Knowledge (XXG)

Law of majestas

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36: 290: 197:("The crime of majestas is that which is committed against the Roman people or against their safety.") Of treasons other than military offences, some of the more noticeable were the raising of an army or levying war without the command of the emperor, the questioning of the emperor's choice of a successor, the murder of (or conspiracy to murder) hostages or certain 156:, to which the date of 48 B.C. has been conjecturally assigned, continued to be the basis of the Roman law of treason until the latest period of the empire. The original text of the law appears to have still dealt with what were chiefly military offences, such as sending letters or messages to the enemy, giving up a standard or fortress, and desertion. 258:. A traitor could not make a will or a gift or emancipate a slave. Even the death of the accused, if guilty of treason of the gravest kind, such as levying war against the state, did not extinguish the charge, but the memory of the deceased became infamous, and his property was forfeited as though he had been convicted in his lifetime. 237:
one of those crimes in which any citizen was entitled to prosecute. The law deprived the accused in a charge of treason of his ordinary remedy for malicious prosecution, and also took from him the privilege (which those accused of other crimes generally possessed) of immunity from accusation by women
225:
in later law. It was not treason to repair a statue of the emperor which had decayed from age, to hit such a statue with a stone thrown by chance, to melt down such a statue if unconsecrated, to use mere verbal insults against the emperor, to fail in keeping an oath sworn by the emperor or to decide
201:
of high rank, the occupation of public places, the meeting within the city of persons hostile to the state with weapons or stones, incitement to sedition or administration of unlawful oaths, release of prisoners justly confined, falsification of public documents, and failure of a provincial governor
55:
It should be brought up to date to reflect subsequent history or scholarship (including the references, if any). When you have completed the review, replace this notice with a simple note on this article's talk
311: 46: 109:
were, strictly, public enemies who bore arms against the state; and traitors were regarded as having no more rights than public enemies. The
302: 335: 85:) throughout the Republican and Imperial periods dealing with crimes against the Roman people, state, or Emperor. 113:
made it punishable with death to communicate with the enemy or to betray a citizen to the enemy. Other kinds of
178:. The concept of the emperor as divine had much to do with this. It became a maxim that treason was next to 185:
The law as it existed in the time of Justinian is contained chiefly in the titles of the Digest and Codex
195:
maiestatis crimen illud est quod adversus populum Romanum vel adversus securitatem eius committitur."
353: 255: 202:
to quit his province at the expiration of his office or to deliver his army to his successor.
295:
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
238:
or infamous persons, from liability to be put to the torture, and from having his slaves
347: 306: 296: 110: 251: 165: 198: 250:
The punishment from the time of Tiberius was death (usually by beheading) and
121:), in other words, banishment. The crime was tried before a special tribunal ( 315:. Vol. 27 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 223–228. 129:), which was perhaps the earliest permanent criminal court existing at Rome. 179: 94: 168:, the law of treason was greatly expanded in scope, mainly in the reign of 101:
were almost exclusively those committed in military service. The very name
330:
A very good collection of resources maintained by professor Ernest Metzger
169: 17: 239: 218: 174: 98: 190: 105:, the name of the crime in the older Roman law, is evidence of this. 172:, and led to the rise of a class of professional informers, called 29: 329: 45:
is largely based on an article in the out-of-copyright
97:, the offences originally falling under the head of 117:
were punished by "interdiction of fire and water" (
189:. The definition given in the Digest (taken from 160:Expansion of the law of treason under Tiberius 339:by Professor Yves Lassard and Alexandr Koptev 226:a case contrary to an imperial constitution. 8: 217:" ("Emperors are as gods") are the words of 209:) was punishable as much as an overt act ( 81:, encompasses several ancient Roman laws ( 283: 281: 279: 277: 275: 273: 271: 27:Crimes against the state in ancient Rome 267: 7: 254:of property, coupled with complete 242:to make them testify against him. 25: 301:Craies, William Feilden (1911). " 288: 34: 132:At a later period, the name of 1: 52:, which was produced in 1911. 215:Principes instar deorum esse 370: 187:Ad legem Iuliam maiestatis 119:aquae et ignis interdictio 221:. This crime was called 312:Encyclopædia Britannica 229:Treason was one of the 48:Encyclopædia Britannica 136:gave place to that of 127:duumviri perduellionis 337:The Roman Law Library 223:laesa maiestas divina 154:lex Iulia maiestatis 125:) by two officials ( 71: 70: 16:(Redirected from 361: 317: 316: 294: 292: 291: 285: 256:civil disability 83:leges maiestatis 66: 63: 57: 50:Eleventh Edition 38: 37: 30: 21: 369: 368: 364: 363: 362: 360: 359: 358: 344: 343: 326: 321: 320: 300: 289: 287: 286: 269: 264: 248: 231:publica judicia 205:The intention ( 162: 146:minuta maiestas 91: 75:law of majestas 67: 61: 58: 54: 39: 35: 28: 23: 22: 15: 12: 11: 5: 367: 365: 357: 356: 346: 345: 342: 341: 333: 325: 324:External links 322: 319: 318: 307:Chisholm, Hugh 266: 265: 263: 260: 247: 244: 161: 158: 138:laesa maiestas 90: 87: 79:lex maiestatis 69: 68: 42: 40: 33: 26: 24: 14: 13: 10: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 366: 355: 352: 351: 349: 340: 338: 334: 331: 328: 327: 323: 314: 313: 308: 304: 298: 297:public domain 284: 282: 280: 278: 276: 274: 272: 268: 261: 259: 257: 253: 245: 243: 241: 236: 232: 227: 224: 220: 216: 212: 208: 203: 200: 196: 193:) is this: '' 192: 188: 183: 181: 177: 176: 171: 167: 159: 157: 155: 151: 147: 143: 139: 135: 130: 128: 124: 120: 116: 112: 111:Twelve Tables 108: 104: 100: 96: 88: 86: 84: 80: 76: 65: 53: 51: 49: 43:This article 41: 32: 31: 19: 336: 310: 252:confiscation 249: 234: 230: 228: 222: 214: 210: 206: 204: 194: 186: 184: 182:in gravity. 173: 163: 153: 149: 148:, or simply 145: 141: 137: 133: 131: 126: 122: 118: 114: 106: 102: 92: 82: 78: 74: 72: 59: 47: 44: 199:magistrates 89:Description 62:August 2022 262:References 246:Punishment 134:perduellio 115:perduellio 107:Perduelles 103:perduellio 354:Roman law 180:sacrilege 175:delatores 164:With the 95:Roman law 348:Category 240:tortured 211:effectus 207:voluntas 170:Tiberius 150:maiestas 142:deminuta 123:quaestio 18:Majestas 309:(ed.). 303:Treason 299::  219:Tacitus 99:treason 305:". In 293:  191:Ulpian 166:Empire 152:. The 77:, or 56:page. 235:i.e. 213:). " 73:The 144:or 93:In 350:: 270:^ 233:, 140:, 332:. 64:) 60:( 20:)

Index

Majestas
Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition
Roman law
treason
Twelve Tables
Empire
Tiberius
delatores
sacrilege
Ulpian
magistrates
Tacitus
tortured
confiscation
civil disability







public domain
Treason
Chisholm, Hugh
Encyclopædia Britannica
A very good collection of resources maintained by professor Ernest Metzger
The Roman Law Library by Professor Yves Lassard and Alexandr Koptev
Category
Roman law

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