Právněhistorické studie / Legal History Studies (Charles University journal; below referred to as PHS or Journal) is a scientific journal listed in the international prestigious database SCOPUS. The journal is published by Charles University in Prague under the guarantee of the Department of Legal History of the Faculty of Law of Charles University. It is published by the Karolinum Press. The journal focuses on the field of legal history and related topics.
Issue 1 of the Journal was published by the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences Publishing in June 1955. The Journal was initially published by the Cabinet of Legal History of the Czechoslovak Academy of Science (CSAV), later by the Institute of State and Law (CSAV) and then by the Institute of Legal History of the Faculty of Law of Charles University.
PHS is issued three times a year in April, August, and December and it presents original scientific works/papers as well as reviews, annotations and news from the scientific field of legal history. It also introduces annotated texts of a legal history nature. PHS accepts manuscripts from domestic as well as foreign authors. Manuscripts submitted by foreign authors are published in original language, namely in English, Slovak, German, French, Italian or Polish.
PHS (ISSN 0079-4929) is registered in the Czech national ISSN centre (supervised by the State Technical Library). The Journal is registered by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic according to Act No. 46/2000 Sb., on Rights and Liabilities for the Publishing of Periodicals and Change of Some Acts (Press Act), and it is allocated with registration number of periodical press MK E 18813.
PHS is an open journal and ensures open access to scientific data (Open Access). The entire content is released as open to the public on the web pages of the journal.
The journal is archived in Portico.
PRÁVNĚHISTORICKÉ STUDIE, Vol 55 No 3 (2025), 155–166
ArticleRituály skladania prísah v rímsko-kánonickom práve
[Rituals of Oath-Taking in Roman-Canon Law]
Vojtech Vladár
DOI: https://doi.org/10.14712/2464689X.2025.39
published online: 10. 12. 2025
abstract
Oaths are among the most historically important procedural legal institutions. Canonists creatively developed oaths in the Middle Ages, shaping their application in legal systems through the premises of the so-called Roman-canon procedure. Because oaths combined legal and religious aspects, they featured symbolic elements and were performed as solemn rituals. Unlike many other historical institutions that lost their ritual nature over time, oaths have retained at least a degree of solemnity, even today. This article aims to highlight the concept of oaths as a distinctive ritual with legal effects.
keywords: oaths; Roman law; canon law; rituals; oaths as rituals; legal effects; codified law of the Catholic Church; modern law
references (65)
1. ALTHOFF, G. Die Macht der Rituale. Symbolik und Herrschaft im Mittelalter. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 2003.
2. AUGUSTINE, Ch. A Commentary on the New Code of Canon Law. Book VI. Administrative Law (Can. 1154-1551). St. Louis - London: B. Herder Book, 1921.
3. BALDWIN, J. W. The Intellectual Preparation for the Canon of 1215 against Ordeals. Speculum, 1961, roč. 36, s. 613-636. CrossRef
4. BARTLETT, R. Trial by Fire and Water: The Medieval Judicial Ordeal. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1986.
5. BEAL, J. P. - CORIDEN, J. A. - GREEN, T. J. (eds.). New Commentary on the Code of Canon Law. New York: Paulist Press, 2000.
6. BELSKY, M. H. - BESSLER-NORTHCUTT, J. Law and Theology. Cases and Readings. Durham: Carolina Academic Press, 2005.
7. BERGERUS, I. H. Electa processus executivi, possessorii, provocatorii et matrimonialis. Lipsia: Sumptibus haeredum Friderici Lanckischii, 1705.
8. BLAHO, P. Pojem držby v nemeckom a francúzskom stredovekom práve. Právní fórum. Měsíčník věnovaný soukromému právu, 2008, č. 8. s. 12-16.
9. BRUNDAGE, J. A. The Bar of the Ely Consistory Court in the Fourtheenth Century: Advocates, Proctors, and Others. Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 1992, roč. 43, s. 541-560. CrossRef
10. BRUNDAGE, J. A. The Medieval Origins of the Legal Profession: Canonists, Civilians, and Courts. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2008. CrossRef
11. BRUNNER, H. Grundzüge der Deutschen Rechtsgeschichte. Leipzig: Duncker & Humblot, 1930.
12. BUBELOVÁ, K. Metla na všechny úskoky, aneb Podvod stokrát jinak. In: ANTALOVÁ, B. - SOLIAR, L. (eds.). Delicta privata a crimina publica v rímskom práve. Zborník príspevkov z 12. konferencie právnych romanistov Slovenskej republiky a Českej republiky. Košice: Univerzita Pavla Jozefa Šafárika v Košiciach, 2010, s. 92-101.
13. CAENEGEM, R. C. van. The Birth of the English Common Law. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988. CrossRef
14. CANFIELD, L. H. The Early Persecutions of the Christians. New York: Columbia University, 1913.
15. CLARK, H. B. Biblical Law. Portland: Binfords & Mort, 1943.
16. ČENTÉŠ, J. - HAŤAPKA, M. - MATHERN, V. - MINÁRIK, Š. - PALAREC, J. - ŠTIFT, P. Trestný poriadok. Stručný komentár. Bratislava: Iura Edition, 2010.
17. ČENTÉŠ, J. a kol. Trestný poriadok. Veľký komentár. Žilina: Eurokódex, 2017.
18. DALEWSKI, Z. Political Culture of Central Europe in the High Middle Ages: Aggression and Agreement. In: MANIKOWSKA, H. - PÁNEK, J. (eds.). Political Culture in Central Europe (10th-20th Century). Part I. Middle Ages and Early Modern Era. Prague: HI AV ČR, 2005, s. 65-85.
19. DEL BENE, Th. Tractatus de iuramento. Lugdunum: Sumptibus Ioannis-Antonii Huguetani & Guillielmi Barbieri, 1679.
20. DORNAN, S. S. The Crocodile in South African Religion and Folk Lore. South African Journal of Science, 1934, roč. 3, s. 495-499.
21. DU CANGE, Ch. Glossarium Mediae et Infimae Latinitatis. Vol. 6. Graz: Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt, 1954.
22. EHRLICH, J. W. The Holy Bible and the Law. New York: Oceana Publications, 1962.
23. GARCÍA Y GARCÍA, A. Constitutiones Concilii quarti Lateranensis una cum Commentariis Glossatorum. Vatican City: Biblioteca apostolica Vaticana, 1981.
24. HELMHOLZ, R. H. The Spirit of Classical Canon Law. Athens - London: The University of Georgia Press, 2010.
25. HILL, M. - DOE, N. - HELMHOLZ, R. H. - WITTE, J. (eds.). Christianity and Criminal Law. London - New York: Routledge, 2020. CrossRef
26. HIRZEL, R. Der Eid: Ein Beitrag zu seiner Geschichte. Lepzig: B. G. Teubner, 1902.
27. HLUŠÍKOVÁ, M. Latinsko-slovenský slovník. Bratislava: Kniha - spoločník, 2003.
28. HORSINGTON, S. J. Oaths and Perjury in a Protestant Monarchy. Revue internationale de droit comparé, 2014, roč. 66, č. 3, s. 745-754. CrossRef
29. KASAN, J. Prameny církevního práva. Dějinný vývoj. Praha: Katedra historicko-právní na Římskokatolické Cyrilometodějské bohoslovecké fakultě, 1952.
30. KŘÍŽEK, V. Křížkův slovník latinsko-český. Praha: I. L. Kober, 1889.
31. KUTTNER, S. Die juristische Natur der falschen Beweisaussage: Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte und Systematik der Eidesdelikte, zugleich zur Frage einer Beschränkung der Strafbarkeit auf erheblich falsche Aussagen. Berlin: Abhandlungen des kriminalistischen Instituts, 1931.
32. LEA, H. Ch. Superstition and Force. Essays on the Wager of Law - the Wager of Battle - the Ordeal-Torture. Philadelphia: Collins, 1866.
33. LEA, H. Ch. A History of the Inquisition of the Middle Ages in Three Volumes. Vol. I. New York - London: The Macmillan Company, 1906.
34. LEGENDRE, P. Écrits juridiques du Moyen Âge occidental. London: Variorum reprints, 1988.
35. LEYSER, K. Ritual, Ceremony and Gesture: Ottonian Germany. In: REUTER, T. (ed.). Communications and Power in Medieval Europe. The Carolingian and Ottonian Centuries. London - Rio Grande: Hambledon Press, 1994, s. 189-213.
36. LITEWSKI, W. Der römisch-kanonische Zivilprozeß nach den älteren ordines iudiciarii. Kraków: Wydawnictvo Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego, 1999.
37. LÖWENTHAL, E. Der Gerichtseid. Frankfurt: Selbstverlag, 1929.
38. MICHAELS, A. Inflation der Rituale? Grenzen eines vieldeutigen Begriffs. Humanismus aktuell, 2003, roč. 13, s. 25-36.
39. MOMMSEN, Th. Römisches Strafrecht. Leipzig: Duncker & Humblot, 1899.
40. MOUSOURAKIS, G.: The Historical and Institutional Context of Roman Law. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2003.
41. NANZ, K. P. Die Entstehung des allgemeinen Vertragsbegriffs im 16. bis 18. Jahrdhundert. Munich: J. Schweitzer Verlag, 1985.
42. NÖRR, K. W. Zur Stellung des Richters im gelehrten Prozess der Frühzeit: Iudex secundum allegata non secundum conscientiam iudicat. München: C. H. Beck, 1967.
43. NÖRR, K. W. Romanisch-Kanonisches Prozessrecht. Erkenntnisfahren erster Instanz in civilibus. Berlin - Heidelberg: Springer, 2012. CrossRef
44. PETRÁČKOVÁ, V. - KRAUS, J. (eds.). Slovník cudzích slov (akademický). Bratislava: Slovenské pedagogické nakladateľstvo - Mladé letá, 2005.
45. PISÁRČIKOVÁ, M. (ed.). Synonymický slovník slovenčiny. Bratislava: Veda, 2004.
46. PRAŽÁK, J. M. - NOVOTNÝ, F. - SEDLÁČEK, J. Latinsko-český slovník k potřebě gymnasií a reálných gymnasií. Praha: Čekoslovenská grafická únie, 1935.
47. RAGNOW, M. Ritual Before the Altar: Legal Satisfaction and Spiritual Reconciliation in the Eleventh-Century Anjou. In: ROLLO-KOSTER, J. (ed.). Medieval and Early Modern Ritual. Formalized Behavior in Europe, China and Japan. Leiden - Boston - Köln: Brill, 2002, s. 57-79. CrossRef
48. SCHELLE, K. Ordály jako důkazní prostředek v procesním právu. Slovenská archivistika, 1980, roč. 15, s. 117-149.
49. SCHMITT, J.-C. Obřady. In: LE GOFF, J. - SCHMITT, J.-C. Encyklopedie středověku. Praha: Vyšehrad, 2002, s. 442-453.
50. SILVING, H. The Oath: I. Yale Law Journal, 1959, roč. 68, č. 7, s. 1527-1577. CrossRef
51. SKŘEJPEK, M. Ius et religio. Právo a náboženství ve starověkém Říme. Pelhřimov: Vydavatelství 999, 1999.
52. SNOEK, J. Defining 'Rituals'. In: KREINATH, J. (ed.). Theorizing Rituals: Issues, Topics, Approaches, Concepts. Leiden - Boston: Brill, 2006, s. 3-14. CrossRef
53. ŠPAŇÁR, J. - HRABOVSKÝ, J. Latinsko-slovenský/slovensko-latinský slovník. Bratislava: Slovenské pedagogické nakladateľstvo, 2012.
54. Trestný poriadok s rozsiahlym komentárom a judikatúrou. Bratislava: Nová práca, 2012.
55. TURNER, V. Průběh rituálu. Brno: Computer Press, 2004.
56. VLADÁR, V. Stylus Romanae curiae ako inšpiračný zdroj v histórii a súčasnosti. In: SALÁK, P. - MRÁZKOVÁ, L. (eds.). Ius honorarium - římské magistratury a jejich činnost. Sborník z konference. Brno: Masarykova univerzita, 2019, s. 8-117.
57. VESELÝ, J. O text IV. hlavy Rožmberské knihy. Sborník věd právních a státních, 1936, roč. 36, č. 1-2, 159-16.
58. VLADÁR, V. Vplyvy usus forensis Rotae Romanae na sekulárne súdnictvo v ranom novoveku. Všehrd, 2019, roč. 100 on-line: https://www.vsehrd.cz/clanek/vplyvy-usus-forensis-rotae-romanae-na-sekularne-sudnictvo-v-ranom-novoveku_d5d5c492-4d32-0ef-8cc0-fd9b3c577348
59. VLADÁR, V. Sociologické dôvody nahradenia ordálií kánonickoprávnymi prísahami v období stredoveku. Acta facultatis iuridicae Universitatis Comenianae, 2022, roč. 41, č. 2, s. 51-66.
60. WATSON, A. Roman Law and Comparative Law. Athens - London: The University of Georgia Press, 1991.
61. WATSON, A. The Spirit of Roman Law. Athens - London: The University of Georgia Press, 1995.
62. WATSON, A. Ancient Law and Modern Understanding. At the Edges. Athens - London: The University of Georgia Press, 1998.
63. WIEL, C. Van. History of Canon Law. Louvain: Peeters Publishers, 1991.
64. ZIEGLER, L. V. Trial by Fire and Battle in Medieval German Literature. New York: Camden House, 2004. CrossRef
65. ZUPKA, D. Rituály a symbolická komunikácia v stredovekej strednej Európe (Arpádovské Uhorsko 1000-1301). Prešov: Vydavateľstvo Dušana Vaška, 2011.
Rituály skladania prísah v rímsko-kánonickom práve is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
240 x 170 mm
periodicity: 3 x per year
print price: 250 czk
ISSN: 0079-4929
E-ISSN: 2464-689X
