Notes on Roman Law

There seems to have been originally no restraint upon the power of a master to free his slaves, but by the lex Aelia Sentia, enacted A. D. 4, certain restraints were imposed. The objects of this law seem to have been to protect the public against the creation of un- desirable citizens, to prevent fraud on creditors, and to protect the master against improvident manumissions.

As already pointed out, under the early law a slave acquired by formal manumission both freedom and citizenship. An informal manumission had at first no legal effect ; then, through the agency of the praetor, it made the slave personally free, but conferred no property rights; then, by the lex Junia Norbana (A. D. 19), an informal manumitted slave was raised to the position of a Latin Colonist; and finally, by Justinian's legislation, all manumitted slaves, whether manumitted formally or informally became both free and citizens. A manumitted slave was called a freedman (libertinus). During the Republic there was but one class of freedmen — all were Roman citizens. Later two new classes were introduced, who did not enjoy the rank of citizenship. These were the Latini Juniani, created by the lex Junia Norbana, and the Dedititii, created by the lex Aelia Scntia (A. D. 4). The Deditifii were the lowest class of freedom, being manumitted slaves who were held subject to c...

In later times various informal modes of manumission were recognized which became effective, as already stated, through the action of the prjetor and the lex Junia Norbana. The principal modes were by a letter in which the master gave the slave his freedom, by a declaration by the master before friends, and by permitting the slave to wear the cap of freedom at his master's funeral.

There were three kinds of formal manumission: Manundssio per vindictam. Mamimissio censu. Mamimissio testamento. Manundssio per vindictam. This was by a fictitious or collusive suit. The master, the slave, and a third person appeared before a magistrate (consul, pretor, proconsul, or president of a province), and the third person laid his rod (vindicta) on the slave and declared him to be free; the mas- ter also touching the slave with his rod admitted the claim and turned the slave around three times and let him go (whence, mamiimssion). The regular formalities of the procedure in jure cession were at first observed, but subsequently the formalities were dropped and all that was re- quired was the declaration before the magistrate by the master of his intention to free the slave. Mamimissio censu. The enrollment of the slave on the census as a citizen with the master's consent made him free. The census was held only once in five years and only at Rome, and hence t...

A slave obtained his freedom by manumission. The forms of manumission varied at different times. During the period of the Republic the forms of manumission were strict and ceremonial, and they had the double effect of freeing the slave and making him a Roman citizen. During the period of the Empire informal manumission was also recognized, which had the effect to free the slave, but not to make him a citizen. The two kinds of manumission, the formal and the informal, co-existed until the time of Justinian, who enacted that a slave when manu- mitted, whether formally or informally, should be a citizen. The recognition of informal manumission was due largely to the przetor. Under the old law, unless the manumission was in proper form the slave remained a slave. An attempted manumission might be defeated by some technical flaw or defect. To prevent the injustice and wrong that might result 'from this, the prastor, in time, protected slaves imperfectly manumitt...