User:Forgetfulpumpkin/Ius Italicum

Ius Italicum[edit]
Ius Italicum (Latin, Italian, or Italic law) was an honorable law conferred on particular cities of the Early Roman Empire enacted by the emperors. This law did not describe any status of citizenship, but granted to colonial provinces outside Italy the legal fiction that they were on Italian soil. This meant that it was governed under Roman law rather than local or Hellenistic law, provinces had a greater degree of autonomy in their relations with provincial governors, people born in the city automatically gained Roman citizenship, and the city's land was exempt from certain taxes, including land taxes. As citizens of Rome, people were able to buy and sell property, were exempt from land tax, poll tax, and were entitled to protection under Roman law. Typically, land in the provinces under Roman control belonged to the state and could not be fully owned by citizens, the Ius Italicum law changes this for select provinces and groups of citizens. Ius Italicum was the highest liberty a municipality or province could obtain and was considered very favorably.

Emperor Augustus' Enactment of the Law[edit]
Emperor Augustus was one of the first Emperor's to implement the law of Ius Italicum during his reign. During Emperor Augustus' reign he gave land-grants to veterans so participated in civil wars in order reward them for their efforts. The early Roman Empire saw the creation of colonies; settlers in Roman citizen colonies (colonia civium Romanorum) had the same rights and legal privileges as cives. Military colonies founded by Augustus, the first Roman emperor, were to house civil war veteran while overseas civilian colonies who were deprived of their property by returning soldiers. Ancient literary sources enumerate some of the cities that were granted the privilege of Ius Italicum. The Digest, a book complied of published Ancient Roman laws, lists Roman colonies that were granted the privileges of Ius Italicum. The list is comprised of 16 colonies founded by Augustus Caesar: Berytus, Apamea, Sinope, Philippi, Alexandria Troas, Dyrrhacium, Pax Julia, Emerita, Valentia, Ilici, Lugdunum, Vienna, Cassandrea, Dium, Parium, and Antioch of Pisidia. Augustus also enacted the law of Ius Italicum on the following cities in order to house his military legion: Arausio, Baeterrae, Barcino, Ceasearagusta, Cartenna, Corduba, Forum Julii, Gunugu, Narbo, Patrae, Rusazu, Rusguinae, Saldae, Thermae Himeraeae, Thuburbo Minus, Thuburnica, Tubusuctu and Uthina. Augustus settled over 300,000 veterans through land grants and Ius Itallicum. Providing land for veterans and military was a high priority to Augustus and can be reflected by the amount of provinces that recieved Ius Italicum. This act was done sparingly as it was economically costly for the Roman Empire because the empire could not recieve taxes from provinces under Ius Italicum rule.

Other Emperors' Enactment of the Law[edit]
Septimius Severus, a Roman Emperor of African provinces from 193 to 211 C.E., granted Ius Italicum rights to several Roman municipalities in Africa including his own. The effects of this were that their land, although outside the physical boundaries of Rome would fall under Roman law. After a civil war in which Greece cooperated with Severus he then granted several more provinces this honor as a reward.

Under the Claudius, the Flavians and Trajan, three colonies are known to have had Ius Italicum; Ara Agrippinensium founded by Cluadian, is attested in the Digest. Agrippa founded the colony of Ara Ubiorum. Trajan founded two colonies on the Danube, one of which, Colonia Ulpia Traiana Augusta Dacica Sarmizeaugusta.

References[edit]

 * 1) Nicholas, Barry. "ius Italicum". Oxford Classical Dictionary. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
 * 2) Watkins, Thomas H. Coloniae and Ius Italicum in the Early Empire. The Classical Association of the Middle West and South, Inc. pp. 319–336.


 * 1) ^ Watkins, Thomas H. Coloniae and Ius Italicum in the Early Empire. The Classical Association of the Middle West and South, Inc. pp. 319–336.
 * 1) ^ Watkins, Thomas H. Coloniae and Ius Italicum in the Early Empire. The Classical Association of the Middle West and South, Inc. pp. 319–336.