Law and Empire in Late Antiquity

by Jill Harries

Overview

Law and Empire is the first systematic treatment in English by a historian of the nature, aims and efficacy of public law in the society of the Later Roman Empire. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach, the author offers new interpretations of central issues in the study of Roman law—what it was and how effective: contemporary attitudes to torture and punishment, judicial corruption, and the settlement of disputes.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521422734
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	10/11/2001
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	246
Sales rank:	971,310
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 8.98(h) x 0.63(d)
Lexile:	1780L (what's this?)

About the Author

Jill Harries is Professor of Ancient History at the University of St Andrews. She is the author of Sidonius Apollinaris and the Fall of Rome (1994) and, with Brian Croke, of Religious Conflict in Fourth-Century Rome (1982). She is co-editor, with Ian Wood, of The Theodosian Code: Studies in the Imperial Law of Late Antiquity (1993) and, with Michael Austin and Christopher Smith, of Modus Operandi: Essays in Honour of Geoffrey Rickman (1998).

Table of Contents

1. The law of Late Antiquity; 2. Making the law; 3. The construction of authority; 4. The efficacy of law; 5. In court; 6. Crime and the problem of pain; 7. Punishment; 8. The corrupt judge; 9. Dispute settlement I: out of court; 10. Dispute settlement II: episcopalis audientia; Conclusion.

Editorial Reviews

"It is scarcely possible to do justice in so small a space to the wealth and complexity and Harries's erudite and the wealth and complexity of Harries's erudite and provocative book. For anyone interested in social relations; cultures of codification; legal anthropology; networking; governmental power, authority, and its limits; and in the administration of justice, Law and Empire provides a much needed addition and an indispensable tool to further study of late antiquity." Historian

"This is a groundbreaking work, essential to anyone studying late antiquity." Choice

"...this is an outstanding contribution to Roman jurisprudence for specialists and serious students alike." David F. Graf, Religious Studies Review

"This is a truly fine study, compelling both for its careful sifting of the texts and its matter-of-fact presentation. American Historical Review

"This is a truly fine study, compelling both for its careful sifting of the texts and its matter-of-fact presentation. American Historical Review

"Harries has done an admirable job f amassing evidence and opening new avenues of debate regarding the administration of justice in late antiquity. Her study is a valuable and broad-ranging corrective to prevailing views regarding the social, political, administrative and legal realities of the Dominate." The Review of Politics

From the Publisher