcting Misconceptions About the Middle Ages, Medieval Kingship, Democracy and Liberty, Jeb argues for a return to radical decentralization rooted in a natural law understanding of governance. The book is available through Sensus Fidelium Press and Amazon.
Vermont-based historian Jeb Smith joins The Catholic Morning Show to discuss his provocative new book Missing Monarchy: Correcting Misconceptions About the Middle Ages, Medieval Kingship, Democracy and Liberty, published by Sensus Fidelium Press.
Jeb argues that the medieval period — which he re-defines as roughly 600–1300 A.D., the era of Anglo-Saxon England and feudal Europe — was characterized by a deeply Catholic, natural law framework in which kings were servants and protectors of God-given law, not makers of it. This structure, he contends, kept government small, decentralized, and genuinely free in ways that modern democracy does not. In democracy, he argues, centralized power inevitably expands — eventually collapsing into oligarchy — because it operates on the humanistic premise that man, not God, is the ultimate lawgiver.
By contrast, medieval self-governance was achieved not through voting, but through radical decentralization: neighboring communities could hold entirely different laws and customs, allowing people to live among like-minded neighbors without political coercion. Jeb references Thomas Aquinas's concept of united holds as an early articulation of this principle — one he sees the American founders partially implementing, though imperfectly.
His prescription for today: strip power from the federal government and state governments alike and return it to the county level, restoring authentic local self-governance. He points to his article published in the Abbeville Institute as further reading on this argument.
🔗 Missing Monarchy — Sensus Fidelium Press:
🔗 Also available on Amazon.com
🔗 Author Jeb Smith — Books, Articles & More
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