Jean Bodin was a French jurist and political philosopher, member of the Parlement of Paris and professor of law at the University of Toulouse. Bodin lived during the aftermath of the Protestant Reformation and wrote against the background of religious conflict in France. He seemed to be a nominal Catholic throughout his life but was critical of papal authority over governments. Known for his theory of sovereignty, he favoured the strong central control of a national monarchy as an antidote to factional strife. 1530 – 1596; died at about 65. Alive at the same time as William Shakespeare, Michelangelo, Martin Luther, Nicolaus Copernicus, and Elizabeth I of England. Wiki link