Understanding the term "constitution" in the period of ancient Rome

Abstract

It is indicated that the constitution in the modern state is the basis of the legal system, that is, it determines its normative component (legislation and other sources of law), as well as the system of state institutions, legal ideology, and legal consciousness. Thus, the Constitution defines the entire paradigm of constitutional and legal relations in one or another period of state development. At the same time, the transformation of ideas about the content of the constitution also reflects social and political processes.The article is devoted to the study of the process of formation and development of constitutionalism, the understanding of the term “constitution” and the idea that philosophers invested in this concept, looking for a better model of a stable political system of the state. The article analyzes the term “constitution” in historical retrospect and how it correlates with the understanding of constitutionalism in modern legal literature. The homeland of constitutionalism was the ancient Greek polis, and the main theoretician in this field was Aristotle, who, based on the study of the constitutions of the polis of his era, came to the conclusion that the best model of a constitution is a mixed constitution, since it is this model that guarantees a stable political system. An example of a mixed constitution was the constitution of Sparta. According to the opinion of Polybius and Cicero, the model of a mixed constitution was characteristic of Ancient Rome as well. The model of the mixed constitution was accepted by modern constitutionalism as a guide.The article concludes that the constitution in a narrow sense was understood as an institutional arrangement with an indication of who has access to governing bodies and can participate in decision making. Thus, it was about state management. The constitution, in a normative sense, was designed to adapt a just system of government to the nature and purpose of the community of citizens.