Cecily Zamora
The first legal text of Roman law is the Law of the Twelve Tables, which dates back to the mid-fifth century BC. The Law of the Twelve Tables was the first written legislation of ancient Roman law, and it was created to address the concerns of the plebeians, who believed that their legal rights were being hampered by the exclusive interpretation and application of unwritten laws by upper-class priests and patricians. The formulation of the Law of the Twelve Tables was a significant step towards establishing a codified legal system in ancient Rome, and it served as the foundation for the development of Roman law, which has had a profound influence on the legal systems of Western civilization and parts of the East.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| First legal text | Law of the Twelve Tables |
| Date of first legal text | Mid-fifth century BC |
| Reason for codification | To prevent magistrates from applying the law arbitrarily |
| Who proposed the codification | Plebeian tribune, C. Terentilius Arsa |
| Year of proposal | 451 BC |
| Number of commissioners | 10 |
| Number of tables | 12 |
| Year of completion | 449 BC |
| Form of recording | Inscribed on tablets |
| Place of posting | Roman Forum |
| Purpose of codification | To enable plebeians to become acquainted with the law and protect themselves against patricians' abuses of power |
| Type of law | Jus scriptum (written law) and jus non scriptum (unwritten law) |
| Later changes | Superseded by later changes in Roman law but never formally abolished |
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What You'll Learn
The Law of the Twelve Tables
The tablets were written by ten commissioners (decemviri) at the insistence of the plebeians, who felt their legal rights were hampered by the fact that court judgments were rendered according to unwritten custom, preserved only within a small group of patricians. The first set of commissioners produced ten tables, which were later supplemented by two additional tables. The code was formally posted, likely on bronze tablets, in the Roman Forum in 450 BC.
The tablets covered a range of topics, including:
- Debt and inheritance: For example, thirty days were allowed for the payment of confessed debt, and for matters settled in court.
- Guardianship: For instance, if a person with no direct heir died, the nearest male agnate would become the guardian of their estate.
- Property: Fruit falling onto another's farm could be lawfully gathered.
- Slavery: A slave could be freed if they gave a certain amount of money to the heir.
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Written and unwritten law
The Romans divided their law into two categories: written law (jus scriptum) and unwritten law (jus non scriptum). By "unwritten law", they meant custom, and by "written law", they referred to laws derived from legislation or any written source.
The first legal text of Roman law is the Law of the Twelve Tables, which dates back to the mid-fifth century BC. The Twelve Tables were written by ten commissioners (decemviri legibus scribundis or decemvirs) at the insistence of the plebeians, who felt their legal rights were hampered by the fact that court judgments were rendered according to unwritten customs preserved only by a small group of patricians. The plebeians wanted the law to be written down to prevent magistrates from applying it arbitrarily. The Twelve Tables were not a reform but a codification of existing customs, stating the rights and duties of Roman citizens.
The Twelve Tables were formally promulgated in 449 BC, consolidating earlier traditions into a unified set of laws. The first set of commissioners produced ten tables, which were later supplemented by two additional tables. In 450 BC, the code was likely posted on bronze tablets in the Roman Forum. The written recording of the law in the Twelve Tables enabled the plebeians to become acquainted with the law and protect themselves against abuses of power by the patricians.
The Twelve Tables were superseded by later changes in Roman law but were never formally abolished. They were venerated by the Romans as a prime legal source, and their formulation was considered a significant development in the history of Roman law. The original text of the Twelve Tables was lost during the Early Middle Ages, and the reconstruction of the text began in the Late Middle Ages. The most important modern reconstruction was published by German legal historian Heinrich Eduard Dirksen in 1824.
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Influence of Greek law
The influence of Greek law on the Romans is a topic that is still widely discussed. The first legal text of Roman law, the Law of the Twelve Tables, was established in the mid-fifth century BC. The Law of the Twelve Tables was compiled by ten Roman citizens, known as the decemviri legibus scribundis, who were given supreme political power while the power of the magistrates was restricted. The decemviri produced a set of laws inscribed on ten tablets (tabulae), which were added to by a second decemvirate in 449 BC.
Greek philosophy influenced the Roman concept of jus gentium, or the law of nations. Jus gentium was developed by the Romans to be applied to both themselves and foreigners. The universality of its application led to the idea that it was dictated by nature, a concept the Romans borrowed from Greek philosophy.
When the centre of the Roman Empire shifted to the Greek East in the 4th century, official Roman legislation began to incorporate many legal concepts of Greek origin. For example, the emperor Constantine started putting restrictions on the ancient Roman concept of patria potestas, the power held by the male head of a family over his descendants. He did so by acknowledging that descendants could have proprietary rights, making concessions to the stricter concept of paternal authority under Greek-Hellenistic law. Later emperors went even further, and eventually, Justinian decreed that a child in potestate became the owner of everything it acquired, except when acquired from its father.
The influence of Greek philosophy and jurisprudence on Roman law is undeniable, as Roman law has gone on to influence the legal systems of most countries in continental Europe and beyond.
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The role of the plebeians
The plebeians, or plebs, were the general body of free Roman citizens who were not patricians, the aristocratic class. The distinction between the two classes was as old as Rome itself, with the plebeians forming the common social class. The plebeians were not a monolithic group, and their precise origins remain unclear. However, they were racially indistinct from the patricians, and the distinction may have been based on the patriciate's monopolization of hereditary priesthoods, which granted membership in the senate.
The Conflict of the Orders, or the Struggle of the Orders, was a political struggle between the plebeians and the patricians, lasting from 500 BC to 287 BC. The conflict arose from the plebeians' exclusion from power and exploitation by the patricians, who controlled Roman politics. The plebeians sought political equality and full political rights, and they achieved their goals through a series of secessions from the city, including the first-ever recorded general strike in history.
The first secession occurred in 494 BC, when the plebeians, advised by Lucius Sicinius Vellutus, refused to march against three Italic tribes with whom Rome was at war. Instead, they seceded to the Mons Sacer outside Rome. This strike, known as the secessio plebis, terrified the patricians, who quickly agreed to the plebeians' demands. As a result, the plebeians were given their own magistrates, the plebeian tribunes, and the right to meet in their own assembly, the Plebeian Council (Concilium Plebis).
The Plebeian Council initially only applied to plebeians, but in 339 BC, the acts of the council began to apply to both plebeians and patricians. The most significant change was the granting of tribunicia potestas (tribunician power), which allowed tribunes of the plebs to veto unfavorable legislation.
In 451 BC, the plebeian tribune C. Terentilius Arsa proposed that the law should be written to prevent magistrates from applying the law arbitrarily. This led to the Law of the Twelve Tables, the first legal text of Roman law, which also introduced the concept of equality before the law (libertas). The plebeians, however, found the resulting laws unsatisfactory, and two new tables of law were added to the original ten.
Over time, the plebeians achieved political equality with the patricians. In 367 BC, a law was passed requiring the election of at least one plebeian consul each year, and by 342 BC, plebeians regularly attained the consulship. The passage of the Lex Hortensia in 287 BC made plebiscita, or laws passed by the Plebeian Council, binding on all citizens, marking the end of the patrician era.
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The development of jus civile
The Roman legal system has influenced the development of law in most Western civilisations and parts of the East. The first legal text of Roman law is the Law of the Twelve Tables, which dates back to the mid-fifth century BC. The Twelve Tables survive only as citations in later sources.
The Twelve Tables were compiled following an initiative to collect the civil laws (ius civile) of the early Republic and end the exclusive control of legal matters by the priestly and patrician class. This resulted in a code of law governing relationships between citizens, separate from sacred law (ius sacrum). The ius civile of the time was undeveloped, with attributes of strict formalism, symbolism, and conservatism, as seen in the ritual practice of mancipatio.
During the period of the Republic (753–31 BC), the jus civile (civil law) developed. It was based on custom or legislation and applied only to Roman citizens. The emphasis during the Republic was on the adaptation of existing laws by magistrates (ius honorarium) rather than the creation of new legislation. This was done through the Annual Praetor's Edict, where permissible cases, defences, and exceptions were outlined, and legal policy was assessed and altered as needed.
By the middle of the 3rd century BC, the Romans developed another type of law, the jus gentium (law of nations), which was applied to both Romans and foreigners. The jus gentium was not a result of legislation but was developed by magistrates and governors who administered justice in cases involving foreigners. It became a flexible alternative to the jus civile, as it could be applied by magistrates to citizens and foreigners alike.
Over time, the civil law was supplemented and corrected by a new body of praetoric law, resulting in the fusion of civil and praetoric law in the Corpus Juris Civilis. The development of the jus honorarium, a new set of rules that often superseded civil law, also contributed to the evolution of the jus civile.
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Frequently asked questions
The first Roman law was the Law of the Twelve Tables, which was written in the mid-fifth century BC, in 451-450 BC, or 449 BC.
The Law of the Twelve Tables was the first written legislation of ancient Roman law. It stated the rights and duties of Roman citizens.
The Law of the Twelve Tables was created to prevent magistrates from applying the law arbitrarily. Before the Law of the Twelve Tables, court judgments were made according to unwritten customs, which were preserved by a small group of patricians.
The exact contents of the Law of the Twelve Tables are not known as only fragments remain. However, it is believed that the Twelve Tables were a collection of sentences concerning the rights of citizens.
