The French Civil Code of 1804 and its drafters: between Revolution and Restoration
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.23925/politica.v13i2.72183Keywords:
Civil Code of 1804, Jean-Étienne-Marie Portalis, Neo-monarchists, Enlightenment, Philosophy of LawAbstract
This article, an expanded version of a section from a doctoral dissertation defended at the Faculty of Law of the University of São Paulo in 2023, proposes a reinterpretation of the genesis of the French Civil Code of 1804, moving away from the traditional view that conceives it as a linear expression of Enlightenment liberalism and individualism. Based on the research of Jean-François Niort and Jean-Louis Halpérin, it demonstrates that the codification process was permeated by ideological ambivalences and political conflicts during the Consulate period. The study deepens the profile of the main drafters, focusing on Jean-Étienne-Marie Portalis, and argues that his philosophical-religious convictions and his affiliation with the "neo-monarchist" or "neo-Christian" current (as opposed to the "ideologues") resulted in a Code with a strong bias towards stabilization and restoration of order, rather than an affirmation of the radical revolutionary project. It concludes that the Napoleonic Code, while introducing elements of legal modernity, represented a containment of the extreme Enlightenment spirit, seeking to harmonize the revolutionary heritage with traditional values of Christian and monarchical origin.
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