as a municipal trustee of the city of Emden, in East Frisia, where he ultimately made his fame. He became a city Syndic in 1604, which placed him at the helm of Emden's governance until his death.

In 1617 Althusius published his principal judicial work, Dicaeologicae. In this work, he categorized laws into two main types: natural laws and positive laws, and argued that natural law is "the will of God for men." Althusius contended that