Justinian I

Flavius Petrus Sabbatius Iustinianus or Justinian I (May 11, 483–November 13/14, 565), was Eastern Roman Emperor from August 1, 527 until his death. One of the most important rulers of Late Antiquity, he is best remembered for his reform of the legal code through the commission of Tribonian, and the military expansion of imperial territory that was achieved during his reign, primarily through the campaigns of Belisarius. He is also known as "The last Roman Emperor." He is considered a saint in the Orthodox Church, commemorated on November 14.

Legal activities

Justinian achieved lasting influence for his judicial reforms, notably the summation of all Roman law, something that had never been done before in the mass of unorganized Roman Laws with no coherence. Justinian commissioned quaestor Tribonian to the task, and he issued the first draft of the Corpus Juris Civilis on April 7, 529 in three parts: Digesta (or Pandectae), Institutiones, and the Codex. The Corpus was in Latin, the traditional language of the Roman Empire, but which most citizens of the Eastern Empire poorly understood. The Authenticum or Novellae Constitutiones, a collection of new laws issued during Justinian's reign, later supplemented the Corpus. The Novellae appeared in Greek, the common language of the Empire.

Related Topics:
Roman law - Quaestor - Tribonian - Corpus Juris Civilis - April 7 - 529 - Pandectae - Latin - Roman Empire - Greek

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The Corpus forms the basis of Latin jurisprudence (including ecclesiastical Canon law: ecclesia vivit lege romana) and, for historians, provides a valuable insight into the concerns and activities of the remains of the Roman Empire. As a collection it gathers together the many sources in which the leges (laws) and the other rules were expressed or published: proper laws, senatorial consults (senatusconsulta), imperial decrees, case law, and jurists' opinions and interpretations (responsa prudentum).

Related Topics:
Canon law - Senatorial - Case law

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Tribonian's law code ensured the survival of Roman Law, it would pass to the West in the 12th century and become the basis of much European law code. It eventually passed to Eastern Europe where it appeared in Slavic editions, and it also passed on to Russia. It remains influential to this day.

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