Abstract:
In 1469 Pope Paul II, as lord of the city, issued the municipal statutes of Rome (statuta Urbis). The essay examines these statutes, which represent the first reform of the Roman municipal law issued by a pope after the end of municipal autonomy and the establishment of the papal signoria in 1398. The papal statutes of 1469 are compared to the popular regime’s statutes of 1363, which remained in effect until then. The papal reform conforms the statutes to the new system of seignorial government by removing officials and organs elective of the commune. However, Paul II left intact the structure of the statutes of 1363 and introduced few changes to civil and criminal law. Thanks to this reform, many vestiges of medieval legal romanitas were transmitted to later ages: the statuta Urbis, after being revised and modified, remained in effect until the 19th century.
Read the article on Historia et Ius (an open access peer reviewed journal).
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