SICUT IN EDICTUM SCRIPTUM EST. THE PROBLEM OF CONTINUITY OF ROMAN LEGAL TRADITION IN THE EDICTS OF 5th-6th CENTURIES BARBARIAN KINGS
The author studies the problem of continuity of Roman Law in the Romano-Barbarian kingdoms. Modern scholars (K.F. Eichhorn, F. Dahn, K. Zeumer, W.Reinhardt, A. Schultze, P. Merea, A Guarino, H. Wolfram, E.A. Thompson, P.D. King, R. Collins and others) often support the view that different legal regimes existed at that time for the Romans and for the barbarians (the so-called «personal character» of law). This view is based on a broad interpretation of an article in the Burgundian Code (Lex Gund [8]). If one assumes this interpretation to be correct, this would mean that western legislation of the 5th-6th centuries witnessed a breach in the tradition of the post-classical Roman law (Theodosian Code and novellae issued by emperors of the middle and the second half of the 5th century), which was territorial in its character, i.e. applied equally to all the inhabitants of the Empire. The article shows that the idea of broken tradition contradicts both the structure and contents of the barbarian kings' legislation of the 5th and 6th centuries. Analysis of the legislatorial activity of the Visigothic king Euric (466-484/485) and other Romano-Barbarian rulers of the period in question (Vandal, Frankish, Ostrogothic, Burgundian) shows that they not only copied the outer form of the late Roman edicts issued by prefects of the pretorium, but were guided by the essential contents of Roman Law. There was no special law for the barbarians: the law of the barbarian kings (like emperors' constitutions before them) were equally valid for the barbarian and Roman population. At the same time Visigothic and Burgundian kings sanctioned the usage of the books of excerpts from the imperial law in court (excerpts from the Theodosian Code, from 2nd half of the 5th century novellae, etc. - the so-called Lex Romana Visigothorum and Lex Romana Burgundorum), thus underlining the continuity of the legal system and their status of direct successors of Roman law-givers. Very typical in this respect is the edict of the Visigothic king Theudis (531-548), included, together with imperial constitutions, in the very part of the Lex Romana Visigothorum which reproduces the Theodosian code. Taking all this into consideration, the author of the paper joins those who support the view of the territorial character of the law system in the Romano-Barbarian kingdoms (A. Garcfa Gallo, A. D'Ors, R. Gibert, A. Iglesfa Ferreiros and others).