The Twelve Tables Mr Cummings World History Investigative

The Twelve Tables Mr. Cummings World History

Investigative Questions • How did The Twelve Tables protect Roman citizens throughout the Empire? • What influence did the Tables have on the United States government?

Historical Background • 451 -450 BC; • Earliest attempt by Rome to write down their laws – previous unwritten laws were applied unfairly • Earliest surviving Roman document – originally carved into wood – later set in stone & couldn’t be changed • Originally written as The Ten Tables, but added to in 450 BC.

Historical Background • Previous to its creation, no laws were written down and were open to interpretation by judges • Documents were the result of class struggles between patricians/plebeians while giving male heads of families (patria potestas) great power. • After Tarquin’s expulsion as the last king of Rome (501 BCE), plebeians demanded entrance into running magistrates left over from his rule and constantly threatened to leave the city, which would have ground to a halt without their cheap labor.

Historical Background • As the years went on, a new group of Plebs demanded more protections from dominant Patricians • For 10 years they refused to serve in the army, as a means of equalizing Patrician power • Ten more years passed before plague, famine, and word from Athens of reforms reaches Rome

Historical Background • 451 BCE: A Decemvirate (“The Ten Men”) was formed who collected and condensed the various laws into a single uniform code • Based on the Greek legislative system called the Solorian Constitution • Eventually published on bronze tablets and displayed in the Forum

Historical Significance • Actual contents have been lost – all we have are excerpts and summaries • Tables influenced creation of all future western laws (English Bill of Rights, US Constitution, US Bill of Rights) – A Constitution is the law of the land which everyone must follow

Organization of The Tables • • • 2. 1 TABLA I (Civil procedure) 2. 2 TABVLA II (Civil procedure) 2. 3 TABVLA III (Debt) 2. 4 TABVLA IV (Parents and children) 2. 5 TABVLA V (Inheritance) 2. 6 TABVLA VI (Property) 2. 7 TABVLA VII (Real Property) 2. 8 TABVLA VIII (Torts) 2. 9 TABVLA IX (Constitutional principles) 2. 10 TABVLA X (Funeral regulations) 2. 11 TABVLA XI (Marriage) 2. 12 TABVLA XII (Crimes)

Tabula (Table) I: • Si in ius vocat, ito. Ni it, antestamino. Igitur em capito. • If someone is called to go to court, he is to go. If he doesn't go, a witness should be called. Only then should he be captured. • TODAY: Witnesses are required to testify before a jury and can be held in contempt if they refuse.

Table II: Trials • II. 3: “Whoever is in need of evidence, he shall go on every third day to call out loud before the doorway of the witness; ” Sixth Amendment • TODAY: “…the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial…”

Table VI: Acquisition+ Possession • VI. 2: “Marriage by usage: If a man and woman live together continuously for a year, they are considered to be married; the woman legally is treated as the man’s daughter. ” • TODAY: Various state laws allow for marriages and the sharing of “community property” when couples live together and then

Table VIII: Laws of Injury • VIII. 2: “If a person has maimed another’s limb, let there be retaliation in kind, unless he agrees to make compensation with him. ” (‘Lex Talionis’) • TODAY: Modern-day versions can be found in state and federal personal injury laws and in worker’s compensation benefits.

Table VIII: Laws of Injury • VIII. 3: “If he has broken or bruised a freemen’s bone with his hand or a club, he shall undergo a penalty of 300 pieces; if a slave’s, 150. ”

Table IX: Public Laws • IX. 6: “Putting to death of any man, whosoever he might be, unconvicted is forbidden. ” TODAY: Eighth Amendment • “Excessive bail shall not be required…nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted. ”

Table XII: Supplementary Laws • XII. 5: “Whatever the people had last ordained should be held as binding by law. ” • TODAY: The US Supreme Court, as well as state and federal courts, use PRECEDENT (existing laws) to judge their cases. It is their most important tool in determining the validity of lawsuit.

Other Items of Note • Table IX: Forbids passage of laws against individuals • Table I: Establishes the sanctity of the Subpoena • Table VIII: Thief caught at night could be killed while one caught during daytime had to remanded unharmed • Table VII: Strict property rights involving the location of fallen FRUIT

Other Items of Note • Death was the ultimate penalty and was widely used in unique ways: – Murder, Destruction of crops, integrity of courts (bribes, lies, other acts of perjury) • One piece of fine print angered Plebs to the core when discovered: no Pleb could marry a Patrician – led to violent class conflicts

Conclusion • While The Twelve Tables weren’t the first to publish their laws, it did put Rome into a select group of states that placed objectivity of the law above the subjectivity of capricious rulers • The Decemvirate were eventually left in dishonor after they attempted to steal leadership away from the Consulship. • This time also sees the rise of Cincinnatus (460 BCE).

Investigative Questions • How did The Twelve Tables protect Roman citizens throughout the Empire? • What influence did the Tables have on the United States government?