Novgorod Judicial Charter
Encyclopedia
The Novgorod Judicial Charter (Russian: Новгородская судная грамота) was the legal code of the Novgorod Republic
, issued in 1440, although the current version was supplemented in 1471 under the auspices of Grand Prince Ivan III (r, 1462-1505), and his son, Ivan Ivanovich [1458-90; predeceased his father and never reigned] and
The charter exists in only one copy with the end missing. While it was issued very late in the history of the Novgorod Republic, it probably codified practices that had existed for some time. It allowed for four sets of courts: the ecclesiastical, headed by the archbishop of Novgorod
); the mayoral, headed by the posadnik
; the princely, headed by the prince or his namestnik (lieutenant); and the tysyatsky's
, headed by the tysyatsky, who was originally head of the town militia, although the court probably served as a commercial court.
The various provisions of the charter dealt with administrative matters, the collection of court fees and stipulated that cases had to be completed before a posadnik left office (they were elected annually). It did not deal with particular crimes as such. That was dealt with in the Russkaya Pravda
.
The Novgorod Judicial Charter, along with the similar Pskov Judicial Charter, are considered more sophisticated than Muscovite law of the time, and contributing factors in Ivan III's issuance of the Sudebnik of 1497.
Novgorod Republic
The Novgorod Republic was a large medieval Russian state which stretched from the Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains between the 12th and 15th centuries, centred on the city of Novgorod...
, issued in 1440, although the current version was supplemented in 1471 under the auspices of Grand Prince Ivan III (r, 1462-1505), and his son, Ivan Ivanovich [1458-90; predeceased his father and never reigned] and
according to the blessing of the hieromonk Feofil who was named to the archbishopric of Novgorod the Great and Pskov, so [then] the mayors of Novgorod, and the Novgorod millenariuses, and boyars, and ranking men, and merchants, and taxpaying townsmen, all five boroughs (kontsyKontsyКontsy literally "ends", were the five boroughs into which medieval Novgorod the Great was divided. They were based on the three original settlements that combined to form the city toward the end of the tenth century: the Nerev End, the Liudin End , and the Slavno End; two later additions -...
)[of Novgorod], [and] all Lord Novgorod the Great at assembly (vecheVecheVeche was a popular assembly in medieval Slavic countries.In Novgorod, where the veche acquired the greatest prominence, the veche was broadly similar to the Norse thing or the Swiss Landsgemeinde.-Etymology:...
) in Iaroslav's court
The charter exists in only one copy with the end missing. While it was issued very late in the history of the Novgorod Republic, it probably codified practices that had existed for some time. It allowed for four sets of courts: the ecclesiastical, headed by the archbishop of Novgorod
Archbishop of Novgorod
The Archbishop of Novgorod is the head of the eparchy of Novgorod the Great and is one of the oldest offices in the Russian Orthodox Church. The archbishops have, in fact, been among the most important figures in medieval Russian history and culture and their successors continued to play...
); the mayoral, headed by the posadnik
Posadnik
Posadnik was the mayor in some East Slavic cities or towns. Most notably, the posadnik was the mayor of Novgorod and Pskov...
; the princely, headed by the prince or his namestnik (lieutenant); and the tysyatsky's
Tysyatsky
Tysyatsky was a military leader in Ancient Rus, who commanded a people's volunteer army called тысяча...
, headed by the tysyatsky, who was originally head of the town militia, although the court probably served as a commercial court.
The various provisions of the charter dealt with administrative matters, the collection of court fees and stipulated that cases had to be completed before a posadnik left office (they were elected annually). It did not deal with particular crimes as such. That was dealt with in the Russkaya Pravda
Russkaya Pravda
Russkaya Pravda was the legal code of Kievan Rus' and the subsequent Rus' principalities during the times of feudal division.In spite of great influence of Byzantine legislation on the contemporary world, and in...
.
The Novgorod Judicial Charter, along with the similar Pskov Judicial Charter, are considered more sophisticated than Muscovite law of the time, and contributing factors in Ivan III's issuance of the Sudebnik of 1497.