The ''Lex Ripuaria'', also spelled ''Lex Ribuaria'', is a 7th-century collection of

Germanic law Germanic law is a scholarly term used to described a series of commonalities between the various law codes (the ''Leges Barbarorum'', 'laws of the barbarians', also called Leges) of the early Germanic peoples. These were compared with statements ...

, the laws of the

Ripuarian Franks Ripuarian or Rhineland Franks (Latin: ''Ripuarii'' or ''Ribuarii'') were one of the two main groupings of early Frankish people, and specifically it was the name eventually applied to the tribes who settled in the old Roman territory of the Ubii, ...

. It is a major influence on the ''

Lex Saxonum The ''Lex Saxonum'' are a series of laws issued by Charlemagne between 782 and 803 as part of his plan to subdue the Saxon nation. The law is thus a compromise between the traditional customs and statutes of the pagan Saxons and the established la ...

'' of AD 802. The ''Lex Ripuaria'' originated about 630 around

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

and has been described as a later development of the Frankish laws known from ''

Lex Salica The Salic law ( or ; la, Lex salica), also called the was the ancient Frankish civil law code compiled around AD 500 by the first Frankish King, Clovis. The written text is in Latin and contains some of the earliest known instances of Old Du ...

''.F.Beyerle, Völksrechtliche Studien I-III, Zeitschrift der Savigny-Stiftung, germ. Abt. LXII 264vv, LXIII ivv; Ewig 450vv;487vv The 35 surviving

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in ...

s, as well as those now lost which served as the basis of the old editions, do not go back beyond the time of

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first ...

. In all these MSS. the text is identical, but it is a revised text - in other words, we have only a ''lex emendata''. On analysis, the law of the Ripuarians, which contains 89 chapters, falls into three heterogeneous divisions. Chapters 1-31 consist of a scale of compositions; but, although the fines are calculated, not on the unit of 15 ''solidi'', as in the Salic Law, but on that of 18 ''solidi'', it is clear that this part is already influenced by the Salic Law. Chapters 32-64 are taken directly from the Salic Law; the provisions follow the same arrangement; the unit of the compositions is 15 ''solidi''; but capitularies are interpolated relating to the affranchisement and sale of immovable property. Chapters 65-89 consist of provisions of various kinds, some taken from lost capitularies and from the Salic Law, and others of unknown origin. The compilation apparently goes back to the reign of

Dagobert I Dagobert I ( la, Dagobertus; 605/603 – 19 January 639 AD) was the king of Austrasia (623–634), king of all the Franks (629–634), and king of Neustria and Burgundy (629–639). He has been described as the last king of the Merovingian dyna ...

(629-639), to a time when the power of the mayors of the palace was still minimal, since we read of a mayor being threatened with the death penalty for taking bribes in the course of his judicial duties. It is probable, however, that the first two parts are older than the third. Already in the Ripuarian Law the divergences from the old Germanic law are greater than in the Salic Law. In the Ripuarian Law a certain importance attaches to written deeds; the clergy are protected by a higher

wergild Weregild (also spelled wergild, wergeld (in archaic/historical usage of English), weregeld, etc.), also known as man price (blood money), was a precept in some archaic legal codes whereby a monetary value was established for a person's life, to b ...

: 600 ''solidi'' for a priest, and 900 for a bishop; on the other hand, more space is given to the ''cojuratores'' (sworn witnesses); and the appearance of the

judicial duel Trial by combat (also wager of battle, trial by battle or judicial duel) was a method of Germanic law to settle accusations in the absence of witnesses or a confession in which two parties in dispute fought in single combat; the winner of the ...

is noted, which is not mentioned in the Salic Law.

Editions

*R. Sohm, "Monumenta Germaniae", Leges V (1883)

References

External links

Information on the ''lex Ribuaria'' and its manuscript tradition on the ' website
A database on Carolingian secular law texts (Karl Ubl, Cologne University, Germany, 2012).

Editions

References

External links

See also