Ordinances of Justice
The Ordinances of Justice were a series of
Description
These laws were directed against, and identified by name, particularly influential (i.e.
In later years the severity of the Ordinances of Justice were somewhat mitigated but they stayed in force. These ordinances ensured that the guilds of Florence retained control of the city.
The Ordinances of Justice established the government of Florence as being ruled by 12 Priors of the major Guilds. The election process was a lottery, in which eligible merchant's names would be added to a bag held by the Franciscan Priests. Every two months, the bag would have twelve names pulled out of it, and those merchants would be the new Priors. This lottery system caused a need for a change to the education system, and ultimately led to the implementation of Humanities in major universities around Europe.