Smith, William: A smaller dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities (London, 1871)

MATRIMOXICM.

MATRIMOXIUM.

ventio. But both forms of marriage agreed
in this : there must be connubium between
the parties, and consent. The legal conse-
quences as to the power of the father over
his children were the same in both. Connu-
bium is merely a term which comprehends
all the conditions of a legal marriage. Ge-
nerally it may be stated, that there was only
ccnnubium between Roman citizens; the
cases in which it at any time existed between
parties, not both Roman citizens, were ex-
ceptions to the general rule. Originally, or
at least at one period of the republic, there
was no connubium between the patricians
and the plebeians; but this was altered by
the Lex Canuleia (b. c. 445.), which allowed
connubium between persons of those two
classes. There were various degrees of con-
sanguinity and affinity, within which there
was no connubium. An illegal union of a
male and female, though affecting to be, was
not a marriage : the man had no legal wife,
and the children had no legal father : conse-
quently they were not in the power of their
reputed father. The marriage Cum conven-
tions differed from that Sine conventione, in
the relationship which it effected between the
husband and the wife; the marriage cum.
conventione was a necessary condition to
make a woman a materfamilias. By the
marriage cum conventione, the wife passed
into the faniilia of her husband, and was to
him in the relation of a daughter, or, as it
was expressed, in manum convenit. In the
marriage sine conventione, the wife's rela-
tion to her own familia remained as before,
and she was merely uxor. " Uxor," says
Cicero, " is a genus of which there are two
species; one is matcrfamilias, quae in ma-
num convenit; the other is uxor only." Ac-
cordingly, a matcrfamilias is a wife who is in
manu, and in the familia of her husband. A
wife not in manu was not a member of her
husband's faniilia, and therefore the term
could not apply to her. Matrona was pro-
perly a wife not in manu, and equivalent to
uxor; and she was called matrona before she
had any children. But these words are not
always used in these their original and
proper meanings. It does not appear that
any forms were requisite in the marriage
sine conventione; and apparently the evi-
dence of such marriage was cohabitation ma-
trimonii causa. The matrimonii causa might
be proved by various kinds of evidence. In
the case of a marriage cum conventione,
there were three forms, 1. Usus, 2. Far-
reum, and 3. Coemptio.—1. JIarriage was
effected by usus, if a woman lived with a
man for a whole year as his wife; and this
was by analogy to usucaption of movables j

generally, in which usus for one year gave
ownership. The Law of the Twelve Tables pro-
vided, that if a woman did not wish to come
into the manus of her husband in this man-
ner, she should absent herself from him
annually for three nights [trinoctium) and so
break the usus of the year. 2. Farreum was
a form of marriage, in which certain words
were used in the presence of ten witnesses,
and were accompanied by a certain religious
ceremony, in which panis farreus was em-
ployed ; and hence this form of marriage was
also called confarrcatio. It appears that
certain priestly olfices, such as that of Fla-
men Dialis, could only be held by those who
were born of parents who had been married
by this ceremony {confarreati parentes). 3.
Coemptio was effected by mancipatio, and
consequently the wife was in manciple*.
[MANClPruM.] A woman who was cohabit-
ing with a man as uxor, might come into his
manus by this ceremony, in which case the
coemptio was said to be matrimonii causa,
and she who was formerly uxor became
apud maritum filiae loco. Sponsalia were
not an unusual preliminary of marriage, but
they were not necessary.-—The sponsalia were
an agreement to marry, made in such form
as to give each party a right of action
in case of non-performance, and the offend-
ing party was condemned in such damages
as to the judex seemed just. The woman
who was promised in marriage was accord-
ingly called sponsa, which is equivalent to
promissa; the man who was engaged to
marry was called sponsus.—The sponsalia
were of course not binding, if the parties
consented to waive the contract. Sometimes
a present was made by the future husband to
the future wife by way of earnest (arrha,
arrlia sponsalitia), or, as it was called, prop-
ter nuptias donatio.—The consequences of
marriage were—1. The power of the father
over the children of the marriage, which was
a completely new relation, an effect indeed
of marriage, but one which had no influence
over the relation of the husband and wife.
[Patiua Potestas.] 2. The liabilities of
either of the parties to the punishments
affixed to the violation of the marriage union.
[Adulterium ; Divortium.]' 3. The relation
of husband and wife with respect to property.
[Dos.] When marriage was dissolved, the
parties to it might marry again ; but opinion
considered it more decent for a woman not
to marry again. A woman was required by
usage (mos) to wait a year before she con-
tracted a second marriage, on the pain of
infamia.—It remains to describe the customs
and rites which were observed by the Ro-
mans at marriages. After the parties had