Visigothic Code

The Visigothic Code (Latin, Forum Iudicum or Liber Iudiciorum; Spanish, Libro de los Juicios, Book of the Judges) comprises a set of laws first promulgated by the king Chindasuinth (642-653)of Visigothic Kingdom in his second year of rule(642/643). His law code survives only in fragments. In 654 his son, king Recceswinth (649-672) published the enlarged law code and it was the first law code that applied equally to the conquering Goths and majority population which had Roman roots and had been ruled by the Roman laws. While the code is often called the Lex Visigothorum, law of the Visigoths, this code finally abolished the old tradition of having different laws for Romans (leges romanae) and for Visigoths (leges barbarorum); all the subjects of the kingdom would stop being romani and gothi to become hispani. In this way, all the subjects of the kingdom were gathered under the same jurisdiction, eliminating social and legal differences, and allowing greater assimilation of the populations. As such, the Code marks transition from the Roman law to Germanic law and is one of the best surviving examples of leges barbarorum. It combines elements of the Roman law, Catholic church law and Germanic tribal customary law.

During the first centuries of Visogothic rule, Romans and Goths were ruled by separate laws. The earliest Code of Euric was compiled at some time around 480. The first written laws of the Visigothic kingdom were compiled during the rule of king Alaric II and were meant to regulate lives of Romans, who made up the majority of the kingdom. These early laws were based on the existing Roman imperial laws and their interpretations. The Breviarium (Breviary of Alaric) was promulgated during the meeting of Visigothic nobles in Tolouse on February 2, 506.

During the reign of king Leovigild an attempt was made to unite laws regulating lives of Goths and Romans and a revised law code (Codex Revisus) was issued. In 589, at the Third Council of Toledo the ruling Visigoths and Sueves, who had been Arians, accepted Catholicism. From now on the former Roman population and Goths shared the same faith. King Reccared issued laws that equally applied to the both populations.

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