The course aims to give students a sound, basic knowledge of Roman legal experience and of its relevance for the training of jurists and security professionals. By the end of the course, students will be able to:
● understand the notion of law and the main lines of Roman legal history, from the archaic age to the Justinianic codification;
● grasp the fundamental concepts of Roman private law (legal subjects, capacity, things and real rights, legal transactions, obligations, contracts, torts) and their historical genesis;
● correctly use Roman-law technical vocabulary and categories, as a foundation for later legal subjects in the degree programme;
● reconstruct, from a historical-legal standpoint, the origin and development of public-security devices and law-and-order arrangements in imperial Rome, and appreciate their relevance for contemporary thinking on territorial security;
● critically read Roman legal and historiographical sources (in translation), identifying links between ancient institutions and present-day legal and security categories;
present the material learned orally, with appropriate terminology and independent critical argument.
● understand the notion of law and the main lines of Roman legal history, from the archaic age to the Justinianic codification;
● grasp the fundamental concepts of Roman private law (legal subjects, capacity, things and real rights, legal transactions, obligations, contracts, torts) and their historical genesis;
● correctly use Roman-law technical vocabulary and categories, as a foundation for later legal subjects in the degree programme;
● reconstruct, from a historical-legal standpoint, the origin and development of public-security devices and law-and-order arrangements in imperial Rome, and appreciate their relevance for contemporary thinking on territorial security;
● critically read Roman legal and historiographical sources (in translation), identifying links between ancient institutions and present-day legal and security categories;
present the material learned orally, with appropriate terminology and independent critical argument.
teacher profile teaching materials
General part (38 hours)
● The concept of law and its possible forms
● Roman law: why study it; periodisation (archaic, classical, post-classical/Justinianic ages); the role of jurisprudence and of the praetor
● Subjects of private law; legal capacity in Roman law; outline of the formulary procedure
● Things and real rights: classification of res; possession; ownership (modes of acquisition and protection); real rights over another's property (servitudes, superficies, emphyteusis, pledge and mortgage)
● Legal transactions: the negozio giuridico (concept, structure, classifications); manifestation of will; form; cause; accidental elements (condition, term, modus); representation; invalidity and ineffectiveness
● Obligations: the concept of obligatio; content and requirements of performance; types and sources of obligations; contracts, torts, quasi-contracts and quasi-torts; liability (dolus, culpa, custodia); the principle of the parties' interest
● Individual contracts: loan (mutuum), stipulation, sale, lease/hire, partnership, mandate, innominate contracts; negotiorum gestio
● The principal tort (wrongful damage and the lex Aquilia) and a quasi-tort (liability for things fallen or hung/thrown)
Special part (10 hours)
● From public order to security: the concepts of Pax, Disciplina and Securitas in Roman political thought
● The security of Rome and the security of the emperor: the genesis and transformation of a public discourse
● The birth of a security «dispositive»: the Augustan reforms; military escorts and bodyguards of the princeps; the civilian, paramilitary and military personnel devoted to controlling the urban area
● Testing the dispositive: a topography of security in Rome; the role of the urban soldiers in the city (from Tiberius to the Severans)
● Security in imperial Italy: territorial garrisons (with the Grumentum case study); the security of the emperor's travels to his country residences
G. Santucci, Basi romanistiche di istituti privatistici, Intra, Brĕvitĕr series, Rome, 2023 (reprinted 2025).
For the special part of the course, the professor will provide students with a PDF handout, which can be downloaded from the dedicated Moodle page.
Programme
The course consists of a general part, devoted to the institutional foundations of Roman private law (38 hours), and a special part, devoted to the theme of public and personal security in imperial Rome (10 hours).General part (38 hours)
● The concept of law and its possible forms
● Roman law: why study it; periodisation (archaic, classical, post-classical/Justinianic ages); the role of jurisprudence and of the praetor
● Subjects of private law; legal capacity in Roman law; outline of the formulary procedure
● Things and real rights: classification of res; possession; ownership (modes of acquisition and protection); real rights over another's property (servitudes, superficies, emphyteusis, pledge and mortgage)
● Legal transactions: the negozio giuridico (concept, structure, classifications); manifestation of will; form; cause; accidental elements (condition, term, modus); representation; invalidity and ineffectiveness
● Obligations: the concept of obligatio; content and requirements of performance; types and sources of obligations; contracts, torts, quasi-contracts and quasi-torts; liability (dolus, culpa, custodia); the principle of the parties' interest
● Individual contracts: loan (mutuum), stipulation, sale, lease/hire, partnership, mandate, innominate contracts; negotiorum gestio
● The principal tort (wrongful damage and the lex Aquilia) and a quasi-tort (liability for things fallen or hung/thrown)
Special part (10 hours)
● From public order to security: the concepts of Pax, Disciplina and Securitas in Roman political thought
● The security of Rome and the security of the emperor: the genesis and transformation of a public discourse
● The birth of a security «dispositive»: the Augustan reforms; military escorts and bodyguards of the princeps; the civilian, paramilitary and military personnel devoted to controlling the urban area
● Testing the dispositive: a topography of security in Rome; the role of the urban soldiers in the city (from Tiberius to the Severans)
● Security in imperial Italy: territorial garrisons (with the Grumentum case study); the security of the emperor's travels to his country residences
Prerequisiti
No specific prerequisites are required, as the course is placed in the early stage of the degree programme. A basic knowledge of Roman history and of elementary legal vocabulary, of the kind normally acquired in secondary school, is useful but not required. Knowledge of Latin is not required, as Latin technical terms are introduced and explained during the lessons.Core Documentation
The reference textbook for the general part of the course is:G. Santucci, Basi romanistiche di istituti privatistici, Intra, Brĕvitĕr series, Rome, 2023 (reprinted 2025).
For the special part of the course, the professor will provide students with a PDF handout, which can be downloaded from the dedicated Moodle page.
Attendance
Attendance is not compulsory. It is nevertheless strongly recommended, as classes offer the best opportunity to study the sources in depth and to develop the critical skills required for the examination. The examination programme is identical for attending and non-attending students.Type of evaluation
The final examination is identical for attending and non-attending students and is held orally, in Italian. The final grade is expressed out of thirty (30/30), according to the following criteria: ● 18-20: sufficient, though minimal and not in-depth, knowledge of the subject; ● 21-23: more than sufficient / fair knowledge of the contents; ● 24-29: good / very good knowledge of the structures of the subject, together with an appreciable critical capacity; ● 30-30 cum laude: excellent knowledge of the subject, together with excellent critical, analytical and connective capacity. Besides the accuracy of the content presented, the assessment takes into account command of technical-legal terminology, the ability to argue independently, and the ability to draw connections between the general and the special part of the programme.