Drakoni taking action
- Athens, c. 621 or 622. Drakon, who held the position of eponymous archon of the city, was the first to write a code of laws that extended orally until then.
Little is known about Drakon's life, as well as a curious story about his death: He died at Egina Theatre, showing his support and admiration in a traditional way, drowning under the hat, cloak and shirts of his followers.
Therefore, Dakron is known above all for its legal code. And because of the drastic measures to deal with the coronavirus crisis, its name is on the lips of many. In fact, the encyclopedia thus defines the word “Drakoniense”: a very hard law or decision.
Drakon's code gathers this meaning because it also established the death penalty for minor crimes, such as the theft of a cabbage. Plutarch (c. 50-120), according to the Greek historian: “When asked why he had been sentenced to death for most of the crimes, Drakon said that, in his view, the smallest crime was worthy of death and that, for the most serious crimes, no heavier punishment occurred.”
And because of the drastic measures to deal with the coronavirus crisis, its name is on the lips of many.
However, many more modern historians have wanted to highlight the positive contributions made by Drakon’s code: first separated murder and involuntary homicide, annulled the penalty of slavery for debts (only when the debtor was a high-level citizen)… However, many others question all of this, because the original text allows many translations and interpretations.
But after all, the mere fact of collecting the laws in writing made Athens a little more democratic. In the past, oral laws were only known to members of a small powerful elite, who interpreted and established them at their own discretion. Thanks to Drakon, they came to a slightly older elite that I could read.
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