Abstrakt: | Skrzetuski’s views on the law should be considered an important voice in a discussion on
the need to reform the law in the gentry Republic of Poland in the spirit referring to progressive
slogans of the 18th century humanitarian school in law at that time, including views of such
thinkers as Rousseau, Montesquieu and Beccare. The analysis of Wincenty Skrzetuski’ views on
law, including the one biding in the cities of the gentry Republic of Poland points to the fact that
he was one of the first who called for strictly obeying the law, underlining the necessity to make
just laws in the era of Stanisław August equipped with punishments socially useful and congruent
with the crime committed. Skrzetuski, criticizing a so far existing legal system called for
eliminating severe punishment and, instead, suggested creating conditions providing the inevitability
of their execution. A scholarly piarist also called for writing laws that are short, commonlyunderstood
and free from contradictions in according with the Enlightenment postulates. Also,
he called for the fastest and absolute elimination of tortures in the gentry Republic of Poland, as
well as other medieval relics used in the local jurisdiction. In his arguments, Skrzetuski referred
to Cesarego Beccare’s work O przestępstwach i karach. |