The Legacy of Roman Law in the German Romantic Era

The exploration of German Roman law reveals its enduring impact into the industrial era, as scholars sought to revive the Roman social order amidst political and cultural shifts. James Whitman analyzes the Romantic era's legal landscape, making the rich tradition of German legal scholarship accessible beyond specialized circles. By examining both known treatises and untapped legal records, he highlights how lawyers like Savigny positioned themselves as "impartial" and "unpolitical," offering insights valuable to students of influential German thinkers like Marx and Weber.