Practical Translation To The Criminal Law of The Holy Roman Empire
Completely new to the criminal procedures of the middle age was the attempt to base the decision of the opening and the sentence on facts, inquired by the court.
The law of the Germans only allowed the beginning of a lawsuit on the accusations of the violated. The offender was limited to the positioning of the charge. The only hearing of evidence was the confirmation of the good reputation of the defendant by oath. Notable members of the community, so called helpers by oath (Eidhelfer) described only the reputation of the defendant, not the facts or the circumstances of the crime. There was no witness of the crime involved. In case of good reportation, the offense failed. Only in case of bad reputation or of confession a conviction was possible. That's the reason why the typical legal conflict of the early middle age is solved by regulated force of arms, the feud, which public peace and peace of God only limited, while legal proceedings were almost an exception. The institute of inquisition was an enormous legal improvement, because it included the proof relating to the facts of the crime to the inquiery. The reputation of the defendant no more was the main topic of the proceedings. It was replaced by an inquiry, made on real facts.
The implementation of the facts practically meant an enormous restriction of the rights of a defendant with good reputation, who now faced a real risk of condemnation. There was a certain discomfort with this risk. Therefore there still was the need of a confession in addition to the results of the inquiry. This confession will be gained by torture. An innocent will withstand the torture with the help of God. The contemporaries understand the problem of torture not to be this last proof of findings, long proved by finished inquiries but an easy way to substitute those inquiries. The criminal law of the Duchy of Lorraine limits the use of torture with the need of approval by the procurateur general, an administration situated at the ducal court in Nancy. The local court has to ask for the use of torture by presenting the results of their inquiries.
Read more about this topic: History Of The Principle Of Inquisition In German Criminal Law
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