Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Exilium: Legal and Historical Issues
- 3 The Journey into Exile: The Early Republic to the Social War
- 4 Exilium from the Social War to the Death of Julius Caesar
- 5 Topics of Exile
- 6 Prosopography of Roman Exiles
- Conclusions
- Appendix I The leges Clodiae Concerning Cicero's Exile
- Appendix II Restoration of Legendary Figures of the Early Republic
- Bibliography
- Index
2 - Exilium: Legal and Historical Issues
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 October 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Exilium: Legal and Historical Issues
- 3 The Journey into Exile: The Early Republic to the Social War
- 4 Exilium from the Social War to the Death of Julius Caesar
- 5 Topics of Exile
- 6 Prosopography of Roman Exiles
- Conclusions
- Appendix I The leges Clodiae Concerning Cicero's Exile
- Appendix II Restoration of Legendary Figures of the Early Republic
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
THE BASICS OF EXILE
In his description of the Roman constitution, the historian Polybius reports an unusual feature of the judicial system:
κρίνει μὲν οὖν ὁ δῆμος καὶ διαφόρου πολλάκις, ὅταν ἀξιόχρεων ᾖ τὸ τίμημα τῆς ἀδικίας, καὶ μάλιστα τοὺς τὰς ἐπιφανεῖς ἐσχηκότας ἀρχάς. θανάτου δὲ κρίνει μόνος. καὶ γίνεταί τι περὶ ταύτην τὴν χρείαν παρ' αὐτοῖς ἄξιον ἐπαίνου καὶ μνήμης. τοῖς γὰρ θανάτου κρινομένοις, ἐπὰν καταδικάζωνται, δίδωσι τὴν ἐξουσίαν τὸ παρ' αὐτοῖς ἔθος ἀπαλλάττεσθαι φανερῶς, κἂν ἔτι μία λείπηται φυλὴ τῶν ἐπικυρουσῶν τὴν κρίσιν ἀψηφοφόρητος, ἑκούσιον ἑαυτοῦ καταγνόντα φυγαδείαν. ἔστι δ' ἀσφάλεια τοῖς φεύγουσιν ἔν τε τῇ Νεαπολιτῶν καὶ Πραινεστίνων, ἔτι δὲ Τιβουρίνων πόλει, καὶ ταῖς ἄλλαις, πρὸς ἃς ἔχουσιν ὅρκια.
Therefore, the people often judge crimes punishable by a fine when the defendants have held the highest office, and the people alone judge capital cases. Concerning the latter, they have a practice which is notable and deserves mention. Their custom allows those on trial for capital offenses the freedom to depart openly when found guilty, thus sentencing themselves to voluntary exile, even if only one of the “tribes” has not yet given their verdict. There is safe refuge for these exiles in Neapolis, Praeneste, Tibur, and other states which have treaties with the Romans.
In the Roman Republic, exilium was a voluntary act through which a citizen could avoid legal penalty by quitting the community.
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- Information
- A History of Exile in the Roman Republic , pp. 17 - 68Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2006