The beginning of the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich was marked by popular unrest caused by high taxation. Overcoming the Time of Troubles required the creation of new laws and the streamlining of the legal system. The drafting of a single document was entrusted to the close tsar under the leadership of Prince Odoevsky.
Council Code of 1649
In compiling the new code, the members of the convened Zemsky Sobor relied on domestic and foreign experience. The Code was developed on the basis of previous Codes of Laws, Stoglav 1551, Lithuanian and Byzantine laws. Additional sources were ukazny books of orders (Zemsky, Local, Robbery), public township and noble complaints.
Carefully worked out questions of all branches of law and the order of legal proceedings were contained in a document consisting of 967 articles, united in 25 chapters. A significant part of the code was devoted to the postulates establishing the autocratic power of the king. For the first time, an interpretation of state crime was introduced.
Forms and procedureprocess
Civil and criminal law was not delimited by the code of 1649. However, the forms of conducting proceedings: adversarial (court) and investigative (investigation) - were described in detail. In property, political and religious cases, preliminary investigation and search were used. The preliminary investigation consisted in the arrest or detention of the suspect.
The investigation of property cases, thefts and robberies began with the filing of petitions, political and religious - with the indication of the authorities or the king.
For the investigation of controversial property cases, a special procedure was established. The petition (complaint) served as the basis for starting the trial. After that, the defendant was summoned to court. The representative of the court compiled a list of persons with information about the ownership of the disputed area. Relatives and servants involved in the process were not among the witnesses. The list of the latter was subject to approval by the court.
Detective (search) was appointed to investigate criminal offenses. It, as in the Sudebnik of 1497, could begin with the discovery of the fact of a crime, a statement by the victim or a slander. The investigating authorities were granted extensive powers, including the possibility of using torture. For the first time, the order of their conduct was regulated.
Evidence system
Evidence requirements have not changed. The main evidence was the results of a general and general search. Under the general search was meant a questioning about the most allegedcrimes. An indiscriminate search involved a survey that revealed the character and lifestyle of the suspect. The oath, lot, written sources and testimonies were still used.
General search - what is it?
Under the concept meant a survey of residents of the neighborhood, who are not interested in the case, about the life and identity of the suspect. Roundabout people were questioned not in court, but on the spot. In the courtroom, reference was made to the interviewees without giving names.
The indiscriminate search acquired special significance in the event that the accused was recognized as a "dashing person", that is, constantly committing crimes. The results of the survey had legal implications. If the majority of those interviewed called the suspect a "dashing" person, no other evidence was needed. The punishment was life imprisonment. The death pen alty was applied if two-thirds of the respondents called the accused "dashing". The recognition of the suspect as a "kind person" became the basis for transferring him on bail with the obligation not to commit a crime in the future.
The results of the general search could be the basis for the use of torture. Testimonies were recorded and supported by an oath. The procedure was reminiscent of the “fake” familiar from the previous Code of Laws, but required a larger number of participants. An assessment of the credibility and strength of the testimony was provided to the court.
The list of persons subject to a wholesale search included only "kind people". The category consisted of the prosperous part of the townspeople, landowners, and black-draft peasants. The number of respondents from 5-6 (Sudebnik1497), later 20 (Sudebnik 1550) increased to 100 people. Carrying out the procedure was charged with the duties of provincial (district) organizations and governors.
The meaning of the Code
In the Council Code of 1649, there is an increase in the role of the search (inquisition) process. According to the Council Code of 1649, the remnant of the ancient right of society to participate in court, that is, a general search, is transformed into judicial evidence, exceeding all others in its strength. The investigation of cases called "by the sovereign in word and deed" (political crimes) was conducted most severely.
The Code determined the development of the Russian legal system for many decades and served as the main source of law until the adoption in 1832 of the Code of Laws of the Russian Empire.
