‘The Ius Decretalium and the Development of the Law of Succession in Medieval Europe. Some examples from Denmark and Sweden (XII-XIII c.)’

The decretal Ex litteris (X.1.4.2) is the starting point of the present research. Issued by Innocent III (1198), it fits into the flow of a series of decretals addressed to Denmark and Sweden in the 12th and 13th centuries and concerning cases of last wills, donations and pious bequests. The analysis of these sources provides some elements that help to evaluate the role of canon law in the definition of the law of succession in Denmark and Sweden. The ius decretalium sometimes complied with the process of configuration of the norms of the law of succession; other times it opposed customs contrasting with principles of the ius commune; in general, the ius decretalium had a propulsive role in the spreading of the culture of the ius commune in the Kingdoms of Denmark and Sweden. Local ecclesiastical hierarchies were called to put the norms elaborated in the papal Curia into practice. Through the ecclesiastical jurisdiction, the ius decretalium, with the legal culture it expressed, spread out into the juridical experience with its moral principles and values, with its juridical categories and with the operative tools suitable for single cases. The final section of the essay highlights the importance of legal doctrine as it is shown in the Liber legis Scaniae of Anders Sunesen. This work is the fruit of a learned reading of the Law of Scania. The juridical culture of the author permeates the Liber, because Sunesen used the categories and the doctrines of the ius comnune to interpretate and rewrite the Lex Scaniae.

Sommario: La decretale Ex litteris di Innocenzo III (X.1.4.2) si colloca nel flusso di una serie di decretali, riguardanti problemi di diritto successorio, indirizzate in Danimarca e Svezia tra i secoli XII e XIII. Dall’analisi emerge che il ius decretalium ispirò i contenuti dei diritti locali, talvolta assecondando il processo di configurazione delle norme del diritto successorio, talatra opponendosi a talune consuetudini contrastanti con principî del ius commune. Più in generale, il ius decretalium ebbe un ruolo propulsivo nella diffusione della cultura del ius commune nei regni di Danimarca e Svezia.