Justinian Code, compiled by Justinian, is the first systematic and complete code in European history, and it is also the basis for the legal development of most European countries. The basis of the code, the Justinian Code, comes from Roman law. Roman law generally refers to all laws in the whole historical period from the formation of the Roman state in the 6th century BC to the compilation of the code by Emperor Justinian in the middle of the 6th century. Servius Gurius in the 6th century BC? About 578 BC to 534 BC? The reform in Si Nuo is the symbol of the formation of Roman state and law. At the same time, Roman slave owners demanded the establishment of new social norms in order to meet the needs of rule, and Roman slavery law came into being. From 45 BC/kloc-0 BC to 450 BC, the bronze watch twelve laws produced by civilians in their struggle against nobles were a great victory for civilians. At the same time, it is also the first written law in Rome and the embryonic form of Roman law. It summed up the customary law of the previous stage and laid the foundation for the development of Roman law in the future. Some scholars believe that the twelve tables law has never been abolished, and some of its provisions have been implemented until the end of Roman history. From the 3rd century BC to 1 century AD, through a series of wars of foreign conquest, Rome's territory continued to expand and became a great empire spanning Europe, Asia and Africa. The main feature of Roman law in this period is that civil law occupies a dominant position. Civil law, also known as civil law, is an early Roman law, a normative resolution and other customary norms adopted by the citizens' assembly and the Senate, and its application scope is limited to Roman citizens. In addition, the empire also has the so-called law of all peoples, that is, "all ethnic groups have laws." It is also an organic part of Roman law, which was formulated through the judicial activities of the supreme consul of Rome. In fact, it is an "international law" within the scope of Roman rule. According to the needs of the Roman slave class, it absorbed the existing legal achievements of various ethnic groups and developed in a more complicated relationship. The content is mainly to adjust the property relationship, especially the ownership and contractual relationship. As for family, marriage and inheritance rights, they are still stipulated by civil law. Although these laws have been widely used by Germans, Romans and Italians, their contents are still very simple, and they are only collected from emperors before the present era, which are not profound enough to adapt to the changes of the times. Even the latest Dior Western Code was promulgated. By the time of Justinian, many of them did not meet the needs at that time. The ambitious Justinian examined these codes and thought that these old codes had basic defects that could not be covered up. For the sake of his imperial career, he wants to provide people with a code of conduct that they will always abide by, not to collect and reprint the laws of emperors in a book. This is not a simple legislative cause, nor is it an extension of religious cause. This will be another pillar of his revival of the empire. Overview of Justinian Code On February 13, 526 AD, Justinian the Great issued an imperial edict, appointing Tribuni Si Er to organize a committee composed of 10 jurists, with John, a former judge of the "Holy Court", as the chairman. The Committee has the right to use all existing information and can add, delete and modify it. Then, these decrees are marked with the name of the emperor, the object of implementation and the date, and then classified according to the content and arranged in chronological order. This collection of laws was promulgated and implemented in 529 AD, which is the famous Justinian Code. In 534, the Justinian Code was revised and promulgated again. "Justinian Code *** 12" is divided into subheadings, each subheading is arranged in chronological order, with the names of the emperor who issued the imperial edict and the addressee marked on it, and the date is indicated at the end of the imperial edict. After the promulgation of the Justinian Code, as a continuation of the Justinian Code, three parts were successively promulgated: General Introduction to Justinian Law, Collection of Justinian Theories and Justinian New Law. The General Theory of Justinian Law, also known as the Legal Ladder, was completed at the end of 533. * * * is divided into four volumes, and the second volume is molecular items. It collects the papers of jurists of past dynasties and briefly expounds the legal principles. This is a concise textbook for studying the principles of Roman law. In 530 AD, Justinian re-appointed Tribuni Si Er as the chairman, and 65,438+065,438+0 learned and prestigious jurists and five professors selected from Berutos and Constantine Law Schools as members. * * * collected, sorted out and extracted the works of famous Roman jurists in different categories, and * * * spent three years compiling the Collection of Essays. In addition, in 565, after the jurist compiled the Code, Emperor Justinian promulgated a new decree 168, which was called "Justinian New Law". Its main content belongs to administrative regulations, and there are also norms about inheritance system. The above four parts were collectively called The Complete Book of Justinian Civil Law in the12nd century. As the Code of Justinian was the first to be compiled and the core of this encyclopedia of civil law, it is generally called the Code of Justinian. Although the Code of Justinian, an important legal document, was compiled after the demise of the Western Roman Empire, it was handled according to the situation at that time, so generally speaking, it can reflect the whole picture of Roman law in the heyday of the Roman Empire, that is, the "classical era". Justinian Code clearly declared that the imperial power was unrestricted, which safeguarded the interests of the church and consolidated the dominant position of slave owners. The code requires that "everyone should abide by the law", otherwise severe sanctions should be imposed according to law; The code also emphasizes that slaves must obey their masters' arrangements without any resistance. Therefore, the starting point and destination of Justinian's codification are completely consistent. He tried to consolidate the imperial power through the systematization of legal norms, and used this code to serve his rule of saving slavery. Although the Justinian Code retains the slave law, it cancels the part that parents can sell their children as slaves to compensate themselves for offending others. The law affirms women's right to inheritance; The code emphasizes the ideological rule of Christianity, establishes the principle of divine right of monarchy, and specifies all aspects of Christian life in detail, emphasizes the policy of compulsory conversion to Christianity and suppression of pagans, and even stipulates the scale and living rules of churches and monasteries, strengthening the rule over farmers; The code also uses many clauses to strictly stipulate that slaves and slave owners must unconditionally obey their masters, and impose heavy penalties or even death sentences on those who do not obey. It was only because of the slave owners' resistance that they had to write the terms of releasing slaves. From the popularization of code 12 to 15 century, the "Renaissance" of Roman law appeared in Europe, and many countries adopted Roman law one after another. Germany is the most active country in adopting Roman law. In A.D. 1459, Maximilian I of Germany issued a proclamation "announcing that the trial of the imperial court was based on the same law and was executed by sixteen judges". At least eight judges are doctors of law, and they must be proficient in Roman law; The other eight people were selected from the aristocratic class who were privileged by Roman law and deeply loved Roman law. Roman law was used in Germany until the end of19th century, and the re-enacted German Civil Code could not escape the influence of Roman law. In France, Roman law was strictly prohibited at first, but under the general trend of political and economic development, from the16th century, Roman law gradually became the authoritative standard for judges to judge cases. Napoleon's proud French civil code is also based on Roman law, which later became a classic of civil code in continental law system. In Britain, because the nobles were dissatisfied with Justinian's attribution of all privileges to the emperor, they all resisted the adoption of Roman law, but all this did not prevent Roman law from becoming a common teaching material for advanced research in British law in the 12 century. Although the British legal system largely comes directly from the "private law" part of the original Germanic law-contract principle, will, trust system, personal law, maritime law and so on. It didn't accept the form of Roman law, but it still can't get rid of the influence of Roman law. The influence of code The Justinian Code is the first complete written law on slavery in the world. It systematically collects and arranges all the laws and legal works from Rome to Justinian, which are voluminous and rich in content. It indicates that Roman law itself has developed to an extremely developed and complete stage, which has had a great influence on the development of jurisprudence and jurisprudence in European countries in the future. In addition, the content and legislative techniques of this code are far more detailed than other slavery laws. The concepts and principles defined by it have the characteristics of rigorous wording, accuracy and clear conclusion, especially the important principles it puts forward, such as the formal equality of free people within the scope of "private law", the main condition for the contract to take effect with the consent of the parties, and the unlimited private ownership of property, which laid the foundation for later laws. At the end of the Middle Ages, the Complete Works of Civil Law (that is, the Complete Works of State Law and the Code of Justinian Law) became the main basis for establishing the legal system in continental Europe. It is said that the Roman law system implemented in such countries is in contrast with the common law system implemented in English-speaking countries. No country has completely copied the complete set of national laws, but only incorporated some of them into the civil law. It is the basis of legal research, training and discussion in many European countries. Because many non-European countries finally adopted some parts of Roman law, the influence of The Complete Works of State Law is very extensive and worldwide. Its main influence is concentrated in the civil law system, especially the French Civil Code and the German Civil Code.