Question

Civil Code of 1804 is also known as
A) Louis XVI code
B) Napoleonic code
C) Bill of Rights
D) Jacobian code

Answer 1

Hint: The need for codification, as well as codification itself, predates Napoleon's reign (1799–1815). The pre-revolutionary legal order was characterised by a wide range of laws. The south of France was governed by Roman law, whilst the northern regions, including Paris, had established a customary law based largely on feudal Frankish and Germanic institutions.

Complete answer:
The Napoleonic Code, also known as the French Civil Code or 1804 Code, is a French civil code that was established in 1804 by the French Consulate and is still in effect today, although is often revised.
It was drafted by a commission of four distinguished jurists and became effective on March 21, 1804. The Code was a significant step forward in replacing the prior hodgepodge of feudal laws, with its emphasis on properly defined and accessible law. Historian Robert Holtman considers it to be one of the rare documents that have had a global impact.

The Codex Maximilianeus bavaricus civilis (Bavaria, 1756), the Allgemeines Landrecht (Prussia, 1794), and the West Galician Code were among the earliest legal codes to be established in a European country with a civil-law legal system (Galicia, then part of Austria, 1797).

However, it was the first modern legal code to be approved with a pan-European scope, and it had a significant impact on the law of many of the countries formed during and after the Napoleonic Wars. The Napoleonic Code had an impact on developing countries outside of Europe, particularly in Latin America and the Middle East, as they attempted to modernise and defeudalize their societies through legal changes.

The Civil Code of 1804 is also known as the Napoleonic code. Therefore the correct answer is option ‘B’.

Note: The Code's preliminary article established certain significant measures about the rule of law. Laws could only be enforced if they had been lawfully promulgated and then published in the official gazette (including provisions for publishing delays, given the means of communication available at the time). As a result, no secret laws were permitted. It outlawed ex post facto legislation.