Analyze the status of women reflected in the so-called Barbarian LawCodes, particularly in the Visigothic or Lombard legislation.
...barian invasions were too numerous and too difficult to keep up with. In order to combine the laws under one singular recognised code, the Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius II in 438 collected all the constitutions of the time since Constantinople (d.337) and arranged them into 16 books covering every aspect of the law and named it the Theodosian Code . It was admired by the Germanic kingdoms and replaced the current codes in the Western Empire of the Visigoths, Ostrogoths and Burgundians. These collections of laws exhibited varying degrees of influence from Roman and Christian sources, and some were intended to apply different legal rules to Germanic and Roman people living in the same area . The purpose of the Visigoths medieval endeavour was to take practical advantage of the legal gospel of Rome; in doing so they occasionally altered and even falsified it, sometimes from prejudice, sometimes in the process of adapting the law of Rome to the new conditions, which it was called upon to govern. While the Visigoths (as well as other Germanic tribes) allowed Roman law to continue under their rule, it wasn’t allowed to supersede their own laws, which were based primarily on tribal customs. It is interesting to note that the Roman population under Germanic rule continued to live under Roman law, for law was regarded as personal, not territorial. All Barbarian Kings of the West allowed the natives to retain their own minor officials, Roman law and religion (Catholic Christianity or Roman Paganism), practice their regular professions and follow their traditional customs. Some of the allowances for the Visigoth people were political and economic supremacy as well as lower taxes than the natives. Women The Visigoths were different from other barbarians because of the fact that in legislation and the management of their civil affairs, they manifested a sense of humanity, and a genuine philosophy, rarely to be found even among nations that were thoroughly civilized. They intermarried with the conquered race and under their system all persons were equal before the law. However, as will be evident from the following evidence, because of the alliance that the Visigoths formed with the Catholic Church (which consequently had inherent Roman beliefs and traditions incorporated) resulted in a more ‘Roman’ view. Additionally, because the Romans could still be tried under their own laws separate to the Visigothic legislation, this meant that not all women were viewed as the Visigoths viewed them. To discuss the status of women under each Visigothic Code would be unrealistic due to the fact that the status of women is broken down into so many sections, it is impossible to mention each and every one. For the purposes of this paper, the main points will be presented in detail, which are marriage, inheritance, and the way in which the subsequent views of the church influenced the status of women (including Jewish women) under Visigothic legislation, all three will show the domination over women and their development within society and in life. Many of the philosophies and beliefs governing a woman’s inheritance property and personal rights were the legacy of previous civilizations. After the Catholic Church claimed a strong alliance with the Visigoths, the church largely determined the perspectives and views of women. It also wouldn’t have been to the women’s advantage that Bishops began to take over more and more civic duties, which would have included the rules and regulations of civilians . By becoming allies, the Visigoths and the Church were now apart of an equally advantageous relationship; together the state and church supported the medieval mentalities of the representation of women as both wicked and holy . They successfully produced two opposing models of women, the Virgin Mary represented absolute chastity while the temptress Eve, represented the evil within each woman (bar the Virgin Mary and some women in higher-classes). The general consensus of women though was the single notion that females were inferior, weak and subordinate to men . Women’s status under Visigothic legislation will be discussed in sections that separate not only the different legislations but also the social views attached. In general society, it appeared that in law and politics the Romans became Gothic; the Goths in social life and religion became Roman. Marriage Class-consciousness was obvious through all Germanic law. There were harsher penalties for those in the lower classes compared to a person of higher ranking performing the same crime. At the bottom of the social ladder were the slaves and ranked above them was the freemen who were technically free but still economically dependent. Each person in the freemen class and the upper classes had on official ‘life value’ which has to be paid if his death was due to a homicide; women (both free and nobles) also had a ‘life value’, which was smaller than a mans. If the woman married beneath her class her life-value was automatically reduced. During medieval times, a woman’s worth was also based largely on the size of her dowry and after that, the abilities of being a wife and a mother . Marriage for all barbarians centred primarily on the desire for a family to protect its interests in property, it was an economic transition protecting current and future generations. According to the church, although it could not expect to eradicate the long standing traditions concerning marriage and a families interest in their property, the church did however make some rules and guidelines that were beneficial more to women than to men. The first rule was that a woman must give her consent and Roman tradition insisted on a dowry, which was probably an attempt for a woman to have some economic security in the event she was left without a husband. Although barbarian tradition was focused on families interest in property protection, Visigothic secular law had long affirmed that no unmarried woman or widow could be forced to marry against her will or that of her parents, however Visigothic tradition and municipal customs asserted constantly the necessity for family surveillance over a woman's choice of a husband. It is then evident that even though a woman was able to exhibit some form of control over her choice, her family, particularly the men, nonetheless ultimately controlled the main decisions. Under Visigothic law, a girl's father was the person who ordinarily married his daughter to a man whose proposal he accepted. The power to marry the daughter was then passed onto the mother if the father was deceased, provided the mother remained a widow. When both parents were dead or the mother remarried, brothers in order of age replaced them, if they were under age, then an uncle would take this power. Both brothers and uncle were required to consult unspecified relatives about the orphaned daughter's marriage. In the Visigothic Code, Goths and Romans are not permitted to marry, reminiscent of legislation against Jews, which will be discussed later in greater detail. Book three of the Visigothic Code concerns nuptial contracts and unlawful marriages, adultery, incest, rape of virgins and widows . Because no woman was single all her life and marriage was inevitable, these codes affected every woman. Women were generally excluded from making any decisions that would greatly affect either their own situations of impact the world around them. If they were unmarried, the male guardians controlled every aspect of their lives and if they were married, the husband would then take over that role. However, noble and high-class women had restrictions placed on them only in theory. Because of access to money and education it allowed many of these women to slip the boundaries and enjoy many freedoms that the lower class women would never experience. For example, Roman and Visigothic law allowed women from noble families a rather privileged status, so it was not uncommon for plots of land to be held by heiresses . It is evident that some women were allowed certain ‘rights’ in society if they had admittance to money and education, quite reflective of society in the present day, money can buy people many freedoms. Inheritance Children of both sexes could inherit alike the property of their parents; a measure of undisputed justice, but in direct contravention of the laws governing the descent of property in most of the countries of modern Europe . As mentioned earlier, the Visigoths were unique with their Code on inheritance. The descendants of town residents, whether women or men, were mandatory heirs, and partible inheritance ...