Law and Revolution, the Formation of the Western Legal Tradition

by Harold J. Berman

Book Overview

The roots of modern Western legal institutions and concepts go back nine centuries to the Papal Revolution, when the Western church established its political and legal unity and its independence from emperors, kings, and feudal lords. Out of this upheaval came the Western idea of integrated legal systems consciously developed over generations and centuries. Harold J. Berman describes the main features of these systems of law, including the canon law...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0674517741
• ISBN13: 9780674517745
• Release Date: September 1983
• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Length: 657 Pages
• Weight: 2.40 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A Great Book about a Forgotten Tradition

Prof. Berman wrote a comprehensive book about a forgotten historical topic. LAW AND REVOLUTION is precise explantion of the gradual developement of carefully crafted legal tradition during the Middle Ages beginning in the 11th century. Prof. Berman gives a solid background of family law, contractual law, criminal law, etc. Prof. Berman also gives a solid background of due process. He examination of the Catholic Church jurists' careful work is impressive. Prof. Berman explains who the Catholic Canon Law jurists tried to merge law with the Church's mission and sacramental system. LAW AND REVOLUTION gives the Catholic Church's reasoning in attempting to bring what they thought was God's justice and mercy in line with legal norms. The attempt was to replace blood fueds, trial by combat, and trial by ordeal with a well ordered legal system that replaced vengence with justice. His citing of St. Anselm's (1035-1109) CUR DEUS HOMO as a partial explanation for the emergence of the Canon Law gives the reader insight for the Canon Law. One example of the Canon jurists to merge the Catholic Church's sacraments with family law is their attempt to define marriage as both a sacrament and part of the law. The sacraments were suppose to be voluntary acts rather forced on individuals. This gradually led to the theory that arranged marriages were not binding. Another concern of the Catholic jurists was the legal definition of actions due to causa mortis(bacause of death). Prof. Berman uses this background to explain the Canon Law's reasoning regarding wills and estates. The sections dealing with contractual law are informative. Prof. Berman explains the gradual change of the Catholic authorities on interest rates which were originally considere usury and a sin. Berman explains that the rapid economic changes beginning the in the tenth century led to a change in Canon Law. The Canon jurists ruled that interest rates were just compensation to the creditor due to the temporary loss of their money during the term of a loan. The legal term was "Pacta sunt servanda"(Contracts must be kept). Prof. Berman's sections on criminal and civil law are useful. He explains the differnce between deliberate criminal acts and unintended negligence. Prof. Berman also explains the emergence of the differences between misdemeanors and felonies from the Catholic Church's definitions of venial and mortal sins. He cites Peter Abelard's dictum, "Nullum crimen, nulla poena, sine lege" (No crime, no punishement, without law). The Canon Law jurists were clear that unpopular acts were not necessarily crimes without a legal statute. Prof. Berman's examination of Par Legum(by law or due process) demonstrates that the Catholic jurists were very concerned with legal rules and norms in legal cases. An example of this concern is the treatment of Rules of Evidence. This section shows that law was not arbitrary, and there were attempts to use "fair play" in legal proceedings.

Wonderful book -- what legal history should be

This is a wonderful, wonderful book. I'm a law professor, but this book makes me wish I were a legal historian. I loved this book so much I taught a seminar where what we did mainly, was read this book. The only criticisms I have are that it is like one of those overwhelming meals where you cannot possibly ingest, let alone digest and appreciate, everything that is offered. The book is also an important corrective to the PC notion that the West is the source of all evil in the world. Instead you learn how deeply rooted are the ideas of individual freedom and dignity (not least, the dignity of women) in Western legal traditions, that can be traced ultimately to the complex interplay of Christian and Roman legal traditions. I teach at a (somewhat nominally) Catholic law school. I wish I could require all of our students to read this book before they graduate.

Layman's View

As an average US citizen without any legal training or education, I've always found the subject of law a bit overwhelming and intimidating to grasp. It is so primary in our "nation of laws" that law permeates almost every aspect of our lives. How does one even begin to get a handle on it? I asked a law professor if he had any recommendations, and he recommended "Law and Revolution", by Harold Berman. This book finally lifted the veil for me, on what law is in our society, and how it got that way. It portrays a huge panorama of the evolution of law from primitive trials by fire, to trials by church and by competing states, to our modern systems. I learned, for example, that one of the first and enduring reasons for criminal law is to prevent persons from retaliating in person against criminals. Back a thousand years ago, it was common for families to take revenge into their own hands, and the civil systems tried many ways to control this "need" to avenge, and modern criminal law grew out of those efforts. Another interesting learning was that the early church spent enormous efforts learning how to intellectually "reconcile" conflicting church dogmas, devising such techniques as "thesis, "anti-thesis" and "synthesis". Then, later, these highly refined intellectual skills were turned to the extremely complicated and confusing arena of law, and helped to gradually sort out and codify successful ways of acting civilized as a society. Ok, you get the idea. Just a few tidbits from this vast book. A wonderful reference for the average citizen who wants to understand the role of law in our lives. It stands as one of the top ten books I've ever read! Roger Matthews

A fascinating book.

"Law and Revolution" is a tour de force and a lasting contribution to legal scholarship. Scholars fortunate enough to be familiar with Berman's earlier book, "The Nature and Functions of Law," will immediately recognize Berman's approach to law as a social institution; an approach that is firmly grounded in history and experience, but which also takes into consideration the realm of ideas. Berman's thesis is that the Western legal tradition was created by a series of social "revolutions," and that we are currently at the end of an era and experiencing a "revolution" that will transform our legal institutions. "Law and Revolution" is Berman's attempt to trace the development of our Western legal tradition in order to glean knowledge that will be useful to us in weathering the storm of the current "revolution" in our legal institutions. As Berman states, "So I have had to view the Western tradition of law and legality, of order and justice, in a very long historical perspective, from its beginnings, in order to find a way out of our present predicament." The result of Berman's approach is a long book-Berman simply could not achieve his purpose in a brief essay. Berman writes well, however, and he manages always to fascinate the reader. Berman's depth of thought is as beautiful as it is rare. This is a book to read, to ponder, and to re-read. It deserves a broad audience both inside and outside legal academia.

A MUST read for anyone wanting to understand the Middle Ages

Berman's book covers a broad scope of the governing structures of the middle ages--making the period come alive. Rather than painting pictures of skullduggery, chivalry, and castles, Berman describes how the political and economic systems of the middle ages actually worked.He details each jurisdiction: Urban law, Civil Law, Royal (common) Law, the Jus Gentium, Manorial Law, etc. It's quite impressive. I haven't read another like it yet.If you want a real understanding of the Middle Ages, this is perhaps the most comprehensive book on the subject.