Roman law has had a huge impact on European legal and political thought. Peter Stein, one of the world's leading legal historians, explains in this masterly short study how this came to be. He assesses the impact of Roman law in the ancient world, and its continued unifying influence throughout medieval and modern Europe. Roman Law in European History is unparalleled in depth, lucidity and authority, and should prove of enormous utility for teachers and students (at all levels) of legal history, comparative law and European Studies.
How Roman law has influenced European legal and political thought from antiquity to the present day.
"...immensely useful and pleasurable reading.... The entire book will be welcome across many disciplines, but especially to historians and those interested in European culture and its reception of the classical tradition." Religious Studies Review
"In Roman Law in European History, a master gives his readers both an introduction to the law of ancient Rome and an account of how that law lives on, well after the demise of the ancient society." David V. Snyder, H-Net Reviews
"Fact-filled as this book is, with its myriad names, dates and book titles, the author never allows the reader to lose sight of the trends, tensions, and debates that shped the use of Roman law down through the centuries, ending with the civil codes of the modern European nation states. This is a welcome treatment and guide to its subject." The Classical Bulletin