Justinian I, Novels 103.praef.

https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/316

Context

The emperor Justinian directed a comprehensive reform of Roman Law that compiled and edited earlier jurisprudence. This new sole authority on legal matters, the Body of Civil Law (Corpus iuris civilis), contained three parts, the Code, the Digest, and the Institutes. The Corpus was produced under the general oversight of Tribonian, the quaestor of the Sacred Palace, at Constantinople and issued in 529-534 C.E., after which various new legislation under Justinian that was never formally codified was collected as “new constitutions” (novellae constitutiones). This constitution records an edict of Justinian delivered on July 1, 536 C.E. in Constantinople; it is a “divine pragmatic directive” (sacram pragmaticam formam) called the “Special Caesarea Law” (specialem … Caesariensium legem). It recognizes the unique importance of Palestine for its connections to biblical history and the Flavian dynasty, and for its prosperity due to the wine and olive industries, by granting the governor of Palestina Prima judicial primacy over the other two Palestinae as well as greater strength military and protection. This law reflects the importance of Caesarea and the entire region in Imperial geopolitical and economic strategy in the wake of the Samaritan uprising of 529-531 C.E. and in the face of ongoing challenges to the limes Arabicus.

Text

Idem Aug. Iohanni pp.<Praefatio> Iam quidem et alios gentium praesidatus maiores constituimus humiles primitus existentes et agere nihil validissimum potentes, et tam spectabiles statuimus quam etiam eis annonas adiecimus consiliariisque et officio, et alia omnia largiti sumus, et appellationes audire dedimus, et proconsulum quidem adornavimus honore, eorum autem qui comites vocantur, et alias praetorum et moderatorum administrationes, et semper aliquid invenientes clarum nostrae reipublicae novum dedimus florem. In animum quoque nostrum venit et Caesariensium metropolis Palaestinae praesidens primae, quam oportebat et ante alias maiore honore frui, eo quod et pridem proconsul eam habuit, et praeerat ei quaedam talis administratio, et cum esset nobilior, in minore ratione mutata est, cum una prius quidem tota fuisset Palaestina, in tres vero divisa partes, et neque proconsularitas ei mansisset, sed in hac administratione quae ordinaria nuncupatur deposita est; cum utique sit antiqua et semper nobilis, secundum se quam Strato collocavit primus, qui ex Hellade surgens factus est eius aedificator, et dum Vespasianus divae memoriae imperatorum probatissimus, Titi pater divae memoriae (quod ei etiam solum sufficiebat ad gloriam universam) ad Caesariensium eam vocabulum nominasset, cum prius Stratonis Turris appellaretur, hunc ei donavit honorem, eo quod in ea sub Iudaicis victoriis inter imperatores adscriptus est.(Praefatio 1). Videmus autem eam provinciae praesidere maiori atque mirabili, compendium maxime plurimum nostrae praebentem reipublicae tributorum magnitudine et devotionis excellentia, et praestantem civitates nobiles et cives alentem bonos et doctrinis plenos et inter sacerdotes probatissimos, et quod omnium praecipuum est, quia in ea universorum creator dominus noster Iesus Christus, dei verbum et totius hominum generis salus, in terra apparuit et dignatus est facere sua quae nostra sunt. 1

Textual Note

Ed. Schoell and Kroll [1895] 1993

Translation

Addressed to John, for the second time Most Illustrious Prefect of the Sacred Praetoria (in the East), ex-consul, patrician(Preface) It has occurred to us that the metropolis of Caesarea, chief city of (the province) First Palestine, ought also to have enjoyed a greater honor, ahead of those other provincial governorships, formerly lowly and incapable of taking any strong action at all, which we have now made higher, partly by ranking them as spectabiles (i.e., second in senatorial grade), partly by increasing the stipends for them and for assessors and staff, and also by giving them the right to hear appeals, as well as by all our other grants of honor to them. To some we have given the distinction of being proconsuls, to some of being comites, as they are called, and to others of being praetores or moderatores, and by constantly devising some further distinction for the realm in our day, we have given it a new flowering.Palestine was in the past governed by a proconsul; with that level of governorship, it had previously constituted a single province, but it was reduced in importance by being split into three parts, losing its proconsulship and having its governorship lowered to the level called ordinaria. Yet it is ancient, and has always been important, ever since it was established by Strato, who emigrated from Greece to become its founder, and since Vespasian of divine memory, most famours of emperors and father of Titus of pious memory—a fully sufficient claim to fame for him, on its own—changed its name from the original Turris Stratonis to that of the Caesars. He granted is that honor because it was there that he was given Imperial rank, for his victories in Judaea.(Preface 1) We also observe that it is the capital of a large and estimable province, which brings the highest possible regard to our contemporary realm for the size of its taxes and its outstanding loyalty; it has impressive cities to show, it breeds good citizens fulls of learning and distinguished in the priesthood, and, most important of all, it was in that province of course, that the Creator of the Universe, our Lord Jesus Christ, Word of God and Savior of all mankind, was seen on Earth, and deigned to make what is ours his own.2

Translation Note

Trans. Miller and Sarris 2018

Discussion Note

Justinian here gives a spurious derivation of Stato’s Tower that links it to Greek history.

Works Cited

1 Justinian I, Rudolf Schoell, and Wilhelm Kroll, Novellae, repr. Hildesheim: Olms 1993, Corpus Iuris Civilis 3 (Berlin: Weidmann, 1895), bk: 103, section: praef.
2 Justinian I, The Novels of Justinian: A Complete Annotated English Translation, trans. David Miller and Peter Sarris, 2 vols. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018), bk: 103, p: 680-681.

Additional Bibliography

Philip Mayerson, Justinian’s Novel 103 and the Reorganization of Palestine, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 269 (1988): 65–71

How to Cite This Entry

Joseph L. Rife, “Justinian I, Novels 103.praef.,” in Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, entry published April 28, 2023, https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/316.

Bibliography:

Joseph L. Rife, “Justinian I, Novels 103.praef..” In Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, edited by Joseph L. Rife., edited by Joseph L. Rife. Caesarea City and Port Exploration Project, 2023. Entry published April 28, 2023. https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/316.

About this Entry

Entry Title: Justinian I, Novels 103.praef.

Authorial and Editorial Responsibility:

Joseph L. Rife, general editor, Vanderbilt University
Joseph L. Rife, editor, Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia
David A. Michelson, Daniel L. Schwartz, and William L. Potter, technical editor, “Justinian I, Novels 103.praef.”
Joseph L. Rife, entry contributor, “Justinian I, Novels 103.praef.”

Additional Credit:

Testimonium edited by Joseph L. Rife
TEI record created by Joseph L. Rife
Testimonium translated by Joseph L. Rife
Testimonium transcribed by Joseph L. Rife
Testimonium identified by Joseph L. Rife
Editorial review by Joseph L. Rife

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