Social divisions, political polarization, factionalism, weakening national capabilities, excessive military expansion, and pandemics…
These descriptions apply not only to our current era but also to the distant sixth century.
In the 6th century AD, the Roman Empire, with over a thousand years of history, was in dire straits. The ancient city of Rome was lifeless, and the imperial court had moved to Constantinople, now Istanbul in Turkey. In the Western provinces of the Roman Empire, German invaders had occupied most areas for generations. In the East, the Iranian Empire was advancing closer to Arabia from the Caucasus, leading to constant conflicts. Armenia, a crucial kingdom between Iran and Rome, was in jeopardy. Throughout the empire, heavy taxation, unstable trade, and an ancient legal system comprised of conflicting laws from centuries past were prevalent.
Nearly 1,500 years ago, in April 527 AD, a farmer from present-day North Macedonia became the Roman emperor. His original name was Petrus Sabbatius, but as emperor, he was known as Justinian. “Make Rome Great Again” was widely regarded as his legacy slogan.
He had ambitious reform and rejuvenation plans. His grand vision was to restore Roman rule in the West and reunify the fragmented Mediterranean world. However, crucial to this was his reform of the legal system. He tasked lawyers from Beirut and Constantinople to form a committee led by legal professor Tribonian. Ambiguous and contradictory laws and legal opinions since the ancient Roman Republic were clarified, and unnecessary regulations were removed. Justinian took a keen interest in this legal work, driving the legislative movement forward rapidly.
The outcomes included the Justinianic Code, encompassing all laws in force at the time; The Digest, a legal encyclopedia; and The Institutes, an introductory textbook for students. These texts collectively were known as the Body of Civil Law. Justinian later made further legislative contributions with his Novels, or new constitutions.
Justinian steadfastly implemented legal reforms, achieving significant success. The reform was so successful that historians find it challenging to determine the nature of Roman law before it. Nevertheless, the Roman Empire endured for almost another 1,000 years, a testament to this success. The renowned Byzantine Empire was essentially a continuation of the longer East Roman Empire, lasting until 1453. Moreover, Justinian’s legal works had a lasting impact beyond his era, forming the basis of modern European civil law. This legal system’s influence even reached the Americas in the form of Quebec’s and Louisiana’s civil law codes.
However, Justinian’s ambitions did not yield success in other aspects. Many considered him a parvenu from a peasant background, questioning the legitimacy of his rule. People despised many of his policies and launched uprisings. In response, Justinian brutally suppressed around 30,000 extreme protesters. The wars he initiated in the West primarily aimed to divert domestic attention and legitimize his rule. Yet, the efforts to reconquer Italy consumed extensive resources, leading to the destruction of much of the countryside and a sharp decline in the population. Germanic resistance evolved into rebellion, causing turmoil that rendered Italy unsuitable for academic pursuits, leading to the demise of the Roman Senate. Some even attribute the Western “Dark Ages” from the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD to the outset of the 14th-century Renaissance to Justinian’s reign.
The seemingly endless military conflicts between the Roman Empire and Iran also did not yield significant results. Justinian’s religious policy brought more division than unity to the Christian world. Adding to the woes, the plague that broke out in the 540s killed up to a third of the Roman population. Cities faced devastating destruction, survivors were weakened, and morale plummeted.
If anyone now hopes for a figure like Justinian to reverse the tide, the lessons from the 6th century should alert contemporary society enough. Despite Justinian’s efforts, he ultimately plunged the Roman Empire into poverty and nearly constant turmoil. Attempting to reshape the world through military conquests and regime changes should serve as a cautionary tale for 21st-century neoconservatives. His religious policies also ring alarm bells to all ideologues emphasizing purity.
Remarkably, Justinian’s legal reforms were victorious and serve as a model we should emulate. Western legal systems and the governments based on them should be solidified and strengthened, not dismantled or excessively relaxed. Nurturing competent generations of legal scholars, bureaucrats, and politicians is more beneficial than the unrealistic military ventures of the past two decades. If legal reform proves anything, it’s that it’s never too late to turn the tide. History reflects changes. The eternal legacy left by Emperor Justinian should remind today’s society.
Author Bio:
Michael Bonner is a communications and public policy consultant at Atlas Strategic Advisors in New York. He holds a Ph.D. in Iranian history from the University of Oxford and is also an author. His latest work is “In Defense of Civilization: How Our Past Can Renew Our Present” (2023).
Original Title: The Lasting Legacy of Emperor Justinian’s Efforts to ‘Make Rome Great Again’
Published in the English edition of Epoch Times.
This article represents the author’s viewpoint and does not necessarily reflect the position of Epoch Times.
Editor: Gao Jing#