Praetor

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Praetor (

substantive, denoted the location from which the praetor exercised his authority, either the headquarters of his castra, the courthouse (tribunal) of his judiciary, or the city hall of his provincial governorship.[b] The minimum age for holding the praetorship was 39 during the Roman Republic, but it was later changed to 30 in the early Empire.[1]

History of the title

The status of the praetor in the early republic is unclear. The traditional account from Livy claims that the praetorship was created by the

Sextian-Licinian Rogations in 367 BC, but it was well known both to Livy and other Romans in the late republic that the chief magistrates were first called praetor.[2] For example, Festus "refers to 'the praetors, who are now consuls'".[2]

The form of the republic changed substantially over its history and the accounts of the republic's development in the early imperial period are marred with anachronisms projecting then-current practices into the past.[3] In the earliest periods of the republic, praetor "may not have meant anything more than leader in the most basic sense",[4] deriving from praeire (to proceed) or praeesse (to be preeminent).[5] These early praetors may have simply been clan leaders leading "military forces privately and free from state control"[6] with a multitude of private leaders leading private armies.[7]

These early military leaders were eventually institutionalised into fixed magistrate bodies elected by the people with clear state control over military activities. This was also probably assisted by "the use of recuperatores to mediate disputes and fetial priests to control the declaration of war".[8] The effect to make it more difficult for private individuals to start wars against Rome's neighbours.[8] Reforms in 449 BC also may have required "for the first time that all military commanders be confirmed by a popular assembly [representing] the Roman people".[9]

The emergence of the classical praetorship was a long process in which definitely started by 367 BC, when the

Sextian-Licinian Rogations were passed,[10] giving the Roman people substantially more power over the selection of their military commanders.[10] While Livy claims that the rogations created the praetorship in 367 BC to relieve the consuls of their judicial responsibilities, "few modern historians would accept [this] account as written".[11] Beyond the ancient knowledge that a title of praetor dated to the beginning of the republic, what became the classical praetorship was initially a military office with imperium and "virtually identical in authority and capacity to the consulship".[11] Furthermore, a fully-formed praetorship without colleague, as Livy's account implies, would be a "tremendous violation of Roman practice in which all regular magistracies were created in colleges consisting of at least two".[12]

"Scholars increasingly view the [rogations] as establishing a college of three (and only three) praetors, two of whom eventually developed into the historical consuls".[13] What became the classical praetorship in its early years also was not viewed as being less than the consuls, as "it was common practice for men to hold the praetorship after a consulship... since [doing so] was simply a method of holding imperium for a second year".[14]

Livy reports that until 337 BC the praetor was chosen only from among the

plebeians, and one of them, Quintus Publilius Philo, won the office.[15]

Only in the 125 years after the election of three military leaders did a clear distinction emerge between what became the consuls and what became the praetors due to the "normal Roman practice to reserve one commander in or near the city for purposes of defence and (eventually) for civilian administration".[16] The glory and prestige won by the praetors fighting foreign wars, then still in Italy, is what led to the higher prestige of the consulship.[17] Only in 180 BC with the passage of the lex Villia annalis was holding the praetorship after the consulship prohibited.[18] Even after the consulship emerged from the praetorship with higher prestige and desirability, praetorian imperium was still not legally distinct (or inferior to consular imperium) until the very end of the republic.[19]

Starting in 241 BC, praetors started to be prorogued, allowing former praetors to act in the place of a praetor (ie

pro praetore) with power only "to conduct war in his assigned provincia [with] no other concerns or duties".[20] Prorogation, in effect, granted private individuals a legally fictitious power to act in the place of the normal magistrates, allowing them to continue to act within their assigned task (provincia).[21] Prorogation allowed a magistrate, whose imperium did not expire with his term until crossing the pomerium or being stripped by the people, to continue in his assigned task or provincia.[22]

Praetura

The elected praetor was a

sella curulis and wear the toga praetexta.[23] He was attended by six lictors. A praetor was a magistrate with imperium within his own sphere, subject only to the veto of the consuls (who outranked him).[24]

The potestas and imperium (power and authority) of the consuls and the praetors under the Republic should not be exaggerated. They did not use independent judgment in resolving matters of state. Unlike today's executive branches, they were assigned high-level tasks directly by senatorial decree under the authority of the SPQR.

Livy describes the assignments given to either consuls or praetors in some detail. As magistrates, they had standing duties to perform, especially of a religious nature. However, a consul or praetor could be taken away from his current duties at any time to head a task force, and there were many, especially military. Livy mentions that, among other tasks, these executive officers were told to lead troops against perceived threats (domestic or foreign), investigate possible subversion, raise troops, conduct special sacrifices, distribute windfall money, appoint commissioners and even exterminate locusts. Praetors could delegate at will. The one principle that limited what could be assigned to them was that their duties must not concern them with minima, "little things". They were by definition doers of maxima. This principle of Roman law became a principle of later European law: Non curat minima praetor, that is, the details do not need to be legislated, they can be left up to the courts.

Praetors and their duties

Republican

A second praetorship was created around 241 BC,

magistrate with imperium who could field an army in an emergency when both consuls
were fighting a far-off war.

Praetor peregrinus

By the end of the

Hannibalic War, the praetor peregrinus was frequently absent from Rome on special missions. The urban praetor more often remained in the city to administer the judicial system.[26]

Praetor urbanus

The praetor urbanus presided in civil cases between citizens. The Senate required that some senior officer remain in Rome at all times. This duty now fell to the praetor urbanus. In the absence of the consuls, he was the senior magistrate of the city, with the power to summon the Senate and to organize the defense of the city in the event of an attack.

Roman Law owes much to the wise use of this praetorial discretion.[28]

Additional praetors

The expansion of Roman authority over other lands required the addition of praetors. Two were created in 227 BC, for the administration of

constitutional reforms. Julius Caesar raised the number to ten, then fourteen, and finally to sixteen.[c]

Imperial

Augustus made changes that were designed to reduce the Praetor to being an imperial administrator rather than a magistrate. The electoral body was changed to the Senate, which was now an instrument of imperial ratification. To take a very simplistic view, the establishment of the principate can be seen as the restoration of monarchy under another name. The Emperor therefore assumed the powers once held by the kings, but he used the apparatus of the republic to exercise them. For example, the emperor presided over the highest courts of appeal.

The need for administrators remained just as acute. After several changes, Augustus fixed the number at twelve. Under

trusts), when the business in that department of the law had become considerable, but Titus reduced the number to one; and Nerva added a Praetor for the decision of matters between the fiscus (treasury) and individuals. Marcus Aurelius[29] appointed a Praetor for matters relating to tutela (guardianship
).

Praetors as judges

Roman court cases fell into the two broad categories of civil or criminal trials. The involvement of a Praetor in either was as follows.

Actions

In an actio, which was civil, the Praetor could either issue an interdictum (interdict) forbidding some circumstance or appoint a iudex (

During the time of the Roman Republic, the Urban Praetor allegedly issued an annual edict, usually on the advice of jurists (since the Praetor himself was not necessarily educated in the law), setting out the circumstances under which he would grant remedies. The legal provisions arising from the Praetor's Edict were known as ius honorarium; in theory the Praetor did not have power to alter the law, but in practice the Edict altered the rights and duties of individuals and was effectively a legislative document. In the reign of Hadrian, however, the terms of the Edict were made permanent and the Praetor's de facto legislative role was abolished.[32]

Quaestiones perpetuae

The Praetors also presided at the quaestiones perpetuae (which were criminal proceedings), so-called because they were of certain types, with a Praetor being assigned to one type on a permanent basis. The Praetors appointed judges who acted as jurors in voting for guilt or innocence. The verdict was either acquittal or condemnation.

These quaestiones looked into crimina publica, "crimes against the public", such as were worthy of the attention of a Praetor. The penalty on conviction was usually death, but sometimes other severe penalties were used. In the late Republic, the public crimes were:

The last three were added by the Dictator Sulla in the early 1st century BC.

Outdoor actions

When the Praetor administered justice in a tribunal, he sat on a sella curulis, which was that part of the court reserved for the Praetor and his assessors and friends, as opposed to the subsellia, the part occupied by the iudices (judges) and others who were present. In court, the Praetor was referred to as acting e tribunali or ex superiore loco (lit. from a raised platform or from a higher place) but he could also perform ministerial acts out of court, in which case he was said to be acting e plano or ex aequo loco (lit. from the flat ground or from an equal or level place). For instance, he could in certain cases give validity to the act of manumission when he was out-of-doors, such as on his way to the bath or to the theatre.

Later Roman era

By 395 AD, the praetors' responsibilities had been reduced to a purely municipal role.

Eastern
Senates. The Praetorship was a costly position to hold as praetors were expected to possess a treasury from which they could draw funds for their municipal duties.

Byzantine Empire

Like many other Roman institutions, the praetor (Greek: πραίτωρ, praitōr) survived in the Eastern Roman Empire.

Emperor

vir spectabilis.[34][35] In addition, in Constantinople he replaced the praefectus vigilum, who was hitherto responsible for security, by a praetor populi (in Greek πραίτωρ [τῶν] δήμων, praitōr [tōn] dēmōn), with wide-ranging police powers.[34][36]

In the early 9th century, the praitōr was a junior administrative official in the themata, subordinate to the governing stratēgos. Gradually however, the civil functionaries assumed greater power, and by the late 10th century, the praitores (or kritai, "judges") were placed at the head of the civil administration of a thema.[37] This division of civil and military duties was often abandoned in the 12th century, when the posts of civil praitōr and military doux were frequently held in tandem. The provincial post fell out of use after the collapse of the Empire in 1204.[37]

According to

megas tzaousios and the logothetēs tōn oikeiakōn,[38] but held no official function.[39] His court uniform consisted of a gold-brocaded hat (skiadion), a plain silk kabbadion tunic, and a plain, smooth wooden staff (dikanikion).[40]

Modern era

Classical Latin Praetor became medieval Latin Pretor; Praetura, Pretura, etc. During the

Chişinău
's five sectors.

In Italy, until 1998, Praetor was a magistrate with particular duty (especially in civil branch).

The Italian-speaking Swiss

canton of Ticino has pretori (singular: pretore) which is the chief magistrate (civil branch) of a district, heading a pretura (a court).[41] The pretori are appointed by the canton's parliament.[42]

In popular culture

In the Star Trek franchise, Praetor is the usual title of the leader of the Romulan Empire.

In the New Phyrexia expansion of the Magic: The Gathering collectible card game, the five Phyrexian rulers were labeled as praetors.

In the sci-fi gaming franchise StarCraft, two of the major characters, Fenix and Artanis, hold the title of Praetor.

In the 2016 game Doom, the armor worn by the protagonist is called the Praetor suit.

In the 2017 game Xenoblade Chronicles 2, one of the central antagonists Amalthus holds the title of Praetor in the Praetorium of Indol.

In the 2020 game Deep Rock Galactic, one of the common enemies is called a Glyphid Praetorian.

In the popular book series by Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus, there is a Senate with two Praetors, one male and one female.

In the critically acclaimed MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV, "The Praetorium" is a level 50 dungeon.

In the 2022 game Elden Ring, one of the antagonists Rykard holds the title of Praetor among his fellow demi-gods in the Lands Between.

See also

Notes

  1. Latin language
    , the ending of the adjective agrees with the case, gender, and number, of the noun, which is why the ending of praetori- varies in the phrases given.
  2. ^ Most moderate-size Latin dictionaries list the praetorial nouns and adjectives, and uses and major sources.
  3. ^ In the late Republic the census was discovering a population of the city of Rome numbering in the millions.
  4. ^ Approximately "remedy", the seeking of restitution of property taken illegally by a magistrate and conviction of the perpetrator. Example: an illegal confiscation.
  5. ^ "Canvassing", an attempt to influence voters illegally. Example: buying votes.
  6. ^ Against the "majesty" of the people; that is, treason. Example: plotting the murder of a magistrate.
  7. ^ "Embezzlement", the theft of public property. Example: the misappropriation of public money.
  8. ^ "False witness"; i.e., against perjurers.
  9. ^ "Concerning stabbers and poisoners"; i.e., against professional assassins and their collaborators.
  10. ^ "Patricide", extended to the murder of relatives, presumably for property.

References

  1. ISBN 978-90-04-52418-7.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  2. ^ a b Drogula 2015, p. 15.
  3. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 18.
  4. ^ Drogula 2015, pp. 18–9.
  5. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 19.
  6. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 20.
  7. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 23.
  8. ^ a b Drogula 2015, p. 33.
  9. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 36.
  10. ^ a b Drogula 2015, p. 37.
  11. ^ a b Drogula 2015, p. 184.
  12. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 185.
  13. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 41.
  14. ^ Drogula 2015, pp. 186–7.
  15. Ab urbe condita 8.15
    .
  16. ^ a b Drogula 2015, p. 188.
  17. ^ Drogula 2015, pp. 188–9.
  18. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 186.
  19. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 192. See also et seq discussion of Livy and Festus' use of vis imperii as referring to social, rather than legal, hierarchy.
  20. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 212.
  21. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 214. Note that a provincia is not synonymous with a "province", a provincia could refer to a task, here usually a war, to be conducted or a place in which a task, here governance, was to occur. The latter meaning flows to "province".
  22. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 214.
  23. ^ Livy, 7.1
  24. ^ Nicholas 1975, p. 4.
  25. ^ Drogula 2015, p. 187.
  26. ^ Brennan 2000, p. 604.
  27. ^ McCullough 1990, p. 1014.
  28. ^ Watson 1974, pp. 31–62.
  29. ^ Capitolinus, Vita Marci Antonini Chapter 10.
  30. ^ Nicholas 1975, p. 24.
  31. ^ Nicholas 1975, p. 28.
  32. ^ Nicholas 1975, pp. 22–26.
  33. ^ Bury 1923, Volume 1, Chapter 1.
  34. ^ a b Wesenberg 1954.
  35. ^ Bury 1923, pp. 339–341, Volume 2.
  36. ^ Bury 1923, p. 338, Volume 2.
  37. ^ a b c ODB, "Praetor" (A. Kazhdan), p. 1710.
  38. ^ Verpeaux 1966, p. 138.
  39. ^ Verpeaux 1966, p. 182.
  40. ^ Verpeaux 1966, p. 161.
  41. ^ Repubblica e Cantone Ticino (in Italian)
  42. ^ Constitution of Ticino Article 36 (in Italian)

Sources

External links