How did Theodor Mommsen contribute to the study of Roman law and government?

Theodor Mommsen’s contributions to the study of Roman law and government were foundational to classical scholarship. His work was deeply influenced by his early study of jurisprudence, which at the time was largely focused on Roman law, and by the historical school of jurisprudence led by Friedrich Karl von Savigny.1

Mommsen’s most significant achievement in this field was his three-volume Römisches Staatsrecht ("Roman Constitutional Law"), published between 1871 and 1888. Because the Romans never codified their own constitutional law, Mommsen became the first scholar to do so. He applied a rigorous historical approach to systematize the complex, innumerable legal details underlying the Roman constitution, explaining them through their historical development.2

Additionally, Mommsen extended his expertise to criminal law with his final major work, Römisches Strafrecht ("Roman Criminal Law"), published in 1899. By grounding his research in both law and the classics, Mommsen transformed the understanding of Roman public life, moving beyond purely literary traditions to incorporate nonliterary sources like inscriptions and coins.21