This event took place on Tue 1 Nov 2016 at The British Academy.

Speaker:
Professor David d’Avray FBA, University College London

Chaired by Dame Janet Nelson FBA, King's College London

Popes started issuing decrees modelled on those of Roman emperors while the Empire in the West was still going strong. The tradition of papal legislation continues to this day, when it governs aspects of the lives of many millions (especially where marriage is concerned). No legal system in world history has had so long a living history. The lecture will trace its evolution from the fourth to the early twentieth century, and attempt to explain the major transformations.

About the speaker: 
Professor David d’Avray obtained a BA from Cambridge in 1973 a MA in 1977 and a DPhil from Oxford in 1977.  He has been Professor of History at University College London since 1996, previously he was a Lecturer 1977-93 and Reader, 1993-96.  He became a Fellow of the British Academy in 2005.  His latest publications are: Papacy, Monarchy and Marriage (2015), Dissolving Royal Marriages: A Documentary History, 860-1600(2014) and Thirteenth Century Marriage Preaching in Context (2013).

Image credit: British Library

Find out more :http://www.britac.ac.uk/events/stages-papal-law-385-1917

Stages of papal law, 385-1917

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