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{{Short description|Type of marriage in ancient Rome}}
{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Manus'' marriage}}
{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Manus'' marriage}}
[[File:El-matrimonio-romano.jpg|thumb|Statue depiction of Ancient Roman ''Matrimonium'']]
[[File:El-matrimonio-romano.jpg|thumb|Relief showing a Roman marriage ceremony. [[Museo di Capodimonte]]]]


'''Manus''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|eɪ|n|ə|s}}; {{IPA-la|ˈmanʊs|lang}}) was an [[Ancient Roman]] type of [[Marriage in ancient Rome|marriage]],<ref name="Gardner">Jane F. Gardner,''Women in Roman Law and Society'',First Midland Book Edition, 1991, 11</ref> of which there were two forms: '''cum manu''' and '''sine manu'''.<ref name="John"/> In a cum manu marriage, the wife was placed under the legal control of the husband.<ref name="Gardner"/><ref name="John"/> In a sine manu marriage, the wife was still under the legal control of her father.<ref name="Colish">Marcia L. Colish,''The Stoic Tradition from Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages'', Brill Academic Publishers, 1990, 2 Edition, 383</ref>
'''Manus''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|eɪ|n|ə|s}} {{respell|MAY|nəs}}; {{IPA|la|ˈmanʊs|lang}}) was an [[Ancient Roman]] type of [[Marriage in ancient Rome|marriage]],<ref name="Gardner">Jane F. Gardner, ''Women in Roman Law and Society'', First Midland Book Edition, 1991, 11</ref> of which there were two forms: '''''cum manu''''' and '''''sine manu'''''.<ref name="John"/> In a ''cum manu'' marriage, the wife was placed under the legal control of the husband.<ref name="Gardner"/><ref name="John"/> In a ''sine manu'' marriage, the wife remained under the legal control of her father.<ref name="Colish">[[Marcia L. Colish]], ''The Stoic Tradition from Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages'', Brill Academic Publishers, 1990, 2 Edition, 383</ref>


In both cum manu and sine manu marriages, if both the husband and wife were ''[[Status in Roman legal system|alieni iuris]]'' (persons under ''[[patria potestas]]'', that is, under the power of his or her family's ''[[pater familias]]'') the marriage could only take place with the approval of both of the ''[[Pater familias|patres familias]]''.<ref name="Colish"/> However, the creation and termination of the marriage somewhat depended on the type of marriage.<ref name="Colish"/>
In both ''cum manu'' and ''sine manu'' marriages, if both the husband and wife were ''[[Status in Roman legal system|alieni iuris]]'' (persons under ''[[patria potestas]]''; that is, under the power of their respective ''[[pater familias|patres familias]]''), the marriage could only take place with the approval of both ''patres familias''.<ref name="Colish"/> Procedures for initiating and terminating marriage varied with the type of union.<ref name="Colish"/>


Initially cum manu was the only form of marriage but in time the cum manu union faded and only sine manu marriage was widely practiced.<ref name="Van">Rena Van den Bergh, "The Role of Education in the Social and Legal Position of Women in Roman Society", 11</ref>
Initially, ''cum manu'' was the sole form of marriage, but eventually only ''sine manu'' marriage was widely practiced.<ref name="Van">Rena Van den Bergh, "The Role of Education in the Social and Legal Position of Women in Roman Society", 11</ref>


==Cum manu==
==''Cum manu''==
In a '''cum manu''' union the wife legally and [[ritually]] became a member of her husband's [[family]].<ref name="Colish"/> She stood under the control of the husband’s ''[[potestas]]''<ref name="Gardner"/> or that of his father, and was thus no longer under the control of her father.<ref name="Gardner"/><ref>Judith P. Hallett and Thoman Van Nortwick,''Compromising Traditions'',Routledge, 1997, 34</ref> This change of status was referred to as ''[[Capitus Diminutio|capitis deminutio minima]]'',<ref name="Susan">Susan Treggiari,''Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges'',Oxford University Press, 1993, 28</ref> and the wife received the title of ''[[Mater familias|materfamilias]]'', meaning “mother of the household” - a title reserved only for woman in a cum manu union.<ref name="Susan"/> Legally the wife was [[Adoption|"adopted"]] by her husband and assumed the status of a daughter in the family.<ref name="Gardner"/> This granted her the same entitlements as the other children family over matters of [[intestate succession]].<ref name="Gardner"/> Therefore, the wife no longer [[Inheritance|inherited]] from her father but from her husband.<ref name="Colish"/> However, the husband held a limited power over her in comparison to his children.<ref name="Gardner"/> For example, the husband did not have the legal right of ''life and death'' the way he would his daughter, or that of ''[[noxal surrender]]'' and ''[[sales|sale]]''.<ref name="Gardner"/>
In a ''cum manu'' union, the wife was released from the control of her father and became a member of her husband's family,<ref name="Colish"/> standing thereafter under ''[[potestas]]'' of her husband or her father-in-law.<ref name="Gardner"/><ref>[[Judith P. Hallett]] and Thoman Van Nortwick, ''Compromising Traditions'', Routledge, 1997, 34</ref> Legally [[Adoption|adopted]] by her husband,<ref name="Gardner"/> she received the same entitlements as other children in the family over matters of [[intestate succession]]<ref name="Gardner"/> and [[inheritance|inherited]] thereafter not from her father but from her husband.<ref name="Colish"/> However, the power he held over her was limited in comparison to that which he held over his own daughter;<ref name="Gardner"/> he lacked for example, the legal right of life and death, and ''[[noxal surrender]]'' or ''[[sales|sale]]'' over her.<ref name="Gardner"/> This change of status, known as ''[[Capitus Diminutio|capitis diminutio minima]]'',<ref name="Susan">[[Susan Treggiari]], ''Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges'', Oxford University Press, 1993, 28</ref> conferred on the wife the title of ''[[Mater familias|materfamilias]]''.<ref name="Susan"/>


The wife in a cum manu marriage held no proprietary capacity meaning she could not own any [[property]].<ref name="Gardner"/><ref name="Colish"/> Everything acquired prior to cum manu was thus transferred into the husband's property or his ''[[Pater familias|paterfamilias]]''.<ref name="Colish"/> During [[Cicero|Cicero's]] time property such as [[dowry]] was recognized as distinguishable and therefore recoverable.<ref name="Colish"/> [[Liability (financial accounting)|Liabilities]] the wife may have acquired before marriage were erased.<ref name="Colish"/>
The wife in a ''cum manu'' marriage held no proprietary capacity, meaning she could not own any [[property]].<ref name="Gardner"/><ref name="Colish"/> Ownership of everything acquired prior to ''cum manu'' was transferred to her husband or his ''paterfamilias'', while existing [[Liability (financial accounting)|liabilities]] were erased. However, during the time of [[Cicero]], the [[dowry]] was recognized as distinguishable and therefore recoverable.<ref name="Colish"/>


A [[widowed]] or [[divorced]] woman would become ''[[sui iuris]]''.<ref name="Colish"/> For a widowed wife two significant benefits came from cum manu marriage: the husband could grant the wife the ability to select her [[Women's rights|tutor]] and she was able to create a [[Will (law)|will]].<ref name="Gardner12">Jane F. Gardner,''Women in Roman Law and Society'',First Midland Book Edition, 1991, 12</ref>
A [[widowed]] or [[divorced]] woman became ''[[sui iuris]]''.<ref name="Colish"/> A widow of a ''cum manu'' marriage could select her own [[Women's rights|tutor]] and draft a [[Will (law)|will]].<ref name="Gardner12">Jane F. Gardner, ''Women in Roman Law and Society'', First Midland Book Edition, 1991, 12</ref>


Cum manu (i.e. the woman enters into manus) was procured by one of three ways: '''[[Confarreatio]]''', '''Coemptio''' and '''Usus'''.<ref name="Colish"/>[[File:August Pio-Clementino Inv259.jpg|thumb|Roman high priests often associated with ''Confarreatio'' ceremony]]
''Cum manu'' was procured in one of three ways: ''[[confarreatio]]'', ''coemptio'' and ''usus''.<ref name="Colish"/>[[File:August Pio-Clementino Inv259.jpg|thumb|Roman high priests were often associated with the ''confarreatio'' ceremony]]


===Confarreatio===
===''Confarreatio''===
{{main|Confarreatio}}
The ritual of '''[[confarreatio]]''' was one way of obtaining cum manu marriage, limited to the practice of [[Patrician (ancient Rome)|patricians]].<ref name="Colish"/> This is a particular kind of [[sacrifice]] made to [[Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter]].<ref name="Evans">Judith Evans Grubbs,''Women and the law in the Roman Empire: a sourcebook on marriage, divorce and widowhood'', 2002 by Rouledge, 22
The ritual of ''[[confarreatio]]'', a kind of [[sacrifice]] made to [[Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter]],<ref name="Evans">Judith Evans Grubbs, ''Women and the law in the Roman Empire: a sourcebook on marriage, divorce and widowhood'', 2002 by Routledge, 22</ref> was available only to [[Patrician (ancient Rome)|patricians]].<ref name="Colish"/> During this [[ritual]], the [[bride]] and [[bridegroom|groom]] shared a bread made of [[emmer]] (''farreus'') (hence, the term ''confarreatio'' translates to "sharing of emmer bread"), a process that required the presence of ten [[witnesses]] and the [[recital]] of ceremonial [[sacred]] [[Verse (poetry)|verses]].<ref name="Evans"/>
</ref> During this [[ritual]] the [[bridegroom]] and bride shared a bread made of ''farreus'' known as [[Emmer|emmer grain]], hence confarreatio translates to “sharing of emmer bread.”<ref name="Evans"/> This process required the presence of ten [[witnesses]] and the [[recital]] of ceremonial [[sacred]] [[Verse (poetry)|verses]].<ref name="Evans"/> High [[priests]] such as the priests of [[Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter]], [[Mars (mythology)|Mars]], and [[Quirinus]] were required to be born from confarreatio union and were otherwise unqualified to obtain [[priesthood]].<ref name="Evans"/>


As confarreatio slowly fell from favor it became difficult to find [[candidates]] for priesthood.<ref name="Evans"/><ref name="Susan23">Susan Treggiari,''Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges'',Oxford University Press, 1993, 23</ref> In order to revive confarreatio marriages, the practice endured some [[amendments]].<ref name="Evans"/> Consequently, the ''[[Flamen Dialis|flamen Dialis’s]]'' wife only fell under the control of her husband during rituals, and was otherwise as autonomous as other women.<ref name="Evans"/> Cum manu was no longer acquired by the employment of confarretio and became restricted to [[Patrician (ancient Rome)|patricians]] pursuing in priestly positions.<ref name="Susan24">Susan Treggiari,''Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges'',Oxford University Press, 1993, 24</ref>
[[High priest]]s of [[Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter]], [[Mars (mythology)|Mars]], and [[Quirinus]] were required to be born from ''confarreatio'' unions.<ref name="Evans"/> As ''confarreatio'' fell from favor, it became increasingly difficult to find candidates for priesthood.<ref name="Evans"/><ref name="Susan23">Susan Treggiari, ''Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges'', Oxford University Press, 1993, 23</ref> In order to revive the practice of ''confarreatio'', it was amended such that the wife of a ''[[Flamen Dialis]]'' fell under the control of her husband only during rituals and was otherwise as autonomous as other women.<ref name="Evans"/> ''Cum manu'' was no longer acquired through ''confarreatio'' and became restricted to [[Patrician (ancient Rome)|patricians]] pursuing priestly positions.<ref name="Susan24">Susan Treggiari, ''Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges'', Oxford University Press, 1993, 24</ref>


===Coemptio===
===''Coemptio''===
The matrimonial process of '''coemptio''' was in essence a [[Legal fiction|fictitious]] notional sale of the woman to the husband.<ref name="Colish"/><ref name="Gardner12"/> Coemptio occurred at any time throughout marriage.<ref name="Susan24"/> This was a process of mancipation.<ref name="Evans"/> The transaction occurred with a [[Weighing scale|scales]]-holder and in the presence of at least five [[witnesses]], all of whom were adult male Roman [[citizens]].<ref name="Susan24"/>
The matrimonial process of ''coemptio'', in essence a [[Legal fiction|notional]] sale of the woman to the husband,<ref name="Colish"/><ref name="Gardner12"/> could be transacted at any point during the marriage.<ref name="Susan24"/> The transaction was conducted by a [[Weighing scale|scales]]-holder in the presence of at least five [[witnesses]], all of whom were adult male [[Roman citizen]]s.<ref name="Susan24"/> ''Coemptio'' could be contracted not only with a husband ("for the sake of marriage"), but also with an outsider ("for the sake of trust").<ref name="Susan24"/> A wife who had become ''cum manu'' through the process of ''coemptio'' was emancipated upon divorce.<ref name="Susan"/> By the 2nd century AD, a wife could compel her husband to emancipate her, a right not shared by her children.<ref name="Susan24"/> ''Coemptio'' was presumably a rare practice even during the 2nd century BC.<ref name="Gardner12"/>{{why|date=October 2019}}


⚫
===''Usus''===
Coemptio could occur not only with a husband but also with an outsider.<ref name="Susan24"/> However, this process is deemed for the “sake of trust” not for the “sake of marriage.”<ref name="Susan24"/> Coemptio was only a convenient legal practice.<ref name="Susan24"/> If a wife became cum manu through the process of coemptio [[divorced]], then she became [[emancipated]].<ref name="Susan"/> By the 2nd century AD, a wife was able to compel her husband to [[emancipate]] her, a right not shared by her children.<ref name="Susan24"/> Coemptio was presumably a rare practice even during the 2nd century BC under [[Gaius Gracchus|Gaius]].<ref name="Gardner12"/> In addition, it was possibly the remains of earlier practices of notional sale.<ref name="Colish"/>
⚫
A ''cum manu'' acquired by ''usus'' was simply the [[cohabitation]] of the husband and wife for the duration of a year,<ref name="Colish"/> after which [[ownership]] of the wife was transferred to her partner and she was considered taken by the [[decree]] of yearly possession. This process required no [[ceremonial]] practices.<ref name="Gardner13">Jane F. Gardner, ''Women in Roman Law and Society'', First Midland Book Edition, 1991, 13</ref>


If the woman was not willing to come under the [[ownership]] of her husband, she could avoid ''manus'' by absenting herself for the total of three days and three nights before the end of each year.<ref name="Evans"/> A woman married ''cum manu'' through ''usus'' was emancipated upon divorce.<ref name="Susan"/>
⚫
===Usus===
⚫
A cum manu acquired by '''usus''' was simply the [[cohabitation]] of the husband and wife for the duration of a year.<ref name="Colish"/> After a year passed the wife was transferred into the ownership of her partner, she was considered taken by the [[decree]] of yearly possession.<ref name="Gardner13">Jane F. Gardner,''Women in Roman Law and Society'',First Midland Book Edition, 1991, 13</ref> This process required no [[ceremonial]] practices.<ref name="Gardner13"/>


The law of ''usus'' was eventually repealed, presumably because the practice had fallen out of use.{{citation needed|date=October 2019}}
If the woman was not willing to come into [[ownership]] of her husband, manus by usus was easily preventable.<ref name="Evans"/> As conditioned in the [[Twelve Tables]] if the wife absented herself for the total of three days and three nights before the end of the year, each year, the marriage was not cum manu, and she was not under the ownership of her husband.<ref name="Evans"/> If a woman married cum manu through the process of usus later divorced, she became [[emancipated]].<ref name="Susan"/> Subsequently, the law of usus was dissolved by legal [[Coming into force|enactments]] presumably because it fell out of use.


==Sine manu==
==''Sine manu''==
In a '''sine manu''' union the wife legally and ritually remained a member of her father's family, standing under the control of her father's [[potestas]].<ref name="Colish"/> A sine manu marriage did not change the legal status of the bride after the marriage, in regards to property rights.<ref name="Colish"/><ref>John Peradotto and J.P. Sulliva,''Women in the Ancient World: The Arethus Papers'', State University of New York Press, 1984, 243</ref> In other words, the [[bride]] is not under control of the husband.<ref name="John">[[John William Smith (legal writer)|John William Smith]], John Innes Clark Hare, Horace Binny Wallace, John William Wallace,''A selection of leading cases, on various branches of the law'' Law Booksellers and Publishers, 1855, Volume 2, 409</ref> This form of marriage held no ceremonial formalities led by a [[public official]].<ref name="Colish"/> Ultimately it involved a husband and wife living together under the intention of a marriage, in conjunction with the legal capacity of marriage under the [[Roman law]].<ref name="Colish"/> Although no official ceremony was held, it was [[customary]] for the bride to be escorted to her [[bridegroom]]'s house.<ref name="Colish"/> The children of this union were legally members of the husband’s [[agnatic]] [[Kinship|kin]].<ref name="Susan32">Susan Treggiari,''Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges'',Oxford University Press, 1993, 32</ref> They held no legal connection with the mother’s [[Pater familias|paterfamilias]], and could not make claims on her [[Intestacy|intestate]].<ref name="Susan32"/>
In a ''sine manu'' union, the wife legally and ritually remained a member of her father's family, standing under the control of her father's ''[[potestas]]''.<ref name="Colish"/> A ''sine manu'' marriage did not change the legal status of the bride with respect to property rights.<ref name="Colish"/><ref>John Peradotto and J.P. Sullivan, ''Women in the Ancient World: The Arethus Papers'', State University of New York Press, 1984, 243</ref> In other words, the [[bride]] is not under control of the husband.<ref name="John">[[John William Smith (legal writer)|John William Smith]], John Innes Clark Hare, Horace Binny Wallace, John William Wallace, ''A selection of leading cases, on various branches of the law'' Law Booksellers and Publishers, 1855, Volume 2, 409</ref> This form of marriage was not solemnized with ceremonial formalities, although it was [[Norm (social)|customary]] for the bride to be escorted to her bridegroom's house, but rather involved a husband and wife living together with the intention of marriage under [[Roman law]].<ref name="Colish"/> The children of this union were legally members of the husband's [[agnatic]] [[Kinship|kin]].<ref name="Susan32">Susan Treggiari, ''Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges'', Oxford University Press, 1993, 32</ref> They held no legal connection with the mother's [[Pater familias|paterfamilias]] and could not make claims on her [[Intestacy|intestate]].<ref name="Susan32"/>


It was only when the woman’s paterfamilias died that she became ''[[sui iuris]]''.<ref name="Susan32"/> This union allowed the wife to become independent sooner than cum manu, under the assumption that the fathers are likely to have died before a husband. Primarily this served the natal family, allowing her property to stay in the father’s possession.<ref name="Evans21">Judith Evans Grubbs,''Women and the law in the Roman Empire: a sourcebook on marriage, divorce and widowhood'', 2002 by Rouledge, 21</ref>
It was only when the woman's ''paterfamilias'' died that she became ''[[sui iuris]]''.<ref name="Susan32"/> This union allowed the wife to become independent sooner than ''cum manu'', under the assumption that the fathers are likely to have died before a husband. Primarily this served the natal family, allowing her property to stay in the father's possession.<ref name="Evans21">Judith Evans Grubbs, ''Women and the law in the Roman Empire: a sourcebook on marriage, divorce and widowhood'', 2002 by Routledge, 21</ref>


Various factors may have led to the extinction of cum manu and the predominance of sine manu during the Roman Republic. Women faced with the loss of property when entering a cum manu marriage began to only [[consent]] to sine manu unions.<ref name="Van"/>
Various factors may have led to the extinction of ''cum manu'' and the predominance of ''sine manu'' during the [[Roman Republic]]. Women faced with the loss of property when entering a ''cum manu'' marriage began to only consent to ''sine manu'' unions.<ref name="Van"/>


==See also==
==See also==
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Manus Marriage}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Manus Marriage}}
[[Category:Ancient Roman society]]
[[Category:Marriage in ancient Rome]]
[[Category:Marriage]]
[[Category:Types of marriage]]

Latest revision as of 13:26, 11 October 2024

Relief showing a Roman marriage ceremony. Museo di Capodimonte

Manus (/ˈmeɪnəs/ MAY-nəs; Latin: [ˈmanʊs]) was an Ancient Roman type of marriage,[1] of which there were two forms: cum manu and sine manu.[2] In a cum manu marriage, the wife was placed under the legal control of the husband.[1][2] In a sine manu marriage, the wife remained under the legal control of her father.[3]

In both cum manu and sine manu marriages, if both the husband and wife were alieni iuris (persons under patria potestas; that is, under the power of their respective patres familias), the marriage could only take place with the approval of both patres familias.[3] Procedures for initiating and terminating marriage varied with the type of union.[3]

Initially, cum manu was the sole form of marriage, but eventually only sine manu marriage was widely practiced.[4]

Cum manu

[edit]

In a cum manu union, the wife was released from the control of her father and became a member of her husband's family,[3] standing thereafter under potestas of her husband or her father-in-law.[1][5] Legally adopted by her husband,[1] she received the same entitlements as other children in the family over matters of intestate succession[1] and inherited thereafter not from her father but from her husband.[3] However, the power he held over her was limited in comparison to that which he held over his own daughter;[1] he lacked for example, the legal right of life and death, and noxal surrender or sale over her.[1] This change of status, known as capitis diminutio minima,[6] conferred on the wife the title of materfamilias.[6]

The wife in a cum manu marriage held no proprietary capacity, meaning she could not own any property.[1][3] Ownership of everything acquired prior to cum manu was transferred to her husband or his paterfamilias, while existing liabilities were erased. However, during the time of Cicero, the dowry was recognized as distinguishable and therefore recoverable.[3]

A widowed or divorced woman became sui iuris.[3] A widow of a cum manu marriage could select her own tutor and draft a will.[7]

Cum manu was procured in one of three ways: confarreatio, coemptio and usus.[3]

Roman high priests were often associated with the confarreatio ceremony

Confarreatio

[edit]
Main article: Confarreatio

The ritual of confarreatio, a kind of sacrifice made to Jupiter,[8] was available only to patricians.[3] During this ritual, the bride and groom shared a bread made of emmer (farreus) (hence, the term confarreatio translates to "sharing of emmer bread"), a process that required the presence of ten witnesses and the recital of ceremonial sacred verses.[8]

High priests of Jupiter, Mars, and Quirinus were required to be born from confarreatio unions.[8] As confarreatio fell from favor, it became increasingly difficult to find candidates for priesthood.[8][9] In order to revive the practice of confarreatio, it was amended such that the wife of a Flamen Dialis fell under the control of her husband only during rituals and was otherwise as autonomous as other women.[8] Cum manu was no longer acquired through confarreatio and became restricted to patricians pursuing priestly positions.[10]

Coemptio

[edit]

The matrimonial process of coemptio, in essence a notional sale of the woman to the husband,[3][7] could be transacted at any point during the marriage.[10] The transaction was conducted by a scales-holder in the presence of at least five witnesses, all of whom were adult male Roman citizens.[10] Coemptio could be contracted not only with a husband ("for the sake of marriage"), but also with an outsider ("for the sake of trust").[10] A wife who had become cum manu through the process of coemptio was emancipated upon divorce.[6] By the 2nd century AD, a wife could compel her husband to emancipate her, a right not shared by her children.[10] Coemptio was presumably a rare practice even during the 2nd century BC.[7][why?]

Usus

[edit]

A cum manu acquired by usus was simply the cohabitation of the husband and wife for the duration of a year,[3] after which ownership of the wife was transferred to her partner and she was considered taken by the decree of yearly possession. This process required no ceremonial practices.[11]

If the woman was not willing to come under the ownership of her husband, she could avoid manus by absenting herself for the total of three days and three nights before the end of each year.[8] A woman married cum manu through usus was emancipated upon divorce.[6]

The law of usus was eventually repealed, presumably because the practice had fallen out of use.[citation needed]

Sine manu

[edit]

In a sine manu union, the wife legally and ritually remained a member of her father's family, standing under the control of her father's potestas.[3] A sine manu marriage did not change the legal status of the bride with respect to property rights.[3][12] In other words, the bride is not under control of the husband.[2] This form of marriage was not solemnized with ceremonial formalities, although it was customary for the bride to be escorted to her bridegroom's house, but rather involved a husband and wife living together with the intention of marriage under Roman law.[3] The children of this union were legally members of the husband's agnatic kin.[13] They held no legal connection with the mother's paterfamilias and could not make claims on her intestate.[13]

It was only when the woman's paterfamilias died that she became sui iuris.[13] This union allowed the wife to become independent sooner than cum manu, under the assumption that the fathers are likely to have died before a husband. Primarily this served the natal family, allowing her property to stay in the father's possession.[14]

Various factors may have led to the extinction of cum manu and the predominance of sine manu during the Roman Republic. Women faced with the loss of property when entering a cum manu marriage began to only consent to sine manu unions.[4]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Jane F. Gardner, Women in Roman Law and Society, First Midland Book Edition, 1991, 11
  2. ^ a b c John William Smith, John Innes Clark Hare, Horace Binny Wallace, John William Wallace, A selection of leading cases, on various branches of the law Law Booksellers and Publishers, 1855, Volume 2, 409
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Marcia L. Colish, The Stoic Tradition from Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages, Brill Academic Publishers, 1990, 2 Edition, 383
  4. ^ a b Rena Van den Bergh, "The Role of Education in the Social and Legal Position of Women in Roman Society", 11
  5. ^ Judith P. Hallett and Thoman Van Nortwick, Compromising Traditions, Routledge, 1997, 34
  6. ^ a b c d Susan Treggiari, Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges, Oxford University Press, 1993, 28
  7. ^ a b c Jane F. Gardner, Women in Roman Law and Society, First Midland Book Edition, 1991, 12
  8. ^ a b c d e f Judith Evans Grubbs, Women and the law in the Roman Empire: a sourcebook on marriage, divorce and widowhood, 2002 by Routledge, 22
  9. ^ Susan Treggiari, Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges, Oxford University Press, 1993, 23
  10. ^ a b c d e Susan Treggiari, Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges, Oxford University Press, 1993, 24
  11. ^ Jane F. Gardner, Women in Roman Law and Society, First Midland Book Edition, 1991, 13
  12. ^ John Peradotto and J.P. Sullivan, Women in the Ancient World: The Arethus Papers, State University of New York Press, 1984, 243
  13. ^ a b c Susan Treggiari, Roman Marriage: Iusti Coniuges, Oxford University Press, 1993, 32
  14. ^ Judith Evans Grubbs, Women and the law in the Roman Empire: a sourcebook on marriage, divorce and widowhood, 2002 by Routledge, 21
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