The laws of 12 tables, the general characteristics of which we will consider, are the famous monument of ancient Roman law. It is believed that they were drawn up by a commission of ten husbands (decemvirs) in 451-450. BC e. Decemvirs during the commission were magistrates. For a long time, some of them did not want to give up their powers and even decided to carry out a coup in order to establish tyranny.
Boards of laws, the influence of Athenian law
Scientists believe that the sources of laws of 12 tables are documents of Athenian law. It was they who the decemvirs were guided by when writing them. An embassy from Rome was sent to the Greek colonies located in southern Italy. Apiy, the eldest of ten husbands, having completed the codification, allegedly said that they should serve for the good and prosperity of the state. Such is the brief history of the creation of the laws of 12 tables.
They got their name not by chance. It was on 12 wooden boards that their text was driven. In front of the Senate building at the Forum, the laws of 12 tables were exhibited. Roman law of antiquity is unthinkable without them. Laws immediately began to study at school. Today their original is apparently lost forever. When the Gauls invaded the territory of Ancient Rome, the boards were destroyed. Only fragments of the statements of lawyers, writers, scientists, political figures of that time have survived to our days.
The meaning of the laws of 12 tables in ancient Rome
These laws in their form were basically a compilation of customs that prevailed during the years of their writing. They were selected in accordance with the interests of the ruling class. So the laws of 12 tables appeared. Their general characteristic is still of great interest. These laws were equipped with legal sanctions provided for in various fields. Among the Romans they were considered a real storehouse of wisdom. Mark Tullius Cicero, a famous ancient Roman lawyer, noted that the Roman law of 12 tables is a document in which you can find a "picture of our antiquity." Cicero believed that this booklet is superior to all philosophers and all libraries for those who are looking for sources and foundations of law by the abundance of benefits and their authority. Children who lived in ancient Rome, studied according to these laws of reading. The Decemvirs, codifying their customs, tried to preserve the privileges and dominant position of the patricians, but they failed to achieve this fully.
Formal equality of plebeians and patricians
According to the laws of 12 tables, plebeians had formal equality in courts with patricians. In addition, they also received certain political rights. For the plebeians, this was a great victory, since arbitrary interpretations of existing customs limited the emerging written law. It became the legal basis of ancient Rome. The laws of 12 tables protected the plebeians from lawlessness and arbitrariness, done by patrician magistrates and judges. In 304 BC e. The Senate decided that in criminal and civil litigation, officials should be guided by written law. Shaky legends were no longer an authority.
The separation of customary law after the adoption of laws
The laws of 12 tables fully reflected the level of legal consciousness that was characteristic of that era. In tsarist times, in the era of the tribal system, there were international and other tribal customs. The tribe was their subject. Customary law after the adoption of the laws of 12 tables was divided into two. One of them is the inner Roman community (Quirite, later called civilian, or civilian). The laws of 12 tables apply to him. The second law regulated relations between the Roman state and other countries. In addition, a special law was in effect in Rome. It described the rites performed during the declaration of war, provided for various measures to comply with state agreements with other countries. Since the time of S. Tullius, an axiom has been affirmed the provision according to which Queer customs and law apply only to citizens of Rome.
Prohibition of marriages between plebeians and patricians
The laws of the 12 tables in ancient Rome included a number of articles that reflected the ancient customs of the patriarchal community, its remnants. They were aimed at preserving centuries-old foundations. In particular, marriages between plebeians and patricians were prohibited. In 445 BC e. this law was repealed.
Real Estate Relations
The 12 tables indicate that the land should be managed by the Roman community. According to religious tradition, it could not be bequeathed to deities and temples. The land was to remain under the control of the community, to be its property. Thus, private ownership of it was limited.
Donation, inheritance, the sale of important real estate (livestock, slaves and land) are furnished with special rituals. They were under the control of the community. The will must have been approved by the chicken committee (and sometimes centuriate if the father deprived his legal heir of the inheritance share). In the event that someone was cultivating an ownerless wasteland or an empty piece of land, he would become its owner after two years. However, this right was not extended to outsiders. On the territory of Rome, only a Roman citizen could dispose of the land and own it.
Severe penalties protect the rights of the owner in 12 tables. For example, the one who committed the night theft of the harvest was sentenced to a crucifix on a tree. The criminal, who set fire to the house and the grain located near him, was put on shackles, burned and beaten.
The law, which was adopted at a meeting of the people, was declared the main legal source. No deal should have contradicted him. The laws of 12 tables describe in detail the boundaries and boundaries of land plots, the order of their inheritance and the prescription of their ownership. The interests of the owner were protected, his property was to be protected from illegal retention. The theft of other people's property, as well as crimes related to the attempt on the health and life of the Quirits, were punished especially severely. The main way to protect the rights of the owner in case of violation was physical reprisal against the perpetrator.
Family relationships
Adoption implied the sanction of the great pontiff and the chicken assembly. The priest and the comitia could refuse him, if the adoption of the adoptive could entail the extinction, extinction of his former family, family name.
In the law on the protection of the Roman family, the head of the family had great power. It should also be seen as a concern for strengthening the community and a relic of the past. For other peoples, this provision has no analogues. The head of the family had the exclusive right to own and dispose of all immovable and movable property. In addition, his power over his wife and descending descendants (including grandchildren) was almost unlimited. After the death of the head of the family, the property was divided evenly between the agnati (the so-called members of the family name). In the event that they were not there, the closest relatives (for example, the brothers of the deceased, their sons, etc.) inherited the state.
The principle of talion, the meaning of the oath
The so-called "principle of the talion" was fixed in the monument - when committing a crime, the punishment was followed as an equal for an equal. This also spoke of the consolidation of the remnants of the tribal system. The oath was attached very great importance. If someone gave false testimony, he was pushed off Tarpeiskoy rock.
Protecting Equality of Citizens
It should be said in more detail about the protection of the equality of citizens, describing the laws of 12 tables. Their general characteristic in this regard is as follows: they protected the dignity, honor and rights of citizens, as well as their formal equality. It was forbidden to give special privileges to one or another of them. The law, in order to maintain equality between citizens, limited the permissible burial expenses, as well as the duration of mourning.
Anyone who composed a song that would have slandered any citizen of Rome could have been sentenced to death. However, the execution could not be carried out without the special sanction of the centuriate comitia. The law protected justice. A judge convicted by someone in a bribe should have been executed.
Sovereign power of the people
Finally, as a relic of antiquity, it is necessary to consider the decisions that were made at public meetings. For all the citizens of Rome, they were binding. Consequently, the Roman people theoretically (except for slaves, strangers and freedmen) was the supreme owner of the entire territory of the state. Sovereign power belonged exclusively to him. Every citizen who betrayed his homeland, thereby committing treason. And if he betrayed his compatriot to the enemy, he would face the death penalty for this .
Relation to religion
The characterization of the laws of the 12 tables would be incomplete if we had not noted the ideas about the religion of the Romans, which they reflected. The connection with them is seen in the fact that pontiffs, guardians of cults at that time also acted as interpreters of customs. They were the first experts in law. The code of laws of 12 tables stated that neglect of rituals prescribed by religion is considered a crime. At the same time, formal aspects were given great importance. Quirits, that is, male patricians who could carry weapons, had a clear priority.
The list of the most serious crimes, punishments and the possibility of ransom
The laws indicated a list of the most serious crimes. This is malicious slander, bribery of judges, betrayal of the state, perjury (especially dangerous), as well as the extermination of crops and arson. Moreover, the law allowed redemption by agreement, which could replace the reprisal. However, this concerned only the free citizens who committed the crime. As a rule, a slave was always responsible for what he had done with his life. A citizen of Rome, in addition, could be sentenced to death only after a decision by centuriate comitia. Intent was an aggravating circumstance.
The meaning of laws 12 tables in the history of law
What is the significance of the laws of 12 tables in history? A general description of their role is as follows. They became one of the first in the ancient world monuments of slaveholding law. They reflected the foundations of the life of the civil Roman community, as well as the institution of private property. The role of this codified code in the development of Roman civil law was very great. Scientists believe that the laws of 12 tables did not stand out among other similar documents of that time in their perfection. The laws of Hammurabi and Manu, for example, were no less developed in terms of criminal law. Roman law did not record many elements of crime. In addition, the possibility of arbitrariness did not exclude the existence of such a document as the laws of 12 tables. The laws of Hammurabi, of course, were not better in this respect. In Egypt, as you know, there were also disenfranchised slaves with whom the owner could deal with at his discretion. However, the Roman emperors were not bound by law and could determine what constitutes a crime and what is not. The punishment in this case was arbitrary. However, it is worth noting that in the criminal law of Rome, crimes of a private and public nature are singled out very early. This is one of its important features.
The laws of 12 tables, the laws of Hammurabi, the laws of Manu - all this is interesting not only to lawyers, but also to all history buffs. After all, legal norms reflect the characteristics of a society. They can be used to judge customs and traditions, the state system, and the borders of power of the head of state.