The ''lex Appuleia de maiestate'' was a Roman law introduced by

Lucius Appuleius Saturninus Lucius Appuleius Saturninus (died late 100 BC) was a Roman populist and tribune. He is most notable for introducing a series of legislative reforms, alongside his associate Gaius Servilius Glaucia and with the consent of Gaius Marius, during the l ...

, passed during one of his two tribunates, either 103 BC or 100 BC. The exact provisions are unknown, but it attempted to protect the sovereignty of the Roman people as represented by the

tribunate Tribune () was the title of various elected officials in ancient Rome. The two most important were the tribunes of the plebs and the military tribunes. For most of Roman history, a college of ten tribunes of the plebs acted as a check on the ...

. It apparently punished incompetent military commanders.

The provisions of the lex Appuleia

The law established the permanent criminal court in Rome, a ''quaestio maiestas'', to deal with crimes against the Roman people:

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

. The

juries A jury is a sworn body of people (jurors) convened to hear evidence and render an impartial verdict (a finding of fact on a question) officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Juries developed in England dur ...

in this court consisted of

equestrians Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding (Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...

. The law established maiestas as a separate crime from

perduellio In the early days of Ancient Rome, ''perduellio'' () was the term for the capital offense of high treason, although it was not well defined. The form of action on this charge changed over the course of the Roman republic. The word later became ju ...

Prosecutions

* Quintus Servilius Caepio - quaestor 100 BC.

References

Roman law Reform in the Roman Republic 2nd century BC in the Roman Republic {{AncientRome-law-stub

The provisions of the lex Appuleia

Prosecutions

See also

References